Long Steady Speed-O???

So does long steady, less than max workouts really work. I'll say this......for 4 years I rode hard....on crazy steep dirt trails, the stiffest, craggiest MTB trails I could find. For 4 years thinking short hard benifited my XC race effort. HOWEVER, finally in 2005 I spent many hours on road doing steady work. OK, forget distance, it was 1-2 hrs on my mountian bike, on road. I threw away my speedo & went steady. The effort in 2005 took 40 minutes off my best 40 mile Chequamegon race time.

You need a base to last, once you have that you can do intesity work. It may take more than one month or year to get a base (endurance and circulation capability). Yep, screw craggy steeps, screw speedo's. I use Pereceived exertion & time on bike, period.....HR pre season to stay in zone. Only you will know how much time each ride needs to be, and when to do intesity work vs. longer base work. Go figure!