Dear Team Athletica,
First of all, I’d like to share my great experience last season – your software got me through my first long-distance triathlon in sub-11 on a quite hilly course, and through a middle-distance race in the leading group up front. Thanks to your software, the plan and I grew together; even difficult times could be managed by moving, deleting, or adjusting sessions.
As experience grows and I’m still recovering from the long-distance race, I’d like to prepare training for next season. I couldn’t get past the (sub-)threshold training method – VT2 sessions right at the sweet spot of stimulus vs. exhaustion make a lot of sense to me, especially given that long-distance race intensity sits close to threshold rather than in the VO2max zone.
Looking at my current base-phase plan (15–20h/week, load 1000–1200), I see a polarized approach with VO2max sessions consistently 2x/week (bike + run), but no VT2/threshold work in these two disciplines over 8 consecutive weeks. Swimming is the only discipline with a weekly VT2 session.
I asked the AI Coach about this, and it explained that VO2max in base phase is typically kept to “max 1x/week, often every 10–14 days” with threshold work increasing in build phase. However, this doesn’t match what I’m actually seeing in my calendar – 2x/week VO2max at bike and run consistently.
I also looked ahead at my build-phase weeks (late Nov/Dec) and can see race-specific sessions like “Long Distance Over-Unders” (targeting Z3a, the intended IM bike pace zone) and “HIIT + MIT” runs with sustained IM-pace blocks. I understand the logic of introducing race-pace specificity in build rather than base – that makes sense to me.
My question is more specific: independent of race-pace simulation, shouldn’t a generic VT2/threshold stimulus (not tied to IM-pace specificity, just LT2 development itself) also have a small, regular place during base – similar to how it’s already programmed weekly for swimming? The physiological rationale I’ve read (e.g. the Norwegian endurance model) suggests threshold adaptation benefits from being trained somewhat year-round, not only introduced once race-specific work begins.
Given my long-distance focus, would it make sense to alternate or replace one of the two weekly VO2max sessions (bike or run) with a generic VT2/subthreshold session during base? I’d appreciate understanding the reasoning behind the current structure, or guidance on how to best adjust it.
Thanks for your great work – looking forward to your input!