Dr Game

Sorry, I'm sure this is a common questions... I hope it isn't. I'm going to seriously start doing 15km weekly time trials next year for a season. And I need help trying to figure out the best way to train for a shorter sprint such as this. Such as just doing daily 30 minute sprints? or go longer?

operator

I'm in the same situation as you but I don't have verified information from people who've actually trained for it. From the stuff I read, it's mainly intervals of varying intensity and duration.

bps

It might be worth asking the folks in the Road Bike Racing forum (link is located at the top of this forum). Most of them hang out in here too...but you may get better answers in there. Also, that forum is not as busy as this one, so your thread is less likely to get buried...

I'm also interested, so I'm waiting for some good responses too!

Bryan

waterrockets 

Focused intensity. I recommend one sprint workout each week and one interval workout each week. Throw in either a hill-repeat or a TT workout and you can do what you want the other 2 or 3 days.

The sprints are 20 seconds or less, 100% maximum power, completely explosive to get to top speed. Start them at 95-100rpm and don't shift until you really have to (get up to 160rpm, then shift). Builds strength and helps you deal with short hills and wind during the TT. Full recovery (2 minutes?) between sprints, try to do 10 of them. If you can do each one on the same course, you can compare your performances each time to try to go faster, and to realize when you're starting to fade.

The intervals should be 1-minute, covering as much real estate as you possibly can in that time. It can't be a sprint, but it should be slightly above your anaerobic threshold. Don't start off at 100%, but work into a rhythm that you can just barely hold for the full minute. Full recovery (3-4 minutes) between intervals, do 6-10 of them. Intervals get me my endorphine fix, I don't think you have to do them to maximum pain level, but I always do, just in case. These will raise your anaerobic threshold, allowing you to ride at a higher heart rate for the duration of your TT, while at the same time increasing your power at a given heart rate. This is your bread and butter for TT improvement. Don't ever miss an interval workout during the week. If you can only ride one time in a given week, make sure you do your intervals.

Hill repeat or TT workouts, just ride them hard. Make sure you don't overtrain, take at least one rest day each week. If you feel like you shouldn't ride, don't.

Dr Game

thank you very much, now I have a much better Idea of what to do

waterrockets 

Yeah, you might toss up the sprints too. Do some from a standing start in an appropriate gear, some in way too big of a gear, etc.

Another sadistic workout is the sprint pyramid: 5s on, 5s off, 10 on, 10 off, 15 on, 15 off, 20/20, 25/25, 30/30, 25/25, 20/20, 15/15, 10/10, 5/5.

Nothing could be harder than that last 5s sprint at the end (the final 5s rest is meaningless since you're done anyway). Another hard part is doing math in your head from your cyclocomputer's clock while you're anaerobic. The sprints feel twice as long as the rests, even though they are the same duration.

This is an odd workout that actually does a pretty good job as an interval workout, while including 100% explosive sprints. If you can do two of these pyramids, go home. If you can do three (explosive sprints each time), then your head is stronger than mine. I've only done two of them a handfull of times, and I threw up attempting a third.

Gary Tingley

You can find some articles at www.socalttseries.com

Dr Game

so pyramid training is just as effective as interval? In that case how would a weekly plan such as this look something like this

Sunday - Interval 1 minute on 3 minutes off
Monday - Pyramid
Tuesday -Pyramid
Wednesday - Interval 1 minute on 4 minutes off
Thursday - Race TT Event
Friday - Pyramid
Saturday - Pyramid

magyar

This training plan sounds like a sure way to get stale from too much anaerobic work and possibly injure yourself.

While of course it's critical to include speed work (pyramids, intervals, etc.) into your routine to prepare for a time trial, it's just as important to maintain aerobic work as well. I haven't cycled competitively but I have rowed competitively, and even when tuning for a race we would still limit max effort training to 2 or three days a week. Your body needs time to recover from an effort like that. If you're going to train every day, I would suggest doing a long recovery session between interval/pyramid sessions.

You should also think about when you want to peak. You can't maintain the plan you've written week in and week out. You need to decide which TT you want to focus on, and work up to this plan over a number of weeks. Then start to back off a week before your race, then start building again.

Just my 0.02.

Dr Game

Week 1

Sunday - Interval 1 minute on 3 minutes off
Monday - Pyramid
Tuesday -Light Cycle Ride
Wednesday - Interval 1 minute on 4 minutes off
Thursday - Race TT Event
Friday - Pyramid
Saturday - Light Cycle Ride

Week 2

Sunday - Interval 1 minute on 4 minutes off
Monday - Light Cycle Ride
Tuesday -Light Cycle Ride
Wednesday - Interval 1 minute on 4 minutes off
Thursday - Race TT Event
Friday - Pyramid
Saturday - Light Cycle Ride

daytonian

I'm still trying to fiqure out why recommendation is for sprints as part of training. TT's are hard sustained efforts. You sprint last 100 meters, now for the other 9.98 miles.

godspiral

One of my favorite rides is a bike path segment that you can mostly go flat out on. Its 5km from water fountain to end. 10km round trip. Do it 2-4 times in a row, with rest by the water fountain each time. Sometimes rest at the half way point. Training to be fast on 5k should be good prep for 15k when you can push yourself more. Doing it consecutively helps with the "endurance" of the longer ride. I don't believe 20 second sprints approximates the race as well as 5-15km runs will. Doing 5kms will let you raise your cruising speed.

Phatman

agreed. your body gets good at what it does a lot. try some 2x20s at LT with full recovery in between. or maybe so 5-6 minute intervals with incomplete recovery just above LT.

anyway, the idea is to increase your body's ability to buffer lactic acid, so you can work at higher intensities (heat rates) sustainably.

SpongeDad

I'm new to paying attention to training, but I find it hard to develop high end leg without short burst sprints. The longer intervals and tempo riding, which still constitute most of the workout plan waterrockets was describing seem like more than enough to balance the one true day of sprint intervals.

I've tried, with limited consistency, to do the following:

1 day 30 sec sprints
1 day 4 to 6 1 mile hill repeats at low cadence / taller gearing
1 day 12 mile ITT
1 day long ride
1 day very high cadence intervals or higher than normal (say 110-115, try for 120 rpm) spin ride

waterrockets 

I wouldn't do pyramids, intervals, and sprints in the same week. I would only substitute pyramids on those weeks when either sprints or intervals don't sound so fun. Sprints and intervals are better focused workouts than pyramids, but pyramids are pretty good.

waterrockets 

You can't just train TTs all week and expect to improve. It takes a variety, and sprints and intervals are important techniques to develop massive power efficiency.

Read Chris Carmichael's book on coaching for a couple good articles by Hincapie and others on the subject. You need to get the intensity in there.

Dr Game

lol, thank you very much water rockets for everything

merlinextraligh

the base for TT's is steady state intervals. Do a lot of LT threshold work if you want to be abetter time trialist.

Duke of Kent

Just to clarify on the intervalS, i.e. plural...you should be doing them until you drop that day, or start losing form. I couldn't tell if you caught the fact that you're doing multiple efforts each day or not.

And as such, probably shouldn't be doing them multiple times a week, or the day before a TT. Too much stress on your system for a guy who is just starting a somewhat serious training program.

waterrockets 

+1 on all counts. About once a year I do too many intervals and puke on the last one. Try to do one less than that many (also, don't eat anything bigger than an energy bar w/in 2 hours of your ride, and nothing at all in the last hour)