Be in the Best Shape of your life to tackle Levi’s GranFondo — an Experience of a Lifetime.
Developed by Julie Young, owner of Dai Endurance, these plans are science-based to maximize training time for those with demanding lives. As elite international athletes and coaches, the staff at Dai know training right is more than just riding a lot. It’s about creating a balanced comprehensive approach that includes off-the-bike stability and mobility in addition to efficient and effective, structured on-the-bike workouts. We focus on increasing aerobic capacity, metabolic efficiency, muscular strength, and proper mechanics. It’s not about more miles, but about doing the miles better
These 6-week training plans are designed for the intermediate rider with finite training time. We hope to help you experience the benefits of an efficient, well-structured training plan, as you work towards your goals of completing Levi’s GranFondo. Every day has a specific objective, and we will focus on training hard and resting hard. The formula is:
training stress + rest = improved fitness and performance.
The method to the sequence of workouts during the week is based on setting you up for success when doing the more challenging workouts and hitting the prescribed intensity to achieve the workout objective. In order to achieve this, we prioritize the structured workouts and complete these on rested legs. We then follow the structured workouts with endurance days, challenging you to ride your endurance rides on tired legs (visualize the end of your event) and helping to ensure you truly ride at an endurance pace.
Each week will include suggested on-bike workouts, as well as off-bike stability, activation, and mobility work. The week will include three structured workouts, two endurance days, one day dedicated to stability-mobility (with shorter stability-mobility sessions sprinkled in to the week) and one complete rest day.
Why do we feel it’s important to balance time on the bike with off-bike stability, activation and mobility work? The answer is simple: to ensure your body is working as a harmonious unit on the bike. The trunk stability helps train the invaluable ability to engage and maintain neutral pelvis and spine over the duration of your event, ensuring back health and creating a stable platform for the hips to more effectively drive and deliver power in to the pedals. Hip activation ensures your brain can find and fire the powerful glutes. Consistent mobility helps ensure biomechanical alignment and proper feedback.
Remember training is a great opportunity to dial in the hydration and nutritional strategy that works best for you. There is no absolute here as every individual is different. It is actually what we consume seven days a week that sets us up for success on our rides. Use training days to hone in on your pre-bike food and drink, on-bike fueling, and post-bike nutrition recovery strategy. Hint: I like real food as much as possible, on and off the bike.
Finally, training is as much about physical conditioning as mental conditioning— so find your mental mantra to drive the physical effort. Training is the dress-rehearsal and the perfect opportunity to take the steps and gain the mental confidence that you can achieve your goals!
This plan is for riders tackling the Piccolo distance of 30-35 miles.
This plan is for riders attacking the Medio distance of 59-63 miles.
This plan is for riders attacking the Gran distance of 99-102 miles.
Warm-up = W/U
Workout = W/O
Slow Endurance = SE
Long Endurance = LE
Medium Endurance = ME
Sub-Threshold = ST
Lactate Threshold = LT
Vo2 Max = Vo2
Anaerobic Capacity = AC
Neuromuscular = NM
Levi's GranFondo is a Bike Monkey production.
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