It can be difficult to put theory into practice.
That’s particularly true when you want to apply knowledge in cycling. For example, VO2max. It’s nice to know about VO2max training, but how do you do it?
Thankfully, a few intervals proved to be among the best to trigger your aerobic capacity.
I’m not going to pretend these workouts are the only ways or best intervals to increase maximum oxygen uptake–there are plenty of derivatives out there–but these simple workouts will help you make progress in that domain. Training programs should be easy to sustain. No confusing novel on your stem.
With that in mind, here are the 3 best interval sessions you can do right now to supercharge your maximum oxygen uptake.
Intermittent Exercise Intervals
Intermittent intervals are alternating short bursts of very high intensity with a short period of low intensity. A good example of these micro intervals is Billat’s 30/30 intervals.
Veronique Louise Billat is a French physiologist and university professor. If you heard about Ronnestad she’s probably the French version.
Her research about endurance performance is invaluable for our understanding of cycling training today. She’s a specialist in running also and published a book about how pace changes make you a faster athlete.
Billat devoted years to figuring out more and more effective interval training. She started with a 3-minute interval protocol at VO2max. And finally progressed to what is known today as Billat 30/30 intervals.
You ride 30 seconds at 100% VO2max or more and do 30 seconds of recovery riding in between. During the 30 seconds off your metabolism is still ramped up to VO2max for a significant amount of time. You get a 1-minute interval for just 30 seconds of effort. You should spend 15-30 minutes at 30-30 intervals.
However her Norwegian counterpart Ronnestad came up with 30/15 intervals. The magic is by cutting the break to half you gain more time above 90% of VO2max or max heart rate. This is extremely beneficial for more trained athletes because they may not reach maximum oxygen uptake due to the long 30 seconds break.
For example, I rode over 600 watts in the 30 seconds on part of the last interval in the last set and just reached 174 bpm which is around 90% of my max heart rate for me. Basically, I rode all sets without accumulating time above 90% of the max heart rate.
When doing 30/15 intervals, however, I pass 180 bpm in the first set already. Therefore, 30/15 might be a better choice.
The VO2max Prime Booster: 30/15s Intervals
- Warm-up: Perform a warm-up of 15-20 minutes with 1×2 minutes at FTP.
- Mainset for Beginners: 2x11x30/15 at 30 seconds at 130-140% of FTP, 15 seconds at 50-60% of FTP
- Mainset for Intermediates: 3x11x30/15 at 30 seconds at 130-140% of FTP, 15 seconds at 50-60% of FTP
- Mainset for Competitive: 3x13x30/15 at 30 seconds at 130-140% of FTP, 15 seconds at 50-60% of FTP
- Recovery in between sets: Try a 1:1 work-rest-ratio, so if your set takes 10min to complete, ride easy for 10min in between
- Cool down: Ride an easy endurance pace to let the workout sink in
Let’s look at another classic of VO2max intervals that pro riders like Peter Stetina use to boost their aerobic and anaerobic capacity.
Standard 4 Minute VO2max Intervals
- Warm-up: Perform a warm-up of 15-25 minutes including 1×2 minutes at SwSp
- Mainset: 4×4 minutes at 90% of VO2max power or 110-120% of FTP
- Recovery in between sets: Try a 1:1 work-rest-ratio, so 4min easy
- Cool Down: Ride an easy endurance pace to let the workout sink in
Dr. Seilers 8 minute VO2max Intervals
- Warm-up: Perform a warm-up of 15-20 minutes including 1×2 minutes at SwSp
- Mainset: 4×8 minutes intervals at slightly less than 90% of VO2max power or 106-110% of FTP
- Recovery in between sets: Try a 2:1 work-rest-ratio, so 4min easy
- Cool down: Ride an easy endurance pace to let the workout sink in
Final Thoughts
Here you go with 3 effective and individual VO2max workouts. Keep in mind to pace all efforts consistently. It’s about the best average. Not about starting too hard and being unable to perform the last set.
Keep your intensity in the prescribed range even if you think you can push harder. Otherwise, you miss the goal and risk increasing your anaerobic capacity. VO2max is an important, yet anaerobic workout because you ride over your FTP.
Further Reading: The Venture No One Tells You About VO2max Training
What separates top performers from everyone else is that they know when to hold back and trust the process. They believe in the training plan. Make sure you have a plan you can rely on.
If you want more practical advice on training better, check out my articles about sweet spot training or mastering the fundamentals of cycling.
Ready to Boost Your VO2max?
If you enjoyed this and you’re ready to master structured training and become a faster cyclist, check out my structured training plans. I combine science and real-life data and provide you with a full-on training plan to target specific areas of your fitness like VO2max. You find plans like block periodization to boost your VO2max. Enjoy!
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Footnotes
Dr. Veronique Louise Billat: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Veronique-Billat
Billat intervals: the magic bullet for your next PB? https://www.sportsperformancebulletin.com/endurance-training/high-intensity-training/billat-intervals-magic-bullet-next-pb/
Interval training at VO2max: effects on aerobic performance and overtraining markers: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9927024/
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