I know there’s a (very long) TR thread having contributed to it last winter but I thought I’d ask this in a new thread rather than resurrect that and use this for discussion about plans rather than individual workouts.

Unusually for me, rather than leave things to the last minute, I’ve an event ear-marked for next year. Working backwards it means I’ve enough time to begin a full TR training block (Base, Build, Specialty) next month. I’ll be doing the Mid-Volume sets.

Beginning with the Base Phase, would it be better to do the Sweet Spot or the Traditional base? They both run for the same number of weeks but the first block of the traditional looks very much like old-style sit on the turbo and pedal for x hours type of training. I did the Sweet Spot Base Low Volume last winter though I only started it in January so didn’t do much in the next phase.

Looking at TR’s own figures for the series it seems that the Sweet Spot plans consist of more shorter but harder workouts than the Traditional Base (based on: number of workouts per week; TSS & Intensity Factor).

I definitely enjoyed ❗ 😯 the Sweet Spot sessions last year so am tempted to go that route but does anyone have experience of following the Traditional Base plan? One other point is that the weekend sessions are likely to be replaced with outdoor rides depending on the weather.

Do you have time for both, or are you wondering about one or the other? If you have the time, do both. Traditional Base compliments Sweet Spot, just like Sweet Spot compliments the Build plans. They work really well together, but if you only have time for 1 Base phase, I’d recommend Sweet Spot, as it will prepare you much better for the next phase of training in the Build plan. Check out this article for some more info: Sweet Spot Vs Traditional Base

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Professional Mtb Racer & Community Manager at TrainerRoad – Cycling’s Most Effective Training Tool

not used TR before, but am looking at it.
Is it worth something like Training Peaks to go along with it?

@Trevorderuise Not got time to do both, I should have started a couple of months ago otherwise, mid October start means one Base Phase, one Build Phase and one Specialty Phase plus about two weeks of tapering.

Not seen the article, will have a read. Thanks.

s it worth something like Training Peaks to go along with it?

Training Peaks is an excellent tool to aggregate various training data, e.g turbo sessions, normal riding, running, swimming etc. What you do with that accumulated data is where the “value” is.

I use it to measure total training time per week and total TSS as way to track fatigue/over training. This you can do in the free version.

Its certainly not essential in any way, but if you like numbers then its great.

Thanks Swedish Chef.

I was wondering if my love of data was getting in the way.
Is it worth the extra cost? That I have to look at.
Also, if it kicks up too much data, I might not get any work done. 😳

Travis – you can sign up for TrainingPeaks for free to see if the fitness/freshness stuff is for you. I think they do the odd 1 month trial of the premium stuff too.

If you’re looking to track training load and fatigue, Strava has a feature in the Premium version that does that too. IT’s very similar to the TP one.

I was wondering if my love of data was getting in the way.

It does mash all the data into one big Performance Management Chart (PMC) that does sort of make it easier to comprehend. Worth a look.

Strava does do something similar with it’s suffer score being equivalent of TSS, and Freshness sort of being the equivalent of TSB. It’s all a bit simplified and Training Peaks gives you a lot more data and control. Having looked at both, my money goes on Training Peaks rather than Strava Premium.

So sorry to ask, scanned through the other monster thread but couldn’t see it. Easiest solution for me is to use the spinning bikes in the gym in the basement of our block of flats. Is this doable with trainer road? thanks in advance

@howsyourdad1 Trainerroad uses either an actual power meter on your bike such as Stages or Powertap or if you don’t have a power meter then it uses something called Virtual Power which it works out from a set of data it has on various turbo trainers. If TR have worked out the values for your spinning bikes then you are good to go otherwise …

You’ll also need an ANT+ dongle for your computer/tablet/phone plus a cadence and speed sensor – TR uses your speed and the data for the turbo trainer you’ve told it you are using to calculate power.

ok thanks whitestone. I’ll check what bikes they have . Not hopeful that they will be compatible mind…

http://www.apirosport.se/startrac-espinner-4/

its one of these badboys. Have emailed trainerroad to see if its compatible