Training philosophy

How I structure a year, a block and a week on the bike, and why.

01The year#

Periodization at the largest level is about how training changes throughout the year. The classic sports science model divides training into cycles that build toward a goal while preventing burnout and overtraining. These are usually described as macrocycles (the year), mesocycles (blocks of weeks) and microcycles (individual weeks or rides).

Where I live, with four distinct seasons, my training naturally ebbs in autumn and winter. I intentionally ride less and let my body and mind recover. If I lived somewhere warm year-round (Spain, for example), I might structure the year around external calendars instead, like race schedules, social events and vacations, since the climate wouldn't force the ebb and flow.

Note: I am not sure yet how I would deal with that, because the seasons (especially autumn) making riding more tedious are a big part of what shapes my year.

02Seasons and goals#

The next level down is training cycles of several months, shaped by your goals. For example:

• Spring criteriums build toward short, sharp and repeatable efforts early in the year.
• MTB in winter and gran fondos in summer mean two very different peaks.

What you want determines how you balance volume, intensity and recovery over those months.

What is obviously hard, if not impossible, is being specifically ready for everything at once. In a calendar that mixes gran fondos and criteriums at random, you cannot expect to be in your best shape for the event every time, even if you're as fit as you've ever been. You are limited by the total training stimulus you can absorb, which is bounded by the rest (the more important parts) of life and by how your body responds to training.

Note: personally, I know that in practice I should do more intensity early for spring races and ease into summer, but I don't always execute that cleanly. The human factor wins sometimes.

03Inside a block#

A reasonable training block (8–12 weeks) should have these phases, repeated at least twice:

1. Recovery
2. VO₂max focus
3. Threshold / sweet spot focus

I like this order because VO₂max work comes early, when freshness is higher and the quality of the work is higher as well, and longer threshold work fits better once fatigue has built up. Depending on how recovery is going, you can build some sprint work into the Zone 2 riding as racing season gets closer (or very early in the season). Periodization research supports alternating stress with recovery to promote adaptation without overreaching.

As the training specializes toward the goal of the block, my personal opinion is that no stimulus compares to racing. So I like to have at least one non-target event before the target event that replicates the efforts of the target event to some degree.

04A VO₂max week#

When I'm in a VO₂max-focused phase, a typical week looks like this:

• Two VO₂max interval sessions. I prefer intermittent intervals (e.g. 40/20, see below) to longer steady efforts. Short work and rest periods help me hit the intended intensity repeatedly, and research suggests that protocols which manipulate the work-to-rest ratio can maximize time spent near VO₂max. Many interval studies also suggest that high-intensity intervals improve VO₂max more than moderate riding alone.
• Easy spins or active recovery.
• One or two group rides. I use group rides for variety and social intensity. The easy parts are easy; the hard parts are hard.

In total this makes a hard week, but it is also valid to spread it out over up to 14 days to let the body recover between the interval sessions and the group rides. I like group rides to be hard in parts, but not excruciatingly hard, and most importantly fun. If a group ride is not something I look forward to, I skip it entirely.

The size of the athlete can make a difference to how hard a group ride feels, and so can the geography around them: for a lighter or heavier rider, or on a hilly or flat route, the same group ride can feel very different.

A threshold week looks similar, with the VO₂max sessions replaced by longer, more sustained work.

05Interval execution#

VO₂max intervals#

I like intermittent intervals (e.g. 40/20) over steady, longer intervals because:

• I can hit maximal effort more reliably.
• They suit variable conditions (wind, power variation).
• They don't demand strict rest timing.

Research suggests that intervals of about 3–5 minutes (or work-to-rest ratios like 2:1) are effective for keeping time near VO₂max.

Heart rate vs. power#

For intervals, especially VO₂max, I often focus on heart rate and RPE over precise power targets. There is a trade-off: power tells you your output, but heart rate tells you your physiological response, which can be more robust on days with poor sleep or stress.

This doesn't mean power isn't useful. It's invaluable, but for me the heart rate cue often feels more actionable in the moment.

06The 40/20 session#

This is what a full 40/20 session looks like for me: three sets of 8 × 40 seconds at 120–130% of FTP with 20 seconds at 55–65% in between, lap-button recoveries between the sets, and a 10-minute sweet spot block at 88–94% before the cool-down. Hover the chart to inspect each step, and enter your FTP to see the watts.

07Summary#

• Yearly periodization adapts to goals and climate.
• Mesocycles align with specific goals (criterium, cyclocross, gran fondo).
• Blocks alternate recovery, VO₂max and threshold.
• VO₂max weeks mix structured intervals, easy rides and social intensity.
• Intermittent intervals and physiological cues fit my style and practical needs.

08Caveats#

• If this does not feel fun anymore, stop doing whatever you're doing and do something that is fun. The exception is a recovery week: forcing yourself to let off the gas there is important.
• Executing race days is something I am not good at. When I had a full calendar, I tended to train through most of my races and only did the full taper, rest, openers and race day cycle for isolated events. Other people know more about that than I do.

09Training with AI#

Recently I have been using and developing a tool that lets a coding harness such as Claude Code or Codex work with intervals.icu directly: ai-cycling-coach. Once enough time has passed, I will share my opinion on it here.