The aims are to learn how to use Xert for my training by preparing a 12-months training plan broken down into blocks. A long road ahead for me to start TTs next season. Start from today’s using Xerts recommended workouts.,(ATA).
Already had some good advice from members. Any guidance would be appreciated. I will insert progress at the end of my 6-week plan.
Rock and Roll Endurance Date: 17/06/20
|720 W|16.2 kJ|200 W|25W|0.7kJ|2W|
BREAKTHROUGH
Distance - 26.2 mi
Duration - 01:28:40
Elevation Gain - 287
Equivalent Power - 186 w
Maximum Power - 419 w
Average Power - 172 w
Strain Score - 169 XSS
Max Heart Rate - 139 bpm
Avg Heart Rate - 112 bpm
Polarity Ratio - 94
Max Speed - 27.2 mph
Average Speed - 17.8 mph
Focus - 0:46
Climber: Mixed
Maximal Effort Time - 00:31
Sustained
Difficulty Score - 135 - Tough
Total Calories - 1009
Total Fat - 36 grams
total Carbs - 156 grams
Hi, was going to make a related observation that it’s unusual to get a breakthrough on an endurance workout like that, so guess you went above the recommendations due to feeling strong. That’s fine (and well done), but was it really an ‘all out’ effort? If not, it’s probably worth doing a proper breakthrough workout and pushing to your limit to get an accurate signature (assuming the body feels up for it of course, and you are fresh… take care with past injuries). You can search the workout library for breakthrough workouts and select one (and do it without trainer control), or do a Zwift race or push yourself outdoors…
From there, assuming you do a full cycle it’s best to set the signature decay to ‘no decay - training load matched’ in your profile during the base phase… I usually do another breakthrough at the start of build to check the signature is still accurate
Hi John,
I am building up my fitness as over 12 months with the view to race in TTs. No actual dates yet. Therefore, I have stared with 6 weeks blocks. First block ends 1sr Aug 20, then rest for a few days, followed by another 6 weeks. My aim is to reach high watts for one hour.
Hi Wes,
Thank you for your advice. Yes, on the last phase of the session I pushed it really hard, and that’s where the breakthrough came. I am new to Xert so, still finding my way round. If I did a 1hr fast outdoor ride would that provide a accurate signature?
With Xert you don’t need to ride for an hour to get a breakthrough. Shorter efforts are also analysed and can give more insights, and that’s one of the advantages from my perspective. The important thing is to bring your MPA down (done by riding above TP for extended periods… the higher you are above TP, the faster MPA comes down) and to basically then ride at or above what Xert thinks your MPA is for as long as possible. Doing a 1 hour TT effort may not actually lead to BT since you may not be above TP, so may not bring MPA down… in that sense shorter and more intense efforts are better
If you want to ride outside, any ride is possible so long as you adhere to the principles above i.e. ride above TP as long as you can. I’d try and breakthrough within 10 minutes (after a good warm up) though, but you are welcome to try longer… as a time triallist you may like steady efforts so maybe try riding at your 8MMP (mean maximal power = power you can hold for 8 minutes all out) for as long as possible to failure (and beyond 8 minutes by definition)… or to breakthrough even quicker you can try riding at 5MMP for 4 minutes, then see how long you can hold your 8MMP… You can find MMP power levels by looking at your power curve… After a good recovery spin it’s worth dong some all out sprints to make sure your PP (peak power) is accurate as well.
Or if you have a Garmin you could play one of the Xert breakthrough workouts e.g. Xert fitness test for breakthrough version 3, also outdoors. It’s basically two sets of ramps - the first more focused on TP / HIE and the second more focused on PP / HIE. Still important to go failure (and if you do it indoors, best not to use trainer control, despite what the workout description says).
There are a few people including some working at Xert that prefer the Ronnestad workouts for breakthroughs. Those are super hard, especially if you try and do 3 sets… but good news is you can just do one set for the breakthrough
The latest Xert podcast has some good tips on getting a good signature and what type of breakthrough efforts give more accurate results… and explains the above better than what I did!
What I learned from using Xert is that you can’t fool yourself in terms of achievements. Time after time you have to proof yourself by breaktroughs otherwise Xert will decay your Fitness signature. Sometimes I find that mentally challenging but it is a very “honest” way of working.
The second thing I learned is that High and Peak efforts are easily ignored in unstructured training. By performing the Xert subscribed workout you can be sure that you will get your share of these :-).
But there is also a big reward. After i had been using Xert and did a lot more High and Peak load efforts my performance during competative events made an huge leap forwards. Suddenly I could outride competators I couldn’t before. That was a big eyeopener for me.
Wow, Thank you very much for the information, and your time. I will certainly look at these options. I think I will rest for a couple of days, then complete on of these tests. Once again Thank you
Congrats! You’r improving (or at least your Fitness Signature is ).
It’s great to train and see how you compare against the Xert model and how the model can help you to improve yourself. It made training so much more fun for me.
I am happy with my increase in fitness, and I can feel stronger, and faster outdoors when riding. All my training is outdoors. I will at some point purchase a smart trainer.
I have learnt though you can be 300 watts on the trainer, and when you ride outdoors, this drops to a ridiculous wattage. Now I only trust outdoor training. Hopefully, I can get the best out of Xert, but at the moment everything is on course.
Yeah, there is a big difference in outdoor wattages and trainer wattages. But you could use your outdoor Power Meter that is attached to your road bike on the trainer with the Xert Player. That should mainly level the playing field.
That depends on the smart trainer and the accuracy of your outdoor PM. Most of the latter are accurate, specially dual sided. The indoor trainer market has a lot of options, Wahoo Kickr and Tacx Neo being about as good as it gets. But, they don’t come cheap.
Another option is to use the same PM in- and outdoors, like pedals that you can swap - obviously, that is not like having a smart trainer.
Yes I understand where you are coming from. But, I am sure with the PM, Connected and a quality Smart trainer, would be fair accurate. However, from my point of view, I think I will do outdoor and indoor, training. I would do the Ronnestad, outdoors for accuracy though.
Xert, has proven up to now for me, fruitful, and I would say superior than must training apps.
Getting use to follow your PM numbers can be tricky when following a structured plan outdoor. If you are riding on flat long roads it is ok, but if you are riding on, up and down small inclines, it brings scattered PM Numbers. If you are riding at a set power of 300W on the flat, then suddenly an incline comes, your wattage increases say 400w, then once at the top you descend and your wattage comes down to 200w.
It fluctuates, which at first was annoying. Instead of chasing the error, I realized it all levels itself out in the end.
Keeping an eye on your power numbers, helps you to manage your pacing when riding outdoor, which is realistic. in my opinion. I could be wrong though.
