One-Hour Workout: Bike Lactate Ladder
This workout teaches the athlete to manage the "pain" that comes with lactate threshold/functional threshold-type work.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Every Tuesday we’ll feature a different coach’s workout you can complete in 60 mins (or less!).
This week’s bike workout comes from Lauren Updyke, a USAT Level I coach for Base Tri-Fitness in Columbus, Ohio. “This workout teaches the athlete to manage the ‘pain’ that comes with lactate threshold/functional threshold-type work,” Updyke says. Athletes who know their lactate threshold (LT) heart rate or Functional Threshold Power (FTP) through field tests can use those numbers, or simply used perceived exertion (on a scale of 1 to 10). For athletes using heart rate, Updyke notes that it will take 1–2 minutes for heart rate to reflect desired range.
| Warmup: 8 mins easy, include several spin ups (100+ RPM) | |||
| Perceived Exertion | Heart Rate | Power | |
| 4 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
| 2 mins easy | 1-3 | Zone 1 | Zone 1 – Recovery |
| 6 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
| 2 mins easy | 1-3 | Zone 1 | Zone 1 – Recovery |
| 8 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
| 2 mins easy | 1-3 | Zone 1 | Zone 1 – Recovery |
| 8 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
| 2 mins easy | 1-3 | Zone 1 | Zone 1 – Recovery |
| 6 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
| 2 mins easy | 1-3 | Zone 1 | Zone 1 – Recovery |
| 4 mins | 8 | LT | FTP +/- 5 watts |
Cooldown: 6 mins easy