"T-Max" intervals

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53x12
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by 53x12

I came across an older article that talked about this "T-Max intervals" program that Aussie exercise physiologist Paul Laursen came up with. Here is a link to the abstract that Laursen published: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11772161

The Bicycling article mentioned that Laursen's findings found that on average one is able to increase max power by 5-6% and VO2 "shy high." The interesting part of this that caught my attention is that these intervals:

The T-Max Interval is effective because it tailors work and rest time, and intensity, to your genetic ability and fitness level, rather than prescribing an arbitrary set of conditions.

http://www.bicycling.com/training/fitne ... e-interval

Here is the interval work out:

Find Your T-Max
1. Determine Your Peak Power Output. Using a power-measuring device from PowerTap, Polar, SRM or CompuTrainer, begin riding at 100 watts. Increase power by 30 watts every minute until you reach exhaustion. Laursen deemed test subjects fully exhausted when they could not keep their cadence above 60 rpm. You can use that benchmark, but let's be honest, you'll know when you're done. The number of watts you produce just before collapsing is your peak power output, or PPO.

2. Find Your T-Max. Rest for a day or two. Again using a power meter, ride at your PPO until you can no longer sustain that level of output. The amount of time you can hold your PPO is your T-Max. For most of us, that's between four and six minutes.

3. Calculate Your Ultimate Interval. Multiply your T-Max time by 0.6. This is the work phase of your interval. Double the work phase to set your recovery time between efforts.

4. Try It Out. The original study prescribed eight hard efforts. But if you'd rather avoid losing your lunch, start with two or three intervals. Do two sessions a week, with at least two days of rest or other easy riding between. Add one interval to each set every week until you achieve five or six intervals per workout. Build up to eight if you can.


Anyone try this or try a derivative of it?
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addict
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by addict

Very useful intervals imho, and for me)

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53x12
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by 53x12

Have you noticed a difference between using the "T-Max" method for intervals vs. the typical interval of doing VO2 max intervals of zone 5 work of 4 minutes duration with time off x however many of those intervals your body can handle for a session?
"Marginal gains are the only gains when all that's left to gain is in the margins."

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addict
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by addict

IMO T-Max intervals develop muscle adaptation for high loads better than vo2max) Can sustain 5-6 x 2.5min intervals. 3 min to long for me.

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53x12
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by 53x12

I'm going to have to give this method a try this summer. I like the idea behind it and it makes sense to me. The fact that you have had good experience and results with it is good to hear.
"Marginal gains are the only gains when all that's left to gain is in the margins."

Nefarious86
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by Nefarious86

Very interesting
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by addict

This season iI generally do more and better training because of better motivation) most thankfully to Neo/zwift. There're lot of useful HIITs threre[emoji106]

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kytyree
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by kytyree

Going by how much this type of intervals really suck they're probably great for your training.

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by addict

kytyree wrote:Going by how much this type of intervals really suck they're probably great for your training.


Without any explanation/proof?? :)

savechief
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by savechief

At what power output are the intervals performed? PPO or some percentage of PPO?

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Rubik
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by Rubik

I posted this in another thread, but that's what I do now after spending a few months last winter doing the "traditional vo2 max work" of 5-7x 3-5 mins at 115-118% with equal recoveries. Doing those improved my power for doing those repeats at 3-5 mins (went from about 370 to 390+ for the 5 mins), but it never improved my actual 5 min peak power (433, 431, 432 the last three years).

So after reading Tim Cusick's suggestions on vo2 max training (actual 95-100% of vo2 max power; ftp not considered) I've started doing 3 mins at max 5 min power (vo2 max power according to my wko4 chart) with 3 min recoveries.

So if my max 5 min power is 430, I try to hold that or slightly above for 3 mins, then recover for 3 mins (I do them on a hill and so it's essentially inactive recovery as I coast back down) and then go again, shooting for about 8-12 mins of actual time at or above 430.

There's a chart in wko4 that plots all this for you so you can see time at 90%, 95%, etc.

They're heinous. Very, very, very hard. I've only done one session where I accumulated over 10 mins (got 11!) at 95%. The intervals I did before were useful in other regards, so will have their place at certain times of the year, but I feel this is actually working on what I really want to actually work on (improving peak 2-6 min power).

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kytyree
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by kytyree

Yep, that's what I was referring to when I said these intervals suck. 3min intervals at your 5min power, they're just not fun especially around the third one.

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boysa
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by boysa

I'd say they start to really suck during the first one. Haha!!

I haven't tried these yet, but I'm penciling them in. Just need to muster the courage.
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