hi

i'm pretty new to training and i'm in need for some training advice.

i don't have much training experience. i mostly did on and off/casual exercise the last years. this summer i started riding 2-3 times per week and got all motivated and a month ago i started using trainingpeaks and let them generate an annual training plan.

my question is: based on my current ftp what average tss per week shall i aim for? traininpeaks requires a weekly tss number.

what i did was i looked at my sessions of the last weeks, hours, tss values and all the other parameters of the performance management chart. i then guestimated what i believed might be a doable weekly tss figure and i used that as a base number. the training plan shows i'll reach my selected target tss in 3 months.

currently i simply go with it and see how things develop. i am now 4 weeks into my 6 week preparation-phase. trainingpeaks tells me i increase ctl by 1-2 points per week. personally i feel physically challanged but not overburdened.

so, how do you plan your target tss?

sorry for the long post and i appreciate any input.

cheers

You don't base a weekly TSS score on your FTP. You base it off what you've done in the past. Someone with a 200 ftp and a 400 ftp can both have a 600 TSS week. The training stress (in theory) will be very similar.

If you're new to training I wouldn't bother targeting tss or anything of the sort. If you've been riding casually, pretty much anything you're going to do is going to help you improve.

Get out there, join a group ride, learn lots, ride more when you feel good, take some days off, go after some strava segments, and then look at data a little bit further down the road.

Trying to do structured training right off the bat with little to no experience can quickly overwhelm and suck the fun out of it. You need to focus on learning how to ride first and foremost, in my opinion.

Sounds to me like you're doing the TrainingPeaks thing right. As pointed out, TSS is personal and unrelated to power output. My TSS is currently between 300 and 500, depending on the week. If (when) I start a ride or workout that's supposed to be X and such but, getting into it, I'm just not feeling it after 15-20 minutes, I back it off and take it easy. Conversely, sometimes I do feel it and ride the heck out of it when I'm supposed to be going moderate. I don't always let my forebrain run things for me. It's supposed to be fun.