Fit, Fast & Powerful. The Time Crunched training plan replaces volume with intensity, so you don’t have to try to put in 10-12 hrs/wk. And, based on the experience of colleagues who have referred to it over the last two seasons…it works!
I started cycling again a few years ago after having ridden a bunch in high school and college. I had always ridden for transportation and a little fun on the weekends, but I started going on some group rides and found that I was pretty fast. So, I started riding with the “fast” guys. I made a lot of progress (got faster) two seasons ago without any specific training plan, and decided to try my hand at racing. So, I decided I needed to have an actual training plan.
I read and tried to follow Joel Friel’s Training Bible and made progress last season, but felt that there was something that wasn’t quite right. I felt like the prior season had been much more beneficial. I was training smarter, but I wasn’t progressing like I thought I should. The training often seemed way too easy. I read this book, and it all started to make some sense. I was rarely able to train more than 8 hrs/wk. When Friel’s plan started calling for 10-13 hrs/wk, I just wasn’t able to make it happen. I think I just wasn’t stressing my body enough last season.
The book is well written. He talks about making it short because he knows the readers are “time-crunched”. I felt he could have shortened it a bit more, but it is way better than other books on training that are way too wordy. The three real life examples of CTS clients that have successfully used the Time Crunched training plan are very motivational and effective as to how to use the plan.
At first read, I didn’t quite understand what you are supposed to do in the 4-6 weeks between sessions. He explains it early in the book and calls it “Maintenance”. It is so far in front of the actual plan that I had forgotten about it by the end of the book. When I went back through it, it was plain as day. The maintenance period should probably be briefly touched on again in relationship to the plans. As you read through the book, keep this point in mind.
I’m looking forward to using the Time Crunched training plan to prepare for the 2010-2011 summer. I’ve set it up to be peaking in February through to April. I wanted to write a review now because it is likely that I won’t get back to it after I’m done kicking the collective butts of my fellow cyclists.
Related Reading:
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Bike Snob: Systematically & Mercilessly Realigning the World of CyclingCycling is explodingin a good way. Urbanites everywhere, from ironic hipsters to earth-conscious commuters, are taking to the bike like aquatic mammal... Read More >
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