Coaches Corner
Coaches Corner
Introducing TaG Pro Analysis
Hello TaG Riders,
This is the first installment of what will be an ongoing TaG Coach’s Corner feature going forward. We will be bringing you advice and analysis from TaG’s expert coaches and highlighting the some of the amazing training and racing efforts from TaG coached athletes. You can look forward to hearing from top pros and Olympians and learning more about how to use TaG training resources to reach your goals.
To start, I want to introduce a new program that we developed to enhance the TaG class experience. TaG Pro Analysis (TPA) offers athletes the opportunity to receive coaching feedback on every class workout they perform. TPA athletes have their workout files automatically uploaded to the TaG Training Peaks account where it is analyzed by a TaG coach within 24 hrs. This analysis breaks down advanced power, heart rate and cadence metrics in relation to the TaG workout plan to highlight progress and areas where training could be more effective. This process will help athletes get more out of every workout they do and learn to use data to more effectively guide their training overall.
To illustrate this process, we can use an example file from a client who is one of the early adopters of TPA. For background, this athlete is in the early stages of fitness building with the goal of having strong form for events and big rides through the late spring and summer months. The athlete is naturally good at shorter, punchy efforts (10s-3 minutes or so) but has to work harder for base endurance and the ability to maintain longer pushes on climbs like Cypress and Seymour.
After a phone consult and a look at recent training we decided to focus on controlled intensity around lactate threshold (90-105% of FTP or ~70-80% MAP) in most TaG classes while trying to stick to lower end aerobic riding (55-75% FTP or ~40-60% MAP) on solo rides. When volume has been low and you are just starting to build up, it is important not to push hard in every class and ride you do. You may gain some fitness quickly with lots of high intensity but the improvement curve is steep and short. This can leave you burnt out by spring and lacking endurance in general.
With that in mind, for this athlete, we have been trying to keep max HR around 180 bpm on most of the intervals which is right around threshold for him. The athlete can easily push into the 190’s for short efforts but we want to control that so the intervals work more of the aerobic system without engaging the anaerobic side very much. He is still following the class instructions and doing some high-end accelerations when needed but generally holding back a little so efforts can be steady and consistent. Doing a little bit less power but for more intervals, more often is often a great strategy for building aerobic base.
We also decided to make use of one of TaG’s new class offerings, the Sunday “Steve’s Winter Club Ride”. The ride is dedicated to z2 training with some cadence and acceleration work for structure and added benefit. This fits our aerobic focus perfectly and is more motivating than riding the trainer steady and at home.
As you can see in the analysis comment below, this plan is already producing progress after only a few weeks and I think that will continue as better weather arrives and allows more volume to compliment the classes. Watch out for a certain TaG jersey going faster than ever this season J
Have Fun and Train Hard,
Jordan Cheyne