Big Bike week plan feedback please
OK finishing up NOS week 17 this weekend and am setting up for my BBW. I doing all 20 weeks of OS ending o March 18th. I am starting with swim drill work M-F during wk 18. I am going to transition really hard from March 19-27th. For the last 2 weekends through the end I am adding a little time up to about 2.5-3 hours during the long ride. Also switched my long run to Saturday and then doing Sat run early Sun and doing ride around 11-2.
My plan is to do the following starting March 28-April 1 -- {NOTE: this is really to kick off my build to IMCdA}
28th -- 60 miles -- IF .65-70
29th -- 80 miles -- IF .65-70
30th -- 100 miles -- IF .65-70
31st -- 40 miles -- IF .65-.70
1st -- 100 miles -- IF .70-.75 (this is an organized century for coastal cyclists and I am doing this with my best friend) -- intensity "might" get up there as I can be slightly competitive.
I am taking the entire time off from work so that I can really focus on reovery, eating right, and plan to do an ice bath every day after the ride. I will take S-caps on all rides and have found that if I take one every 30 minutes it keeps me from cramping or having soreness. I will also plan on trying to over do it with hydration, ensure I am taking in 220-250 calorie per hour in nutirtion during the rides,
I will be putting away the road bike after the 1st until after IMCdA, but really want to give my bike endurance a big bump before dropping into the 12 week IM intermediate plan.
anything I am forgetting, any other ideas on recovery things to make sure I cover, or any feedback at all would be appreciated.
Thanks
Comments
Met you at low country splash last year, plan to do it again this year. My only comment is that with the 12 week IMCDA plan starting 4/2, youre gonna be worn out starting first week. Don't know if you have the flexibility or not, but I'd push the bbw up 2 weeks to give yourself recovery/transition after, not before, the volume pop. That's our plan up here in Columbia prepping for same IM as you.
Bill
Hammer the post-ride nutrition; I find a liquid protein/carb blend works wonders.
Dial in your saddle/undercarriage interface; consider using Lantiseptic as a chamois cream. Don't wait until chafing becomes an issue; be proactive as this can be a show-stopper.
• Long slow rides are boring, and don't really help that much.
• You are closing your block with a century.
• You're taking time off from work, so you have infinite time to work with
• You want to enter the 12 week IM block raring to go, not filled with fatigue.
My suggestion is: Keep the first and last days as you have planned. Pick one day - doesn't matter which one - to ride your usual outdoor tesdting route. The ideal one would be a 40 minute uphill, but I can't remember if you'll be singing the low-country blues on this BBW, or are going to the hills of western NC. Anyway, that one should be @ 95% IF, with all the time needed prior to and after for warm up cool down. The other two days, consider this: split your rides into one in the AM, and one in the PM. Make them 1.5-3 hours long (3-4.5 hours a day), with a good 20 minute warm-up and 10 minute cool down. The remainder of the time, ride @ 0.75-0.85 IF, depending on the length of the ride - longer ride = lower IF, shorter = higher. There is really no need to do more than 4-4.5 hours total on those other two days, as long as you bump up the power a bit. It's much more invigorating to focus on a shorter, somewhat harder ride than trying to hit those 80-100 mile days. There's also no need to worry about extra nutrition and hydration, as you only need to cover your needs for 2-2.5 hours at a time.
I know, I know, you want to have some volume under your belt for IM CDA. It really is true, volume is highly over rated, once you get past 4 hours. And splitting the time up allows you to ride @ that sweet spot for building yuour power, which always translates into speed on race day.
As to the timing of the BBW relative to the 12 week IM block - I'm kinda doing the same thing you are. I will transition for a week after a 20 week OS, then do a 2 week training camp, then head right into my 12 week block. As long as you allow for a couple of days of serious rest/recovery after the century, you'll do fine, IMO
thanks all
@ Bill W timing-wise the century is driving the overall plan
@ Bill I had noticed your recommendation before regarding lantisectic. I have gotten chamios cream religion this last two year and rarely ride without it. I have been uig D-Nutz with good results.
@ Al I love the suggested modifications as I have done a long slow BBW before and with the excetion of the organized century, I really like breaking up the other rides and going a bit harder. you are very right that with taking the time off I can do it across the whole of the day in multiple sessions instead of solely as a single session. The BBW will be in the low country. My BTW will be in the mountains near Boone.