I’m 66 year old recreational and fitness cyclist. I intend to coach myself this winter. My plan is to do 3 workouts a week on a trainer, until outdoor season starts in end of march.
One of my workouts is tempo (Z3) intervals. Now 3x12min (4 min rest).
How do I know when I should increase the workload (number of intervals, length of intervals).
Hi, this is not an easy question to answer because it,is highly individual. Generally if your FTP is set correctly and you have been riding semi consistently then many people can ride a long time at tempo. Now many people prefer or enjoy intervals like 3x12 but they are not limited by intensity but by desire to do any more. So if you just want a plan you could just increase these by a minute or two each week and if it feels like you are pushing yourself you should take a light week every two or 3 weeks. Also if this very hart your FTP might be set wrong, for some people a ramp test can noticeably over estimate your FTP.
As you said 3x12 min is not hard, even I felt tired afterwards. I will do as you said and begin to increase the interval numbers and length.
Beside this interval workout, I’m going to do a longer endurance wo also, but I know these are not fun on a trainer. So I’m planing to have something to watch at during the wo. Previously I have tried Kinomap, which I liked. Maybe I will open a new account there again, or looking at some cycling film on youtube.
These are 2 workouts per week, but I want do a third also. I have not diced yet what type. Maybe a second interval wo? Suggestion?
Sounds reasonable. I would follow the Joe Friel suggestion that if you really want to hold on or gain fitness as you age you should do some high intensity work. Most of us as we age start to move away from that. Make sure your doctor is ok with it, but I would do very short high intenity work like traditional Tabata.
Here is an example. To make this longer you may want to clone this workout and add one more section at the end at about 70% for 30-minutes and 10-minutes of 40%.