Originally Posted by
burnthesheep
I'm enjoying the outdoor riding this time of year. I tend to do my longer intervals indoors on the trainer given where I live and how well those would not go outdoors.
So, question: for the "power intervals", can I get by doing them outdoors on some 2 minute hills at proper intensity versus doing 3min intervals on the trainer?
I have gotten 25lb lighter and a ton stronger in the last year. The hills that were good for 3 min intervals are down now to 2min or so. I don't care for making special trips out of town to hit the country roads instead.
If I do 350 to 400w at 2min instead of 330ish watts for 3min, am I going to get the same benefit? Kind of like two sets of 4x2min versus 3x3min.
Your body will adapt differently to 3 minute intervals than 2 minute intervals, but how much? That depends on your own circumstances. To take the example further, it's almost like saying would 20x1 minute get the same effect as doing 1x20 minute.