Periodization is the process of dividing an annual training plan into specific blocks of time, where each block has a particular goal and provides your body with different types of stress. Some training periods are harder and others are easier to allow for recovery. Periodization also develops different energy systems during various phases of training (eg, Aerobic, Anaerobic, Creatine Phosphate). More importantly, periodization is the best way to promote the effect of training, which consists of changes in your cardiopulmonary and musculoskeletal systems that result in increased speed and endurance on the bike. There are 3 basic principles of periodization:

1. The main goal of periodization is to prepare your body for peak performance at a certain time of year.. Do you want to ride a fast century? Finish in the top 10 in a local road race? Perhaps your goal is to set your personal best in the state time trial championships. A periodized training program is the most effective way to achieve your goals because it allows you to gradually improve your cycling performance so that you peak at your most important events. For example, if your milestone is late June, you can develop a training plan that allows you to peak at the beginning of summer. If you have multiple milestones during the season, you can devise a plan that allows for multiple peaks over a multi-month period.

2. Training must progress from the general to the specific through a series of stages.. Each stage has a specific purpose. For example, training programs for competitive cyclists are usually divided into four stages: endurance, intensity, competence Y Recovery. The resistance period is the most general of these stages. It typically lasts 12 to 16 weeks and improves your aerobic and muscular endurance. The endurance phase often includes off-bike activities such as weight training and long, low-to-moderate intensity rides. The intensity phase, which also lasts 12 to 16 weeks, incorporates workouts that simulate race conditions. The main goal of this phase is to develop your lactate threshold and aerobic capacity (ie VO2 max), so that you spend more time doing high intensity workouts such as intervals. The competition phase involves racing, the most specific element of training. High intensity workouts continue, often in the form of participation in races. Effective management of the spike process is critical to ensure you enter key careers in tip-top shape. After the competitive season is over, the recovery phase is entered in which training activities become more general again (eg, cross-training such as running or swimming that aid recovery).

3. The key to successful periodization is to develop specific aspects of fitness during a certain phase, while maintaining others developed in earlier phases.. For example, the main goal during the endurance phase is to increase aerobic endurance. So you go on a lot of long, steady rides at low to moderate intensity. The intensity phase consists of higher intensity walks, but doing short, hard workouts is of no use if your aerobic endurance suffers. Therefore, a well-designed training plan will build on and enhance your development from earlier stages. While much of the intensity stage focuses on developing speed and the ability to ride at a relatively high intensity, it also includes some long, steady rides at lower intensities to maintain the aerobic fitness developed in the endurance stage. . On the contrary, the training carried out in later stages is possible due to the foundation created in earlier stages. Without aerobic training in the endurance stage, high intensity training in the intensity and competition stages would be ineffective. This pyramidal approach is what allows you to gradually build up to a peak at the most desirable time of year.