![\"Estimated](\"https:\/\/www.bicycling.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/fre\/static\/icons\/clock-regular.4ddebeb.svg\")
6 min read<\/p>\n6 min read<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve been training consistently, riding a few days a week<\/a> and have built a decent base<\/a>. But now, maybe you\u2019re hoping to take it to the next level and get faster<\/a>\u2014fast. Just like building a base, it does take time to build speed<\/a>, but there are some shortcuts to get you there in less time if you\u2019re willing to put in some dedicated, focused work in the next month.<\/p>\n Structuring your training week in the right way matters even more when you\u2019re trying to get faster, compared to when you\u2019re building a base, because you need to add high-intensity training<\/a> to your schedule. And each hard session requires recovery<\/a>, which means you can\u2019t just go hard or long every single day. \u201cTo get faster, you need to become more intentional and more specific,\u201d says cycling coach Lucas Wall of Develo Coaching<\/a>. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to add a ton of extra hours on the bike at the same time you\u2019re adding in more intensity\u2014you want to be really focused.\u201d<\/p>\n \ud83d\udeb4\ud83c\udffd Ready to take on your fastest ride yet? Our How to Ride Faster program<\/a> will help you make it happen!<\/p>\n For a block like this, you\u2019re going to want to make sure you\u2019re truly polarizing your workouts<\/a>, says Ryan Kohler, cycling coach at Rocky Mountain Devo<\/a>. This means spending a small chunk of time at high intensity, and then spending the rest of your time at a genuinely easy\/endurance pace<\/a>. \u201cYou\u2019ll need to focus on high-intensity efforts, because you\u2019ll get the most bang for your buck there. But any more than three interval workouts<\/a> a week is going to be unsustainable,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Especially for new riders, Kohler recommends keeping workouts relatively short and focusing on quality efforts, rather than longer rides<\/a>. \u201cYou can see a lot of improvement doing workouts that only have eight to 12 minutes of intensity,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n Wall focuses on three key rides<\/a> each week: Two high-intensity workouts<\/a> and one longer endurance ride, bookended by easier efforts and skills<\/a> sessions. \u201cIt\u2019s important to be consistent and ride throughout the week, but not do hard efforts every day,\u201d he says. \u201cTypically, a plan for this kind of goal would start with Monday as off or easy, then Tuesday and Thursday would be days where we add in high intensity, while Wednesday and Friday are easier rides. Then the weekends, where people typically have more time, are for longer rides and for some fun. But don\u2019t go huge both days!\u201d<\/p>\n Finally, Wall recommends using your ride time to visualize what success looks like. \u201cVisualization is a great way to practice skills, work on positive mental talk<\/a>, and generally be more ready for race day or that scary group ride<\/a>,\u201d he says. \u201cWhile you\u2019re riding, just visualize yourself on the race course, or riding confidently in the group. What does it look like? What are you thinking? I find that it can be really helpful as you\u2019re preparing for any event at any level, and it can help newer riders grow their confidence on the bike.\u201d<\/p>\n The Training PlanYour 4-Week Plan to Ride Faster If you\u2019ve been riding consistently a few days a week and are ready to take your cycling up a level, this plan is for you! (If you\u2019re just starting a cycling routine, go for our base training plan<\/a> first!). It also works for intermediate and advanced riders who don\u2019t have a ton of time to train.<\/p>\n Heart Rate and Power Zones Threshold Heart Rate\u00a0(HR)<\/p>\n Average heart rate for a 20-minute time trial or 1-hour hard group ride<\/p>\n Threshold Power<\/p>\n Average power for a 20-minute time trial, minus 5% of this number<\/p>\n Threshold (T)<\/p>\n 95-105% of T HR\/91-105% of T power<\/p>\n Active Recovery<\/p>\n <68% of T HR\/<55% of T power<\/p>\n Endurance<\/p>\n 69-83% of T HR\/56-75% of T power<\/p>\n Tempo<\/p>\n 84-94% of T HR\/76-90% of T power<\/p>\n Hard<\/p>\n For this plan, \u201chard\u201d efforts (between zone 4 and zone 5) should be the most power\/effort that you can hold for around 60 seconds (when intervals at this effort are longer than 1 minute, drop your effort slightly in order to keep it steady for the duration)<\/p>\n Training Plan by Week Week 1<\/p>\n Monday:Rest day (or active recovery like a walk or yoga)<\/p>\n Tuesday: Threshold<\/a> intervals: Record your average power or total distance during this workout, because you\u2019ll repeat it at the end of the block to see how much you\u2019ve improved!<\/p>\n – 15 minute easy warmup Wednesday: Endurance pace (zone 2) 45-90 minutes<\/p>\n Thursday: Hard intervals:<\/p>\n – 15 minute easy warmup Friday: 45- to 60-minute active recovery ride or off day<\/p>\n Saturday: Endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes to 3 hours (if you\u2019re working toward a hillier event, make sure to include some climbing<\/a> and descending<\/a> on this ride)<\/p>\n Sunday: Group ride or endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes with skills work (focus on riding smoothly around corners<\/a> or find a hillier route to practice climbing and descending)<\/p>\n Week 2<\/p>\n Monday:\u00a0Rest day (or active recovery like a walk or yoga)<\/p>\n Tuesday:\u00a0Threshold intervals:<\/p>\n -15 minute easy warmup Wednesday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 45-90 minutes<\/p>\n Thursday:\u00a0Hard intervals:<\/p>\n – 15 minute easy warmup Friday:\u00a045-60 minute active recovery ride or off day<\/p>\n Saturday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes to 3 hours (if you\u2019re working towards a hillier event, make sure to include some climbing and descending on this ride)<\/p>\n Sunday:\u00a0Group ride or endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes with skills work (Focus on riding smoothly around corners or find a hillier route to practice climbing and descending)<\/p>\n Week 3<\/p>\n Monday:\u00a0Rest day (or active recovery like a walk or yoga)<\/p>\n Tuesday:\u00a0Threshold intervals:<\/p>\n – 15 minute easy warmup Wednesday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 45-90 minutes<\/p>\n Thursday:\u00a0Hard Intervals:<\/p>\n – 15 minute warmup Friday:\u00a045-60 minute active recovery ride or off day<\/p>\n Saturday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes to 3 hours (if you\u2019re working towards a hillier event, make sure to include some climbing and descending on this ride)<\/p>\n Sunday:\u00a0Group ride or endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes with skills work (focus on riding smoothly around corners or find a hillier route to practice climbing and descending)<\/p>\n Week 4:\u00a0Training<\/p>\n Monday:\u00a0Rest day (or active recovery like a walk or yoga)<\/p>\n Tuesday:\u00a0Threshold intervals: Record your average power or total distance ridden during these intervals to see how much you\u2019ve improved since week 1!<\/p>\n – 15 minute easy warmup Wednesday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 45-90 minutes<\/p>\n Thursday:\u00a0Hard intervals:15 minute easy warmupHard effort ladder (for the longer intervals in this ladder, you won\u2019t be able to sustain a hard pace, so drop your effort to the high end of your threshold)<\/p>\n – 30 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy Friday:\u00a045-60 minute active recovery ride or off day<\/p>\n Saturday:\u00a0Endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes to 3 hours (if you\u2019re working towards a hillier event, make sure to include some climbing and descending on this ride)<\/p>\n Sunday:\u00a0Group ride or endurance pace (zone 2) 90 minutes with skills work (focus on riding smoothly around corners or find a hillier route to practice climbing and descending)<\/p>\n Week 4: Before an\u00a0Event<\/p>\n Monday:\u00a0Rest day<\/p>\n Tuesday:\u00a0Threshold intervals: Record your average power or total distance ridden during these intervals to see how much you\u2019ve improved since week 1! Wednesday:\u00a060-minute endurance pace (zone 2)<\/p>\n Thursday:\u00a0Hard intervals:<\/p>\n – 15 minute warmup Friday:\u00a045-minute easy spin with 4×30 second hard efforts<\/p>\n Saturday:\u00a0RACE DAY!<\/p>\n Sunday:\u00a0Recovery<\/p>\n About the WorkoutsHow to Execute the Workouts on This Training Plan Because we know you\u2019re busy, we\u2019ve given a range of times for endurance-paced rides. If you have a lot of free time on Saturday, aim for the longer duration. Busy week? Opt for the low end.<\/p>\n Measure Efforts<\/p>\n No power meter<\/a>? No problem. Focus on heart rate<\/a> and perceived exertion. You may want to find a hill or uninterrupted flat segment of road to test your speed in the first week so that at the end of the four-week block, you can re-test it to see if you\u2019ve improved.<\/p>\n Train on Race Terrain<\/p>\n If you\u2019re working toward an event or have a goal that\u2019s gravel- or mountain bike-based, make sure you\u2019re doing some of your rides on the terrain you\u2019re training for! It\u2019s easy to stay on the road bike<\/a> or trainer<\/a> when you\u2019re trying to get faster because results are easier to measure, but you need to prepare for the goal you\u2019ve set.<\/p>\n Similarly, if your goal is to get faster outdoors, you need to be riding outside<\/a> as well. Too many athletes build huge engines indoors on the trainer, says Wall, and then struggle to use that fitness outdoors because they struggle to corner, climb, descend, and draft. Try to do at least some of your rides outside (weather permitting) whenever possible, especially longer efforts or skills practice.<\/p>\n Build Your Skills<\/p>\n We’ve added a skills component on Sundays because working on skills is free speed. This means practicing things like cornering or descending, or hopping into a group ride<\/a> to practice drafting<\/a>. Getting faster doesn\u2019t just mean building power<\/a> on the bike, it means spending less time and energy braking in corners and needing to work hard to get back up to speed. (Watch a cyclocross race to see what we mean: The back-of-the-pack racers are almost always losing time in every corner.) Embrace a Taper (If You Need It)<\/p>\n Finally, if you\u2019re planning to do an event (a race or a hard group ride) at the end of this block, we\u2019ve added an \u201cevent\u201d version on week 4, which has more of a taper so that you get to the start line feeling fresh. If you\u2019re just working on getting faster, though, stick to the standard training week.<\/p>\n Common Mistakes5 Common Mistakes to Avoid During This Training BlockDoing It All, All at Once<\/p>\n You\u2019ve successfully completed a base training block and you\u2019re ready to work on speed. While it\u2019s tempting to boost both your volume and your intensity at this point, be careful of doing too much, too soon. \u201cDon\u2019t just go out and ride more if you want to get faster,\u201c says Wall.<\/p>\n Wall notes that in cycling, it\u2019s easy to go overboard on volume because it is a low-impact activity<\/a> compared to running (where your body lets you know it\u2019s time to slow down). If you feel like this plan is too easy, put more effort into doing your intervals at the high end of the power\/heart rate range rather than trying to add more training hours.<\/p>\n Sneaking in Other High-Intensity Training<\/p>\n If you love strength training<\/a> and you\u2019re already doing it, you can keep it in the program without sacrificing speed, says Kohler. But if you\u2019re new to strength training<\/a> and exhausted after every session, or you\u2019re doing more bootcamp-style workouts that are high intensity, you\u2019re going to struggle to gain speed quickly on the bike.<\/p>\n This can also apply to group rides: If you\u2019re jumping into a group ride that feels too fast for your endurance pace on what\u2019s supposed to be an easy day, you\u2019re doing extra high-intensity work that won\u2019t help you in the long run.<\/p>\n Skipping Rest Days<\/p>\n It\u2019s tempting to sneak in a bonus workout if you find yourself with time and energy on Monday\u2014we get it. But your body needs those rest days<\/a> to recover, especially when you\u2019ve increased your interval training significantly, says Wall.<\/p>\n At least one day a week should be off the bike, so that your body (and your butt!) has time to recover from all that time in the saddle. For newer or busier cyclists, two days of active recovery like walking or yoga<\/a> can be helpful.<\/p>\n Skipping Too Many Training Days<\/p>\n Conversely, you can\u2019t expect to get faster if you\u2019re skipping multiple workouts in this plan. Because it\u2019s short\u2014only four weeks\u2014every workout is going to make a difference. Skipping one isn\u2019t going to wreck your efforts, but every workout you miss means you won\u2019t see results as quickly. (That said, please don\u2019t train if you\u2019re sick or fatigued<\/a>. Prioritize health, and be okay with slower progress. You\u2019ll still get faster, it just won\u2019t happen as quickly.)<\/p>\n Forget to Fuel Your Rides<\/p>\n Finally, harder efforts and longer rides can lead to bonking<\/a>\u2014when your muscles run out of glycogen<\/a> and you hit the wall. Make sure that you\u2019re fueling workouts<\/a> and longer endurance rides before, during, and after. Prioritize simple carbohydrates<\/a> during workouts and a mix of protein<\/a> and carbohydrates after your rides. This will help you recover faster and see more strength gains.<\/p>\n Molly writes about cycling, nutrition and training with an emphasis on bringing more women into sport. She’s the author of nine books including the Shred Girls series and is the founder of Strong Girl Publishing<\/a>. She co-hosts The Consummate Athlete Podcast<\/a> and spends most of her free time biking and running on trails, occasionally joined by her mini-dachshund.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"6 min read You\u2019ve been training consistently, riding a few days a week and have built a decent…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":774490,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,325375,784,85,195133],"class_list":["post-774489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cupdate","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-supes"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/774489","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=774489"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/774489\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/774490"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=774489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=774489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=774489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"cycling](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/bke-training-plan-to-ride-faster-68ee65b1e8ffa.png\" "\\"cycling")
<\/a>Who This Plan Best Serves<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.bicycling.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/fre\/static\/icons\/arrow-right-regular.e879c19.svg\"){kind=icon}
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
–\u00a02 x 10 minutes at threshold (zone 4) with 5 minutes easy in between
-15 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n
–\u00a030 x 30 seconds hard (zone 4\/5) with 60 seconds easy between
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
-2 x 15 minutes at threshold (zone 4) with 5 minutes easy in between
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n
–\u00a0Hard effort ladder (for the longer intervals in this ladder, you won\u2019t be able to sustain a hard pace, so drop your effort to the high end of your threshold)
–\u00a030 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy
–\u00a01 minute hard, 1 minute easy
–\u00a01:30 hard, 1:30 easy
–\u00a02 minutes hard, 2 minutes easy
–\u00a01:30 hard, 1:30 easy
–\u00a01 minute hard, 1 minute easy
–\u00a030 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
–\u00a020 minutes at as close to threshold pace as possible
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n
–\u00a030 x 30 seconds hard with 30 seconds easy between
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
– 2 x 10 minutes at threshold pace with 5 minutes easy in between
– 15 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n
–\u00a01 minute hard, 1 minute easy
–\u00a01:30 hard, 1:30 easy
–\u00a02 minutes hard, 2 minutes easy
–\u00a01:30 hard, 1:30 easy
–\u00a01 minute hard, 1 minute easy
–\u00a030 seconds hard, 30 seconds easy
–\u00a015 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
–\u00a015-30 minute easy warmup
–\u00a01 x 10 minutes at threshold pace
–\u00a015-30 minute easy cooldown<\/p>\n
–\u00a010 x 30 seconds hard with 60 seconds easy between
–\u00a015 minute cooldown<\/p>\n
Use the Time Range<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n![\"Lettermark\"](\"https:\/\/www.bicycling.com\/_assets\/design-tokens\/bicycling\/static\/images\/logos\/lettermark.9b40ef4.svg?primary=%2523000\")
<\/p>\n