Where to start ?

It's all about Science :-)

I will post here all the necessary links concerning my trainings, all my trainings are created with Zwift Workout, zwift workout is a very simple tool, in few click you can create a workout.

Few words

I try to do my training based on the 80 / 20, also called "Polarized Training" or on the "Pyramidal Training" 75 / 15 / 5, both methods share almost the same amount of time in "Low Intensity", if I start after a long break, I will even go to 95% of my training in "low intesity" to build up

What is the "polarized training" ?

Well it's a method where you spend 80% of your time relax, by relax I mean in "Low intensity".

To make it simple, we have two threshold

- Low Intensity = Burning Fat

- First Lactate (you reach 2mmol/l) if you are below you can keep the pace for a while, this is typically the pace for a Marathon (unless you want to walk by going faster)

- Moderate / Hard Intensity = Sugar

- Second Lactate (you reach 4mmol/l) the RED line goes up really quickly so the effort if you stay below can up to a semi-marathon above you could go up to 12 Minutes 

- High Intensity = Sugar

So if you don't want to walk during a Marathon you should run the Marathon (Around the the First Lactate Treshold) in a Low Intensity Pace... the Threshold are trainable,... If you are not trained at all maybe your first Lactate Treshold will be 8 Km/h, after 1 or 2 years of training maybe your first Lactate Treshold will be at 10 Km/h or even more… depends also on how many beers 🍺 you will have to rehydrate yourself…

The polarised Training goal is to avoid as much as possible the yellow area, why ? Because it doesn't give you a lot, in other terms you spend a lot of energy for what you get in return.

The main goal is to spend a lot of time in the "low intensity" zone, usually people are spending most of the time in the moderate intensity, because "it's still ok", and the "low intensity" seems too easy, you have to force you to slow down,... it's also boring, so usually I'm watching YouTube videos or TV Series 

The Difference between the "Low Intensity" and the "Moderate Intensity" are the Mitochondria... the "Low Intensity" produce Mitochondria and the "Moderate Intensity" destroy them...

What are the "mitochondria"? the definistion says the following 

"Mitochondria are membrane-bound cell organelles (mitochondrion, singular) that generate most of the chemical energy needed to power the cell's biochemical reactions. Chemical energy produced by the mitochondria is stored in a small molecule called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondria contain their own small chromosomes. Generally, mitochondria, and therefore mitochondrial DNA, are inherited only from the mother." 

In simple terms the Mitochondria are the fuel needed by the muscle to perfom... so if you spend all your fuel during your "moderate intensity" instead of staying relax in the "Low Intensity" pace, don't be surprised if you are tired... and yes you are going faster when you train 80% of your time at low intensity... because you are building the Mitochondria. 

The Pyramidal training is almost similar to the Polarized one, they share almost the same amount of "Low Intensity" 75% instead of 80%

So Polarized = 80% in Zone1, 20% in Zone 3

Pyramidal = 75% in Zone 1, 15% in Zone 2 and 5% in Zone 3

Unfortunately the group rides are the worst pace ever... because you try to follow and if you are not in shape you will spend a lot of Time in Zone 2 and 3 (and then you collapse :-), so 0% in zone 1 but for the strongest rider it will be Zone 1