.product_section .product_form, .product_gallery { opacity: 1; } .multi_select, form .select { display: block !important; } .image-element__wrap { display: none; }

3 Wattbike Sessions For Sportive Riders

March 23, 2016 3 min read

With British summer time on the horizon many cyclists thoughts will turn to summer sportives. If you’ve signed up for a sportive this year, why not try one of the following Wattbike sessions, which have been designed specifically to help you tackle the challenges of a sportive.

Prepare for Sportives with a Smart Bike

Try these three indoor trainer sessions to prepare for sportives.

The First Timers Sportive Session

If you are tackling your first sportive this summer this is a great session to start with. You will be working primarily in zone 1 which helps to establish base fitness, plus you’ll add zone 3 intervals to improve your endurance and sustainable power.

Total time 45 minutes

Element	Duration	Training Zone/ RPM
Warm up	10 minutes	1 minute at 80 rpm 1 minute at 85 rpm 1 minute at 90 rpm 1 minute at 95 rpm 1 minute at 100 rpm 1 minute at 80 rpm 6 second sprint 54 second recovery Repeat sprint and recovery 2 minutes at 80 rpm
Base fitness builder	7.5 minutes	Zone 1 - 90 rpm
Interval 1	5 minutes	Zone 3 - 90-95 rpm
Base fitness builder	10 minutes	Zone 1 - 90 rpm
Interval 2	5 minutes	Zone 3 - 90-95 rpm
Cool down	8 minutes	Recovery

The Race Pace Session

If you’re a season sportive rider or regular cyclist looking to improve your sustainable speed during an upcoming sportive, try this session during your taper or pre-competition period. The zone 4 intervals will improve your sustainable race pace.

Total time: 49 minutes

Element	Duration	Training Zone/ RPM
Warm up	10 minutes	1 minute at 80 rpm 1 minute at 85 rpm 1 minute at 90 rpm 1 minute at 95 rpm 1 minute at 100 rpm 1 minute at 80 rpm 6 second sprint 54 second recovery Repeat sprint and recovery 2 minutes at 80 rpm
Base fitness builder	15 minutes	Zone 1 - 90 rpm
Interval 1	4 minutes	Zone 4 - 95-100 rpm
Base fitness builder	8 minutes	Zone 1 - 90 rpm
Interval 2	4 minutes	Zone 4 - 95-100 rpm
Cool down	8 minutes	Recovery

The Pushing Power Session

If you’re looking to beat the bunch and are an experienced cyclist, try this session. The zone 4-5 intervals will help you develop resistance to short term fatigue.

Total time: 30 minutes

Element	Duration	Training Zone/ RPM
Warm up	10 minutes	1 minute at 80 rpm 1 minute at 85 rpm 1 minute at 90 rpm 1 minute at 95 rpm 1 minute at 100 rpm 1 minute at 80 rpm 6 second sprint 54 second recovery Repeat sprint and recovery 2 minutes at 80 rpm
Interval 1	2 minutes	Top of zone 4 - zone 5 at 95-100 rpm Accelerate the last 30 seconds to 110+ rpm at zone 5.
Recovery	4 minutes	Recovery zone
Interval 2	2 minutes	Top of zone 4 - zone 5 at 95-100 rpm Accelerate the last 30 seconds to 110+ rpm at zone 5.
Recovery	4 minutes	Recovery zone
Cool down	8 minutes	Recovery

Include Workouts into Your Training Plan

Whilst you can use any of these sessions as a standalone workout, they’re much more effective when used as part of a wider training plan. If you’re training for a sportive, take a look at our beginners sportive training plan or active cyclists sportive plan if you are looking to improve.