PUBLISHED 04/08/2007
During the intensity segments, aim for 80-plus percent of your maximum heart rate or five to 10 percent less than what you'd target for a running workout. "The pounding of running does a lot to elevate heart rate," says running coach Terrence Mahon. "You'll fatigue fast if you try to maintain a heart rate that's similar to a running workout." Start each ride with at least a 10-minute warmup.
HILL REPEATS Do hill work as you would in running, riding easy back down. For muscular endurance, do a gradual climb of six miles; for anaerobic training, do about five half-mile hills with a harder effort.
TEMPO RIDES Ride hard for 30 minutes in the middle of an hour workout. Or do what Fleshman calls a "progression" ride: a hard half hour broken into increasingly faster 10-minute segments.
INTERVALS Do six to eight four-minute sprints, with a two-minute recovery. Try to find a long stretch of mostly flat road or a loop course. Or sprint for 15, 30, or 60 seconds, with a 30-second rest.
THE COMBO Ride eight 15-second sprints with 15-second recovery, followed by eight to 10 90-second hard intervals with 30 seconds rest and 10 minutes easy, for a 35 to 50-minute workout.
