NOS Week 14 Bike Thread, hammer it home
Well we made it to the end, another OS for me and the 1st for many. Thanks to my partner in crime Roy for leading the run threads and and to all those in the OS who participate in the forums. I find the OS the best period!
Bring it home with a strong week and remember there is a lot of fatigue so if a test does not go good don't worry. Take a week or two of transition and then test going in to your new plan and you will see results. It's been a pleasure.
Gordon
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This was my first OS and it was enjoyable thanks to all the peeps in the NOS. Wishing everyone all the best with the next progression in your training and/or with upcoming races.
In one way, I'm kind of sad it's the last week but at the same time I'm really looking forward to switching to something different
@gordon: thanks for your guidance, and good luck!
i did Tuesdays bike this evening, and will run tomorrow am. Legs feel like they are back on track (whew!)
SEMI-BOOM! Actually, physically, I easily boomed the interval, but mentally, I was kinda bored and not really into it. That translated to my t-run where I was flat and way off the pace. As much as I've enjoyed the OS, I'm ready for a transition week and a change of pace (hopefully!) in the next training plan. Couple that w/ this being a pretty stressful week at work, and I just want to survive. (AND TEST WELL!!!). Go BOOM it, everybody!
Just imagine if we were still using the 20 week OS plans..... you'd still have 6 more weeks before the gate keepers would unlock the door ..... and likely the reason it is only 14 weeks now.
I think all of us in NOS are expecting to hear a resounding KAAAA-BOOM! when you do test..... no worries and no pressure.... ;-)
Hi all!
Someone turned up the gravity in our bedroom (foolishly that control is right next to the thermostat...) and as a result I was 20m late getting downstairs.
That gave me just enough time to get in 2 out of 3 intervals today: 12 @ 99% and 20 @ 100%.
It turned out, coincidentally, that I had just enough mojo for 2 out of 3 intervals today, so I'm not sure how much good more time would have done for me.
Those last five minutes I was squeezing the last of the toothpaste up and out from the very bottom of the tube.
Then had to pack it in and get to work, and here I am, at work... spending time bogging on about triathlon...
The good news for me is that I'm still in week 13 so I have a few more cracks at the big FTP workout!
@Kate - hear you on the "time to switch it up." With Kinetic on 5/11 and Quassy a few weeks later, I bet starting on the HIM plan is going to get you focused again.
@Steve - yes - cutting the OS down to 14w is yet one more positive indicator on the wisdom of the coaches. I'm pretty sure I can do another week and change of this before I take a break, but six-weeks?? How'd you all do it??
Way to put it in everyone - have a great day!
My BOOM is BACK!!!!!
OS1 - 2010/2011
Start NP: 201 Ave HR: 179 Max HR: 187
Final NP: 256 Ave HR: 169 Max HR: 182
OS2 - 2011/12
Start NP: 251 Ave HR: 160 Max HR: 173
Final NP: 277 Ave HR: 172 Max HR: 185
Outdoor NP: 296 Ave HR: 178 Max HR: 211(??)
OS3 -2012/2013
Start NP: 277 Ave HR: 173 Max HR: 188
Final NP: 275 Ave HR: 175 Max HR: 185
So great gains early on over the three years, and I had high hopes coming into this OS. Was happy with my first test this year as my power was the same as my last indoor test at the end of last OS. But I struggled with fatigue on and off again this yea, and I seemed to be having a tough time with the new test format. I may be totally blowing myself up on that first 5 minutes, or just not pacing it right. Or maybe I'm just fried. I am thinking this final FTP test was not a real reflection of my gains this year - I think time will tell.
I am now heading into a 10 day transition. A few days at a work conference, then a week in the Adirondacks climbing and backpacking. Will be back for a run focus starting February 11. Looks like there is a bike test at the start of that plan - will see if some rest fixes me up! I am still hoping to get to 300w when I test outside this spring...
Anyway, it has been a real pleasure training "with" everyone this OS! Good luck with the testing everyone!
Oh yeah - about the previous 20 week Outseasons - I think this one was tougher! I would have to go back and check, but I don't recall so much FTP work in single sessions as we've been doing this year!
Compared to 2x20 + 1x15, todays 3x8 was a piece of cake. Did it over/under style (95%/105%). Given the recovery that has taken place, I'm feeling like I'm going to see an 8-10W FTP bump during the test later this week.
Today was 3 x 12' FTP... legs had to work hard and I had to dig deep but I got it done (all IF's 1.02) despite heart rate being high - too high for zone 4 to still be aerobic. I think over the second half of the NOS, I got used to the new FTP level, with difficulty in the beginning to complete those long intervals, but now I'm pretty much OK with them. Yet I'm not expecting to see much of an increase in FTP when I test, but we will see on Saturday.
Yesterday I had the desire to get the bike test in but never happened. 10' into the 85% part of the WU my HR was already zone 4 and I knew I couldn't do the test with any expectation of success so I just soft peddled and ended up with 45' @ 0.633 Yeah, lame but I didn't want to burn any matches before I get to test for reals.
Let see what tomorrow evening will bring...... I'll be reading all your posts of how the AM crowd gets it done!
HI all
W13 v02 in
Had to triage n the second set pf 6x1/1 - did 8x45/45, and in that way was able to get in the work time.
Now off to other work
Have a great day everyone!
Hope I didn't wake anyone up this morning as I went BOOM and BOOOOOOOOMMMMMM
VO2 and FTP both went up exactly 6.9%, how crazy is that?? (Correct me if I'm wrong, but for FTP I take 95% of the 20min average power, right:?). And VO2 is 121% of FTP, so I'm pretty happy, especially since my legs were pretty tired during the FTP portion of the test.
I wasn't quite sure how to pace myself since I had no idea what to expect, but after a good warmup, my legs just took over. On the VO2, I held power steady at 217 pretty much the whole time, and for the FTP, I was able to build over time. By the way, I now know what the difference between the two is: VO2=legs want to explode. FTP= legs catch fire...
Good luck everybody today! BOOM IT!
... I think your BOOM's are the source of the 45+ mph wind gusts we are having way up hear in Maine.... =:-O
@ Kate - awesome! That is the kind of results that make the OS so valuable!
@ Jim - nice stats, I'll have to work mine up and see how that compare!
@Naomi - happy running - I go back and forth on whether to test now or at the start of the next block.
@Steve - sounds like a good call - good luck tonight - look forward to seeing the post.
@Ben - HR too high to be aerobic... that's interesting - does that mean one ceases to see aerobic benefits once HR goes too high? I've been ignoring HR on the EN notion that it's all about power and pace, so I'm interested to learn. Digging deep is good for the soul and for the fitness - rest up and don't reach any foregone conclusions about your upcoming power test...
@Jim - you are starting higher up on the ladder this year, and the higher you are the harder the gains are to come by, but it will be interesting to see what happens when you test after transition. A week in the Adirondacks climbing and backpacking - that sounds great - have you picked routes? camping? how much snow is there? have a blast!
Had a chance to run some quick analysis on my own VO2 this morning. This was the first time VO2 was really hard for me, and I think Satish was spot on when he alluded to the difficulty of doing a VO2 bike the morning after a PM VO2 run.
That said, this was my last VO2 bike(!)
Plan from here is to rest - a lot - FTP bike on Saturday, 3x1m run on Sunday, off Monday, strides Tue, and hit a local 5k hard on Wed.
Hit it hard, team - look forward to seeing how the tests go for you!
Set a PR this morning at 20.6mph for the 40' TT!
Inspired by Jim, I thought I would also lay out my three OSs and see how they compare:
2011: Start at AVHR 159 and AVSPD 20mph. End at AVHR 160 and AVSPD 20.4mph
2012: Start at AVHR 159 and AVSDP 20mph. End at AVHR 165 and AVSPD 20.3mph
2013: Start at AVHR 162 and AVSPD 19.8mph. End at AVHR 160 and AVSPD 20.6mph
I would say that this year's biking was the hardest of all three OSs. At 14 weeks, I did better than each of the previous two OSs that were 20 weeks long. So - this has been a great biking OS for me! Let's see how the run shakes out!
@Jim - I agree with your analysis on the difficulty of the biking this year! I hope your backpacking and hiking is fun and safe - no 200 meter sprints running from Bears! I'm doing the run focus also after a two week break and will pick up again on 17 Feb! See you in a forum I'm sure.
Nice to see some test results rolling in. I will be doing my bike test tomorrow or Saturday as I roll in the Canada from Mexico.
@Jim ; It could be a combination of both the new test and fatigue. Take the transition time and I'm sure you will see some benefits in the next plan.
@Steve - Good call on shutting it down and saving yourself for another day.
Gordon
WTG, Maureen. I have to say, I agree - I'm sure we're stronger for having done these, but I'm not sad to be done with the last bike VO2 in the OS!
Well no boom for me. I have to say I'm a bit disappointed. Since starting with EN I have seen a slow decline in my (tested) FTP. Now, I know this can't be true, as I feel a lot fitter and up until last week I have been able to knock off the workouts. So I might still have some lingering fatigue, or I might just be one of those people who who doeasn't test well (which kind of sucks if true).
Today I set 2minute, 3 minute and 5 minute records for the 5 minute effort ( avg pw: 312w) on trainerroads , but I just wasn't able to hold on for the 20, and my average HR was higher for the 20 minute effort than the 5 minutes! I have been doing the VO2 work at 293w up until now. So going forward I think I am just going to keep my numbers where they are and I will probably test again in a few weeks. Sadly this means I have to buy coach R a coffee on the losing side of the equation.
@Satish - my bet is lingering fatigue. When I sleep with no alarm, I can go for almost 8 hrs but typically only get 6.5 during the week on the average. This last week I made it a point to try and get 7-7.5hrs to knock down that accumulated fatigue. So far - so good as it paid off on my 1000m swim and bike test today.
Bottom Line: if you put in the work, you are fitter as evidenced by the PRs listed above. The fact that you can't hold it, sounds like a fatigue issue. I bet after a good break with some active rest, you'll see some results!
Nice work, NOS'rs. Nuh' night.
@Satish - don't let it disappoint you... my recommendation, based on years of completely unrelated work, is to take a day of rest on F, do a reasonable ABP/sweet-spot ride on Saturday rather than the hard-core FTP workout specified, and hit the FTP test hard again on Sunday, starting a little on the easy side and building up for a strong finish. Then plan the run test however you want to - you can always go a little into the next week (e.g. Mon - r&r, Tue - some fun strides and z1/MP, Tue - 5k test) You clearly need some recovery. Give it to yourself, then hit the tests with the aim of negative splits per the testing guidance on the wiki. Just my 2-cents - be well.
Thanks Russ. I think I'll try again on Sunday or Monday. I will do a trainerroad 60-90 minute sweetspot session on Saturday. I was planning on doing the run test sometime next week anyway. I am encouraged that over the workouts my 5-60' power has been steadily climbing so I know the fitness is there. I must be starting the 20 minute part of the test too hard, so I am going to start conservative and try for a negative split the next time around.
I want to say thanks to all the team mates here in forums. Your post always helped with the day in day out routines of the OS. Special thanks to our OS captains Gorden and Roy.
Great work everyone!
Thanks Joe. I think fatigue must have something to do with it. I finished off last week pretty overcooked. On the bright side I know what warning signs to look for in future training cycles!