I’m using a custom plan that’s quite limited (2 main training sessions/week plus a couple of other lower intensity and weekend rides) to fit in around my work/parenting schedule and wanting to do 2x 5/10km jogs a week. This feels consistent with the amount of load I’ve been supporting for months, maybe years. If anything, the structured custom plan is helping me to be disciplined about sticking to easy days. All good so far.
I was reviewing my calendar to see what workouts I have planned this week and I noticed that with all the non-Trainer Day riding, running and walking feeding in from Strava, my actual stress scores are easily twice the planned stress score in the custom plan. I feel like the plan is stretching me, but not to the limit. It feels sensibly progressive. How can I evaluate if I’m loading training stress right overall vs. what the Trainer Day custom plan is recommending? Am I just simply doing too much? or is my very limited custom plan low-balling the stress deliberately given the limited time, while ensuring I’m getting an appropriate number of quality sessions in? (x2/x3 weekly) is the only way I’m going to know if I’m doing too much if I have a massive blow up later? or I won’t know I’m grinding a plateau until I level up intensity progressively in the next plan phase and end up failing?
I guess reflecting on the recording of stress in the calendar, it’s a nice feature but is it helping me to reasonably understand anything or is it just validating my achievement of planned stress?
Whilst training stress is a crude measure, it is probably useful in your use case.
Unless you are also applying progressive overload to your other activities, you can pretty much ignore them imo.
Unless your couple of other lower intensity and weekend rides are also progressively increasing in training stress, you could even focus just on the two main workouts.
The rule of thumb is that progression of up to 5% per week is usually sustainable. Anything more than that should be treated with care.
Progress the two main training sessions, in combination, by only by a few percent (<5) each week and monitor how you feel. Don’t let the number on the screen override how you actually feel.
Make every fourth week a lighter week (for those two sessions) to allow ample recovery and adaptation.
Assess your FTP / whatever you are basing the training stress number on as frequently / as little as you need in order to keep the progression in those three week blocks in line with your fitness and your objectives.
Let’s be sure of a second thing. When you are saying stress score is doubled, can you show us what you mean? We have not implemented pace based TSS from running activities and if it is coming from HR you need to make sure your threshold HR is set in our app. If you are not increasing volume and you feel reasonable and don’t see other signs of too much training stress or stress in general like waking up in the night and having a hard time getting back to sleep for example then the numbers probably are not an issue. But if you show us what you mean, some times there can be “bugs” in numbers. And all TSS is not the same as all TSS, there are many factors.
Not sure if I helped but 2 run days 2 harder bike days and small kid(s)… can be a lot depending on your age and ability to sleep well but for many it’s just fine. It’s very individual. If your run speed is sweet spot/threshold pace then slowing down a bit might not be a bad idea. Or one faster run day and one zone 2 run…
Thanks, I get this. All fair advice but this is not my first rodeo. My wellbeing and ‘sensations’ are good and my power metrics are well within a plausible range that I can tolerate. The question is really what the Trainer Day stress values are saying - whether they’re telling me something other metrics aren’t or if it’s actually inaccurate for my situation for some reason.
I think Alex’s suggestion that import of HR-based TSS either from running or cycling where power isn’t recorded is a significant factor.
Admittedly, I always run sweetspot for most of my runs - either because I start slow, warm up properly, feel great and can’t help building to the end or because I’ve committed to a course/distance and I just want it to be over. That is what it is. I’m just surprised that the imported stress scores per week (on the right of the calendar view) are generally 2 or 3 times what is planned in the custom plan. I presumed that the custom plan builder would have considered my regular stress load while compiling. It would be great if it could but I imagine that’s challenging to do and extra problematic if the HR data import is less translatable. From a user perspective, the implication is that regular actual load may be way too high to get the best out of the training plan - it doesn’t feel like that tome but the question I’m asking is are the stress metrics telling the right story and am I actually an idiot for trying to maintain 2x/3x recommended load
Most people run sweet spot that is why I mentioned it. But sounds like you got it covered. I just checked your account it says threshold HR 179 is that max hr or threshold (threshold being max 40m-60m HR) ? I also see you are increasing volume so that’s when to pay attention. But it seems if you get your rest weeks in all things seem resaonable.
176-179 is probably around lactate threshold/LT2 depending on whose dogma you follow but I haven’t tested this accurately for 20 years. HR:power zone-wise this is consistent for me. MaxHR recorded recently would be either 192 or 198 depending on accuracy of HRM. I have a Garmin chest strap that has misbehaved when batteries are low but my polar strap seems more consistent. Have I entered the wrong HR data in my profile? It would be a reassuring resolution to find out this was PICNIC!
But sounds like you got it covered. I just checked your account it says threshold HR 179 is that max hr or threshold (threshold being max 40m-60m HR) ? I also see you are increasing volume so that’s when to pay attention. But it seems if you get your rest weeks in all things seem resaonable.