Couple of training q's...

First some background...I am 30 years old and live in Australia. I have been actively involved in endurance sports over the past six or so years on and off (for varying reasons) which include triathlon (did a 11 hr ironman in 2006), running and cycling for a season. I would rate my aerobic condition as good and can currently ride solo for three or so hours without any bother. A recent ankle injury due to running has seen me back on the bike with renewed vigour and a desire to compete.

Living in Australia our road season coincides with the Northern Hemisphere in terms of a racing calendar e.g. racing from April through to October. The difference being is that it is currently summer so I am able to enjoy long, sunny days. I have been an avid watcher of different topics in this forum and have cobbled together a bit of information based on a few books that I have purchased (Dave Morris's Performance Cycling and Greg Lemond's book).

I think that the block style of training will suit my goals and time availability. I will be relocating to a new job in late January which will see my training time shift from mornings to afternoons. This is fine for now but once Autumn (or Fall) and Winter roll around I will be consigned to the trainer. I don't own a power meter at this stage but am intending on getting on.

I am looking to construct a plan that will see me riding strong in club races starting in April - May (usually 45 to 60 kms long) with a view to racing some open's later in the year October - November. My thoughts for this point in time (let's call it "base" for the sake of convenience) would be as follows:

Monday - Off
Tuesday - Sprint Intervals
Wednesday - AT / SST Intervals
Thursday - Endurance Ride (upto 2 hrs)
Friday - Easy/Off
Saturday - Group ride of varying pace and length (between 1 1/2 and 3 hrs)
Sunday - Group ride (2 1/2 to 4 hrs)

Questions: Starting out with SST intervals in the early base I interpret is a good thing. How would I structure and progress these intervals?

Would it be an idea to cut back on one of the weekend group rides?

Training SST without a power meter?

Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

Typically 30 min to 2hrs worth, duration depends on intensity. Break em up into chunks at higher end, do them as a continuous block at lower end.

Yes, replace one or both depending on what they're like and replace at least one with another SST session. Groups runs are notorious for being of limited and especially inconsistent training benefit.

Use RPE as a guide but nothing like the power meter to aid this. Max 40km TT / 1 hour pace is the upper limit for SST, so keep workload in zones not far below that.

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