4 Recovery

Recovery has to be truly easy, both in terms of intensity and duration, to be successful, so no work should be done above 60% FTP. In fact, 50% is a safer upper limit, and no durations should last longer than an hour – typically, 30-40 minutes is plenty.

Recovery rides can be used to further your aerobic base by riding very easily when your muscles are already pretty cooked. When recovery is the goal, keep the ride as short as necessary and stop inside of an hour if effort this low is wearing you down and postponing adequate recovery. Spin lightly and quickly, preferably above 85rpm.

Occasionally, you’re simply too tired to work out but could very well benefit from a short, easy recovery ride.

The session “Dans/Lazy Mountain”

These two sessions are simply 30 minutes or one hour of active recovery riding spent between 45-55% FTP. You can also use this as an extended warm-up prior to each workout’s more specific warm-up, or it can simply be used to tack on some easy mileage at the end of another workout.