Issue ID: January 2013
Session four: Cassette double pyramid
This session develops sustained climbing strength and pacing.
Warm-up: 10mins easy spinning.
Main set: 33-37mins of effort (depending upon whether 9- or 10-speed groupset) in ascending and descending 1min increments.
Zero your trip computer and select a fairly heavy resistance along with your bottom gear, for example 33 x 25. Ride sustainably hard, remembering you've got a long drag ahead.
Every minute shift up one gear all the way through the block. By the time you're at the 12t, you'll barely be turning the cranks. Keep going until you've been up and down the entire block twice. How far did you go? Try to beat it next time.
Cool-down: 10mins easy spinning.
Session five: Kitchen sink
A bit of everything packed into one hour. Pedalling technique, leg speed, strength, power and sustained effort.
Warm-up: 10mins easy spinning.
Main set: 10mins spin-ups. With resistance and gear fairly low, stay seated and spin up to maximum cadence. Hold the cadence up too 30secs and recover at an easy spin for the rest of the minute.
10mins mixed climb. Crank up the resistance to high and find a gear that allows you, when working fairly hard, to maintain 80-90rpm. Cimb seated for 1min and then, having clicked up a couple of gears, climb out of the saddle and keep alternating.
10mins big gear sprints. Recover spinning easily for 1min at the end of the climb, and then select high resistance and a big gear. From a standing start, sprint out of the saddle to get on top of the gear and then sit down and maintain the sprint. It should be a 100% 30sec effort. Rest completely for 90secs between efforts.
10mins time trial. At medium resistance and gearing that allows you to work hard, but sustainably, and 90-100rpm ride a constant 10mins. Try to make your effort constant without any tailing off.
Cool-down: 10mins easy spinning.
Jodie Swallow's session
"This is one of my killer sessions designed to replicate a hill session or strength work, which we define as the same."
Warm-up: 5mins spin. Then 10mins increasing the gear ratio every 2mins (or wattage on a computrainer by 20watts)
Main set: 30 x 1min in biggest gear - cadence 60 or lower for Computrainer, 1min at normal cadence. Then 10mins decreasing the gear ratio or power every 2mins
Cool-down: 5mins spin.
Jodie's Top 5 Playlist
Fun - Some Nights
Sound of letting go - David Guetta
Training montage - Rocky Soundtrack
Don't mess with my man - Lucy Pearl
Disturbia - Rihanna