Crosssports's Weblog

Howdy folks,

All rested up and ready to go?

I hope so, because today we’re hittin’ it pretty hard, we’re doing the…

Half & Half (& Half ) –

– This isn’t quite the same thing as doing a 2×20, it’s something to do if you need a break from the 2×20′s (and I’m guessing you do.)

– This is also a good warm up for  Over/Under intervals,which we’re going to hit you with next week 🙂

Here we go…

This workout is best done on a flat(ish) stretch of open road, with very little traffic.

You need to be able to ride full-tilt for 20 minutes, non-stop, at a pace that isn’t going to let you pay much attention to where you’re going.

I do these on the trainer. It’s easier and it’s safer.
If you can stand it.

– Warm up well.

Do 1/2 of a Classic 2×20.

Rest for 5 minutes.

Now you’re going to do a single 10 minute effort – unless you’re crazy, seriously, ridiculously in-form and fast as hell. Then you can do 2. Or 3. Or lift small cars off of small children.

Whichever.

No way I’m telling You what to do!

…but wait… there are some details to get straight before you launch into this…

The baseline for this interval is the level of effort/output you just did in the 20 minute effort.

However hard you went in that interval, you are going to try and hold that for the 10 minutes.

Easy, right?

Here’s the rub.

You’re going to sprint for 10 seconds every minute of the interval.

How hard are you going to sprint?

Hard, but not so hard that after you sprint, you can’t sit back down and keep churning away at your 2×20 level.

This takes some practice to figure out.

If you do it right, you will be right on the edge of blowing up, but not quite going over it into total destruction.

Don’t get all freaked out if you blow it and can’t hold the effort until the end, though.

You tried, right?

OK.

Onward.

You’re going to need something with a stopwatch function.

Put it on your bars.

Start the stopwatch.

Start the interval with a sprint, out of the saddle pretty hard, but not full gas.

Sprint for 10 seconds.

Back in saddle, drop into your 2×20 zone. Hold this until the one minute mark, then –

Sprint again. 10 seconds.

Back in saddle, 2×20 level until 2 minute mark…

Repeat.

Repeat…

Repeat, until you have hit the 10 minute mark.

At the 10 minute mark, finish with one 10 second all-out sprint.

If you have done the interval right, you shouldn’t be able to crank the final sprint all that much harder than the earlier sprints.

Pick yourself up off the ground, spin your legs out and recover for a while.

Go home, get on with your day.

Have fun!

~ by crosssports on October 15, 2012.

Posted in The Workout Of The Day