Training hours: adding time at tempo is a bit more complicated

More time on the bike is usually a good thing, leading to positive changes in our fitness. And while we can always add time at endurance, adding time at tempo is a bit more complicated. Tempo, while not being as hard on the legs as say threshold or VO2, is still an effort that puts some strain on the body. It doesn’t leave you needing that extra day to recover like training at intensity, but it does have an impact.

Taking that impact into consideration is what matters when thinking about adding time at tempo - how will that extra time at tempo affect your training in the coming days, or perhaps even weeks.

Tempo should be at an effort where you can do it day after day. And yes, the programs do add time within each blog. The goal is to increase the time at tempo, stringing the days together back-to-back, so that eventually you can ride for one or two-hours at tempo with a stable heart rate. But, that adaptation takes time and patience.

Is it appropriate to add time at tempo beyond what the program is calling for?

A few things to consider when making this decision.

1. When you add time are you able to keep your power relatively stable? In the same vein, does your perceived exertion stay relatively stable?

2. How does adding the time affect your fatigue? Adding time on a single day may not really matter too much, but adding it on consecutive days within a block, when the body isn’t quite ready yet, may have an impact on your fatigue. This in turn might mean not being able to complete subsequent workouts.

3. It is important to keep in mind the inverse relationship between time and power. Adding time to your tempo may mean having to back off the wattage a bit to keep it appropriate.

Whenever we think about adding time or intensity to our training we have to think about our overall training workload. For one thing, we don’t always want to be pushing our limits. Managing that workload within your ability to absorb the training will keep your fitness improving. Pushing too much will mean having to take a break and missing days of training that you could have done had your training been managed correctly.

Training is a bit of trial and error. Take into account some our parameters above, try adding some time at tempo, and see how it affects you. It will only help you better understand yourself as an athlete and refine your approach to training.