Hi,
Which type of Plyo exercises are you doing, how many sets/reps and how much rest time between sets?
Merry Christmas to all!
Hello Snaavt,
What a great question. Plyo exercises are a great way to train your body; you don’t have to do much to create a significant effect.
They are essential because of our posture for hours on our bikes. We create a lot of power with our legs, especially the front of the legs. These muscles are well-developed. Our upper backs are stretched but not trained while cycling, hence the “hanging” shoulders and round upper back we often have.
I’m a big fan of tabata-style training. Different research has shown that 4 to 10 minutes for 3x a week can have a big impact.
I start with a series of 6 minutes and build it up to 16 minutes. There is no minimum number of trainings. Even once a week will help.
I train a system of LACC, meaning Legs, Arms, Core, and Cardio. These terms are just a reminder of specific exercises. You can’t call a part of a six-minute workout cardio.
Let me give you an example:
Legs: 20sec of squats, lunges, Bulgarian split squats
Arms: 20sec of dips, push-ups, downward dog push-ups
Core: 20sec of planking, superman’s, bridge
Cardio: 20sec of burpees, jumps, swiss landers, high knees
Take 10 secs between each exercise and do 2 rounds.
It is imperative to get your form right first before you speed up.
Have fun, Coach Robert
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Thank you so much for your input!
I’m going to incorporate a similar routine, only more focused on legs and core.
I do plan to work on my upper body though. On the gym, just to balance muscle growth on lower and upper body.
I’m starting to put my ATP together, with a A-event on June (end of the month).
I’ve quantified TSS for my strenght workouts (upper and lower) using Joe Friel’s method, but I’m really thinking on using only lower body workouts TSS data to enter on my calendar, since upper body TSS data can somehow give a worng impression on real form/fatigue numbers on the bike.
Can you give me your feedback on this? Thanks.
Hi Snaavt,
Sounds like you’re creating a good plan. I Like where you are going with that A-race. I’m a big fan of Joe, too. However, I found that I was already coaching many of the same principles when I discovered him.
I interviewed him once when one of his books was published. Nice guy.
I wouldn’t split up the TSS. Any workout has an impact on your body. Leaving out these work-outs gives you the wrong impression of your total load.
I don’t know what kind of work you are doing, but let’s create two versions of you.
One version works as a paver, working five days a week. The other version of you works 3 days a week as a librarian.
Which job will give you the best opportunity to be the best cyclist you can be?
As a full-time paver, you will have less time to train, and your weekly load is much higher before you even get onto your bike. Every load on your body needs time to recover.
Yesterday, I rode 100km on my gravel bike to my family for Christmas. At a speed of 29km/h, it was a moderately heavy ride. The reason I feel it today is because I have been sitting on a crappy folding chair the whole evening instead of lying on the couch doing nothing.
Everything you do has an impact on the end result. If you are working with a good plan, the way you have set it up now, all those details matter.
Let every workout count for TSS and fatigue. As a fan of Joe, you are probably planning to use a log. You could simply give the TSS from your (upper body) strength training a different color.
This way, you are not ignoring it in your weekly load, but you can pick it out easily.
Have a great day, Coach Robert
Hi Robert,
Thank you for all your insights.
I’m going to put your advise into practice 
Wish you a great 2025!
All the best
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