My training week: two short interval sessions, zone 2, and light strength
Zone 2 is my home turf
What I love most on the bike is the long rides. Long climbs in zone 2 where I can just keep going hour after hour. I'm not someone who looks for short, explosive sessions — I want to be out there for a long time. That's where I thrive, and that's where I am at my strongest.
My program is built around exactly that. Zone 2 as the foundation, two short interval sessions a week that I actually enjoy, and a bit of light strength. Not the long, boring threshold intervals where the legs are screaming. Most of the training should feel good.
My week
Here's what my week looks like, with room to move things around when life demands it:
- Tuesday: Short interval session — for example 8–10 × 1 min hard with 1 min easy, or 5×3 min
- Wednesday: Zone 2, 1–1.5 hours easy
- Thursday: Light strength, 30–45 min
- Friday: Zone 2 or rest
- Saturday: Short, playful interval session — short uphill efforts work well
- Sunday: Long ride in zone 2, as long as it's allowed to be
The two interval sessions are short on purpose. I get more out of a session I look forward to than one I dread, so I keep them under an hour and let the intensity do the work. Long threshold intervals aren't for me — they're not where I get better, and they're definitely not where I have fun.
The midweek zone 2 sessions are short enough to fit around work and family but long enough to give real aerobic effect. The Sunday long ride is where most of the volume sits — and where I get the calm that comes from being out on the bike for a long time.
Training that survives a flexible life
With family and everything that comes with it, it matters more than before that the training fits the life around it. I don't do sessions I don't enjoy, but I want to know that what I do actually has an effect. That means fewer but better sessions — and a plan that can be moved when someone gets sick or a weekend turns into something else.
A baseline of 30 minutes of daily activity is a good starting point, but maybe a touch low. A little structure, a little activity, and a little progress hurts no one — and when you have the surplus, the hard sessions aren't all that bad either.
Where I stand now
After a while with this structure I feel stronger without having burned out. The most important thing isn't that I've done a lot of sessions, but that I've done sessions I've enjoyed — and that they've had an effect.
That's how I want to keep training: with joy, structure, and a plan that survives life.