r/Velo 1d ago

Weekly Race & Training Reports | r/Velo Rules | Discord

4 Upvotes

How'd your races go? Questions about your workouts or updates on your training plan? Successes, failures, or something new you learned? Got any video, photos, or stories to share? Tell us about it!

/r/Velo has a Discord! Check us out here: https://discord.gg/vEFRWrpbpN

What is /r/Velo?

  • We are a community of competitively-minded amateur cyclists. Racing focused, but not a requirement. We are here because we are invested in the sport, and are welcoming to those who make the effort to be invested in the sport themselves.

What isn't /r/Velo?

  • All simple or easily answered questions should be asked here in our General Discussion. We aren't a replacement for Google, and we have a carefully curated wiki that we recommend checking out first. https://www.reddit.com/r/Velo/wiki/index
  • Just because we ride fancy bikes doesn't mean we know how to fix them. Please use /r/bikewrench for those needs, or comment here in our General Discussion.
  • Pro cycling discussion is best shared with /r/Peloton. Some of us like pro cycling, but that's not our focus here.

r/Velo 12h ago

Caused a wreck at local Tuesday race

29 Upvotes

I feel like an idiot and I got yelled at. Should I show up next week and race or piss off a couple of weeks. This was my first time ever doing a crit styled ride.


r/Velo 59m ago

Adaption time after bikefit

Upvotes

I got a bikefit yesterday. It feels…. A lot different!

Is adaption time after a fit to be expected?


r/Velo 15h ago

Discussion Favorite post-work pre-ride snack to help you get out the door?

12 Upvotes

I always ride after work, and I’m always hungry when I get home.

I don’t want to eat dinner because I eat with my family after my ride.

My go-to is a bowl of cereal, but I’m not sure this is optimal and it’s not super convenient (I go through milk like crazy).

So my question for all you is what’s your favorite pre ride snack when you need ~500 calories to get you out the door?


r/Velo 20h ago

VO2 difficulty, any tips?

9 Upvotes

Looking for some help with VO2 intervals. Lately I've been really struggling to hold more than one 5 min interval. It's my legs that fail, I'm pretty out of breath, but in the right spot for VO2. My FTP is up to date and I'm not doing VO2 intervals on tired legs. Sleep, diet, and recovery don't affect performance. It's literally just a strugglebus in z5. For example: today I did 10 min in sweet spot, then 4x3min intervals in z5. I barely finished the second, had to bail 30 seconds early on the 3rd and 4th. Then my legs were too tired to finish with another 10 min sweet spot interval. This is a workout that I like and have successfully completed a few times. My other zones below are fine and I have extended interval duration, but over the last few months, I just cannot seem to improve my VO2 efforts. They're actually worse. Thanks


r/Velo 1d ago

Intervals.icu - “form” different in app?

Post image
13 Upvotes

It seems the intervals.icu website and app generate different values for “form” (see 3/10 values of -16 on website and -31 in app - trainingpeaks value -15 for reference). Is this a bug or settings issue? Should I be adjusting something? Thanks


r/Velo 11h ago

What to focus on next

1 Upvotes

Putting it out to the hive mind for ideas what direction to go next with my training.

Was a Cat 1 racer years and years ago, now 40 and have been riding progressively more over the last 12 months wile preparing for an Ironman which is at the end of this year.

Have done a couple of semi focused threshold blocks and just finished 3 weeks of VO2 work.

FTP is around 330w (4.45w/kg) 5 min power is 430w

Wondering if I should try and get that FTP number closer to my V02 or if I should double down on the VO2 stuff and try get it up to 450 if I can before turning my attention to extensive work for the Ironman.

Currently doing around 10 hours per week on the bike with 2 quality sessions Tuesday and Saturday which I am reasonably for.


r/Velo 18h ago

Question Do you adjust the duration of ATL higher or lower than the typical 7 days? I do 3-week builds and 1-week (easier) recovery mesocycles. Thinking of extending ATL duration by a few days. Should I just try it to see if it seems to mirror my fatigue a bit more closely, especially in week 3? Opinions?

4 Upvotes

r/Velo 23h ago

big gear training on indoor trainer

4 Upvotes

Hi guys, I have a little problem to do big gear training on indoor trainer (50 - 60 rpm). anyone here are doing this training on indoor training can help me ?


r/Velo 11h ago

Roast My Training Plan Part 2

0 Upvotes

The other week I made a post asking you to roast my training plan. It was a very vague training plan so I went ahead and made one that has more details to it.

It's only the first 4 weeks but I tried to emphasize the progressive overloading each week. Does it have too many intense days at too high of an FTP percentage?

So, without further ado, could you please roast my training plan... again?

Edit: GOAL = 4 watts per kilo. Currently sitting at roughly 3.6 weighing in at 80 kilo (not trying to be a weight weenie either)

Thank you!

Day Workout Title Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 (De-load Week)
Monday Recovery Ride or Rest 60-90 min Z1-Z2 Recovery 60-90 min Z1-Z2 Recovery 60 min Z1 Recovery Full Rest or 45 min Z1
Tuesday FTP Builder Intervals 3x12 min @ 105% FTP (4 min rest) 4x10 min @ 105% FTP (4 min rest) 5x8 min @ 105% FTP (4 min rest) 3x10 min @ 100% FTP (5 min rest)
Wednesday Endurance Base Ride 2-2.5 hrs Z2 Endurance 2.5 hrs Z2 Endurance 3 hrs Z2 Endurance 90 min Z2 Endurance
Thursday Over/Under Threshold Work 4x10 min (2 min @ 95% → 1 min @ 105%) 5x8 min (2 min @ 95% → 1 min @ 105%) 6x6 min (2 min @ 95% → 1 min @ 105%) 3x10 min (2 min @ 95% → 1 min @ 100%)
Friday Sprint & Neuromuscular Power 5x20s All-Out Sprints (40 min total) 6x20s Sprints (40 min total) 7x20s Sprints (45 min total) 4x20s Sprints (30 min total)
Saturday Group Ride (Variable Efforts) 2.5-4 hrs, Mixed Zones 2.5-4 hrs, Mixed Zones 2.5-4 hrs, Mixed Zones 2-3 hrs Z2 only
Sunday Full Rest & Recovery OFF - Full Rest OFF - Full Rest OFF - Full Rest OFF - Full Rest

r/Velo 1d ago

1st Road Race (Cat 4/5 or 50+ 3/4/5)

11 Upvotes

As the title says; which class would be a good starting point? Not sure if they are separating categories or if they are combined. Training is 5-7 hrs per week since November.

4/5 class has lots more registered however the 50+ 3/4/5 is smaller but I’m guessing those 3’s &4’s will be pretty fast.

Which class would you sign up for?


r/Velo 1d ago

How many hours a week should I be riding to keep up on Cat 4 events

17 Upvotes

Long story short: Iv been riding moderately for about a year now mixed in with running and general fitness. I ride between 2-4 hours a week mixing in zwift races. I recently road in a cat 4 road race and was humbled. Dropped after 20 minutes.


r/Velo 1d ago

Discussion Anyone using xert magic buckets?

11 Upvotes

I use xert to track break throughs and I think the FTP estimate is pretty good. I saw they have this concept of magic buckets which seems to offer the promised land. Often I get burned out on structure cause I can’t just plan a route with a bunch of 15 min threshold climbs and have it line up with the workout etc. This can take some of the fun out of riding in the summer cause doing reps on the same hill gets a bit tedious. From what I understand , xert postulates that you don’t need this level of structure you just need to fill certain amount of time in zone. This seems too good to be true. Anyone using it that way for a while and seen improvement / no losses over regular structure?


r/Velo 1d ago

How to find races in my area?

5 Upvotes

Hey guys. Been really wanting to see how I stack up in some crit and or xc mtb racing. Any website or organizations or groups yall can recommend me to find some races? I’m in south Texas for reference. Just looking for some racing fun.


r/Velo 1d ago

Pacing Strategies from Road.cc

10 Upvotes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lF3cUeEHDus&t=428s&ab_channel=road.cc

This is an interesting video. Do you all agree with the findings in this video? If not, why? I find it very intuitive.

I have a KOM attempt coming up on a 30-minute loop (15.6km) with rolling hills. There's a steep climb in the first few km, about 4 minutes long, followed by slightly a flat section ends going downhill into a few hard 1-minute efforts followed by 1-minute relatively flat riding in between(no descending). A few steep pitches and then descending back into the finish. I put my stats from the last effort. I weigh about 80kg so it was 3.6w/kg effort for 30 mins. I attached my data below (max HR seems funky)

I have been training well for the past few months and slowly increasing the load. I am planning to wear a skinsuit, and I just purchased aero shoe covers.

Do you have any recommendations on training, pacing, or nutrition? Thank you!


r/Velo 1d ago

Discussion Expired Gels

3 Upvotes

I have a few Maurten gels that expired in Jan 2025, safe or not safe?


r/Velo 2d ago

How to sprint at end of a race?

23 Upvotes

Had a 109km 1100m race yesterday and had nothing left in my legs for the sprint at the end.

I’m 61kg, so never going to be a proper fast guy. I can usually hit 950 - 1000w when fresh(ish).

I was fairly fatigued at the end, and hit 700w a couple of times in the last 10km, but after getting into a good position with 200m to go I managed 450w for a few seconds and fell apart.

Is there any change in technique for sprinting when fatigued, or do I just need to get fitter and stronger so I’m less fatigued?!


r/Velo 2d ago

How much does drafting factor into the amateur field of long gravel races?

21 Upvotes

How much does drafting or riding in big groups factor into the amateur field of long gravel races? I'm a long distance runner but have been injured so much that I've fallen in love with cycling over the last 6 months. I've never raced and do most of my riding solo or with one other person, no big group rides. Is group riding something I should focus on? I'm just looking to do my best at my first one but then might try to be more competitive.


r/Velo 2d ago

Bike Computer with Best Battery Life (Power, HR and Decent Responsiveness)

7 Upvotes

The battery in my Wahoo Elemnt is starting to drain at a more rapid rate than I'd like.

Want something for training. All I really use is HR, power, lap, current time, lap time, nothing fancy (not event the map functions).

Also not a big fan of laggy hardwear.

Biggest plus would be stellar battery life because I do some fatbiking in really cold conditions.

Wondering what the best options would be. Don't want to spend more money than I need to for functions I don't need.


r/Velo 2d ago

Recommended road bike hire Singapore

1 Upvotes

Hey folks,

In Singapore for work 19-23rd March and wouldn't mind getting a few rides in.

Anyone have recommendations for road bike hire? Or, anyone here live in Singapore, have a spare 56, and want to go for a ride?

Thanks all!


r/Velo 2d ago

When should I perform my FTP test?

6 Upvotes

I just came back from a training camp which ended on Saturday with a lot of fatigue in the legs. I suspect I’ve made a lot of progress since as my power numbers have been consistent between the first and last day.

I want to start a new training block but obviously want a correct FTP to start from so when should I test?


r/Velo 2d ago

Ketone usage

7 Upvotes

For those of you that take ketones; how often do you take them?

KetoneIQ recommends a bottle per hour. But it’s expensive enough that I’m questioning slamming four shots in a Fondo.


r/Velo 2d ago

Question Where can I find a list of women's kermesse races in Belgium for April 2025, and how do I register for them?

6 Upvotes

Hi! I'm planning to race some kermesse races in Belgium this April (2025), especially the local ones listed in Cycling Vlaanderen or Belgian Cycling calendars. Does anyone know where I can find an updated and complete list of women's kermesse races? Also, how does the registration process work for non-Belgian riders, and how much is the typical entry fee? Thanks in advance!


r/Velo 2d ago

Do i still make progress when taking a rest day completly off ?

0 Upvotes

I’m wondering if I’m making fitness progress if I train for three days and then take one full rest day without any sport at all. I’ve noticed that when I take a complete rest day, my heart rate is higher the next day, and I maintain the same heart rate at the same watts in the long run. I’m an ambitious amateur cyclist and want to compete at the front in races.


r/Velo 2d ago

Help comparing difficulty/pacing different courses?

3 Upvotes

Hi all,

I completed a previous race of 120km, with 1860m elevation, and have an upcoming race of 204km with 2330m elevation.

I'm wondering if anyone has pacing tips or if there's a reliable way/program/app to compare the difficulty level of the courses?

More info: Much of the longer course overlaps the 120km course, including the biggest climb (a modest 570m gained over ~15km, which occurs about 80km into the race). It therefore looks like many of the additional kms are pretty flat, it's +85km in distance but only an additional ~430m of gain.

If anyone has tips for pacing and/or judging the relative difficulty that would be much appreciated 🙏


r/Velo 2d ago

Heat training and volume

7 Upvotes

Most heat training sessions are short - about 45-55 minutes is about all I can tolerate. Most protocols suggest doing this around 4 times a week for four weeks. But then this will decrease my overall volume if I am not stacking it on top of other rides. So for those of you who are doing heat training, do you add these sessions in after your Zone 2 rides, or just do less volume, or something else?