Nick Bain

I am going to start doing intervals soon which is something I have not done in a while other than the standard race up the hill and recover on the way down sort of thing. I really want to do some 5 minute on 5 minute off intervals. I have a nice cat 5 climb that is about 5 minutes of climbing. Just wondering if you think I will get generally the same benefits from either style or different benefits. Also I wan't to train in the 170-180 range to increase my anearobic power.

canam73

If the hill is of a moderate enough grade that you can do the climb seated then the interval will not be much different then on flat. But it is nice to do in on a hill as it can help keep your effort steady. If you are just looking to do anaerobic intervals then I would stick to grades that you can do seated.

Standing climbs are good intervals too, but they work your muscles a little differently and are not as efficient with your energy.

chasm54

I'd add that your cadence is going to be lower on the hill. That will accustom you to producing the power at lower revs, which is fine up to a point but if those intervals are the only ones you do they will end up compromising your leg speed. So mix it up. Either do some of your intervals on the flat, or intersperse your workouts with some high cadence fast-pedalling drills.

gregf83 

5 min intervals are designed to raise your VO2max which isn't the same as increasing your anaerobic work capacity (AWC). If you want to increase your AWC you should be looking at shorter intervals in the 30S range.

If you want to increase VO2Max, it is generally easier to start with 3 min intervals, i.e. 8x3 and work your way up to 5 min. Hill or flat doesn't matter, but if you don't have a powermeter it's easier to maintain a steady power on a constant slope hill by monitoring your speed. It's also easier to monitor performance improvements by timing yourself up a hill.

Tomas Metcalfe

You tend to use slightly more muscle and slightly different muscles while climbing seat and a lot more muscle and a different very different activation patern climbing out of the saddle versus on on the flat. Generally I think climbing is more effective and better for consistency.

Nick Bain

great advice thanks, I guess I should just say trying to get faster, usually I like 5 minute intervals cause those seem to make me stronger.

Diddii

While on the subject of how to monitor your performance, i've also reacently started doing intervals. Today i did my first 2x20 and i only have heart rate monitor. I tried to keep my HR from 170-175bpm. Can i use heart rate monitor with success in interval training like powermeter?

Nick Bain

yes.

chasm54

Yes, if you know what you are doing. For maximal efforts - all-out 30 second sprint intervals, for example - HR is pretty much irrelevant because you just go as hard as you can. But for most intervals you can use HR very effectively once you get enough experience to feel what perceived effort generates what HR. That is important because your HR lags behind your effort level, so it might take you 30-45 seconds after commencing a threshold effort for your HR to catch up and reach the threshold level. You want to start timing your interval from when you begin the effort, not from when your HR reaches the required level.

And you need to know your lactate threshold HR so you can base your HR training zones around it. There's a test for finding out what it is in a sticky at the top of this forum.

gregf83 

You can do the training but it's difficult to monitor your performance using only HR. For that you need to test, either with a powermeter, or on a hill. An out and back TT with low wind is also OK.

The other issue with using HR for 20 min intervals if you are just starting training, is that over the course of a year or more the HR you can sustain for 2x20 intervals will quite often increase. For this reason, perceived exertion is often a better indicator to use in pacing than HR when doing longer intervals. For myself, HR will slowly rise during a constant power 20ish min TT.

chasm54

There are two points here, Greg, aren't there? The first is that with training your threshold will rise. This is easily accounted for by doing LThR tests regularly and resetting one's zones accordingly. My own LTHR has risen from 156 to 162 over the past 12 months. The second is "cardiac drift"; the HR creeps up as the body temperature rises during a long interval. Not ideal, because if one is proceeding purely by HR rather than HR and power, one is likely to back off slightly to bring the HR back down. But with experience, a combination of hR and RPE can allow one to understand what is going on and allow the HR to drift up.

HR without power is an imperfect tool, certainly. But it's pretty useful, all the same.

gregf83 

Regarding doing regular LTHR tests, that is similar to what I was saying as during those tests you are using PE to guide your effort and monitoring your HR. I was suggesting that you could just as easily extend that test methodology to your workouts and do them by PE as well and monitor your HR to confirm that your workouts are consistent.

I think PE works a little better than HR for pacing a long interval. I do a 14k TT once in a while and basically ride it by feel. I still have to use power for the first 1/4. During this period I have to force myself to back off as I feel good but know I won't be able to maintain power. The 3rd quarter is the hardest for me and usually slightly lower power.