Your coach planned workouts contain a number of space saving abbreviations. Once you become accustomed to them, your workouts will read like plain english. Review this list of abbreviations to help you get your bearings
‘ or min – Minutes
” or sec – Seconds
1:00 – One hour
00:30 – 30 minutes
AT-Anaerobic Threshold
ATP-Annual Training Plan
BCR – Big chain ring
bpm – Beats per minute (heart rate)
CD – Cool down
km – Kilometer
LT – Lactate Threshold (same as AT-Anaerobic Threshold)
M – Mile
m – Meter
MS – Main Set
MTB – Mountain bike
RI – Recovery Interval
rpm – Revolutions per minute
SCR – Small chain ring
WU – Warm-up
Y, Yd or Yds – Yards
Z – Heart Rate Intensity Zone (eg. Z3 – Zone 3)
Adapted from Peaksware.com
A Few Examples
Here are a few examples to help get you oriented.
Swim Workouts
WU: 100 swim easy, 50 kick easy, 100 swim moderate, 50 kick moderate, 100 swim build speed, 50 kick build speed. MS: For the first set decrease times with each work interval. All aerobic-easy breathing. 4 x 100 (10″) moderate. RI 2 minutes. Kick 300 steady. 6 x 25 relaxed speed (15″). CD: 200 easy swim. Total: 1500
Translation:
Warm-Up: As described Main Set: Four repetitions of 100 yards/meters at a moderate pace with 10 seconds of rest between each 100 yard repeat. Rest 2 minutes after this set. Then Kick 300 yards/meters. Next, swim six repeats of 25 yards each at a “relaxed” speed, with 15 seconds of rest between each repeat. Cooldown: Finally, swim 200 yards/meters very easy as your cooldown.
If a rest period is not specified, simply begin the next part of your workout when you feel ready to go. For example, you may be able to go immediately from a kick only set to a relaxed swim set with little rest.
Biking Example
Tempo intervals. On road or trainer. Do 4-5 x 6 minutes in the 3 zone (2-minute recoveries). Relax! Smooth pedaling. 80-90 rpm. Aero position.
Translation
The interval type is called a “tempo” interval, which are done in Zone 3 (you can use heart rate, rating of perceived exertion or a power meter to determine if you are in zone 3). Do four OR five six minute intervals in Zone 3 based HR, RPE or Power. Recover with easy spinning in zone 1 for 2 minutes between each interval. Pedal at a cadence of 80-90 revolutions per minute. (can be counted or viewed with the cadence function on your cycle computer). Use the drops on a road bike, or the aero position on a triathlon bike.
