90 minutes at 90% of FTP
2x20 minutees at FTP with ~2 minutes rest in between
1 hour at FTP (threshold test)

Those three workouts are all you need to become a top cyclist. Just add some endurance work in the spring if you're looking to do IM.

OK, so I feel really stupid asking this but what do you mean by FTP?

FTP = Functional Threshold Power.

There are many ways to test it, but basically it is the power (watts) you can maintain for a 60-minute time trial. So for your next workout, perhaps you should figure out your FTP. After that, there are zillions of great workouts you can do in stand-alone mode, using various percentages of your FTP. As with the earlier post, some 20-minute intervals are a good bread-and-butter workout for developing fitness, but you can also do power intervals of +/- 1 minute, 2.5 minute intervals, etc. The shorter the interval, the higher the wattage you should use. It is good for making yourself hold a certain wattage; then as you get fitter, you can increase that wattage. Recoveries should be low-wattage with high cadence.

OK, now I understand. It's kind of tough because to get it just right I need to make sure the setting is exactly the same each time. I think it is suppose to be set at 2.19. I believe I could probably hold 190 watts on my 53/12 ring at a 70 rpm for an hour. I think I will use that as my base line. Thanks for the workouts!!! I will definitely put them to use during this offseason. Last year was my 1st season and now I'm hooked!

When you start up in erg mode (what you're calling "stand alone"), the CT is in calibration mode. If you press F2, you go into manual watts mode, and you can use the + and - keys to increase or decrease power. If you press +- at the same time, you'll jump back into calibration mode (about 25 watts). So following the suggestion above, warm up for about 20 minutes (don't forget to adjust the press-on force to a value of about 2.00 - read the manual for tips). Then press F2 and increase the power to the level for the intervals you are doing. For the rest intervals, press +- at the same time (puts you in cal mode), when your rest interval is over press F2 and you'll jump back to your previous wattage.

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Live long and surf!

if my "A" race is IM Wisconsin in Sept 2010, should i be doing these now though? throughout the whole winter every week?

It depends on the level you plan on competing at, but yes - that's what I'd do. Get that threshold up nice an high, then get the endurance in the summer. If you have a solid power base, getting the endurance is easy.

x2 - one of my favorite quotes:
" Before we get into the actual exercise prescription, I should point out that I still believe that maximal strength levels should be achieved prior to endurance or energy system development. My theory is this: when we are talking about endurance – we are talking about power endurance or speed endurance or strength endurance. If we haven’t built up appreciable levels of power, speed or strength, then what the hell are we trying to endure? A low level of power? A low level of speed?
Conditioning coach Mike Boyle once pointed out that “It is significantly easier to get an explosive athlete ‘in shape’, than it is to make an ‘in shape’ athlete explosive. The first will take weeks the second may take years” "

There is no better tool than ERG mode on the CT. Work all the way through your Power ranges - if you can hit two workouts a week in the sweet spot - 82-92% of FTP, that's some solid work and you will see a difference in your cycling in the Spring.

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Mike Ricci
2017 USAT World Team Coach
USAT National Coach of the Year
Coaching Triathletes since 1992.

Who is that a quote from?

Alwyn Cosgrove

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Mike Ricci
2017 USAT World Team Coach
USAT National Coach of the Year
Coaching Triathletes since 1992.

a nice set of 3 workouts, but i'd throw in 6x4' @ VO2 max (4' on, 4' off) as well. helps drive FTP power upwards, and breaks up the crushing boredom of steady state workouts. coggan-approved, i believe ;)

VO2 max work will certainly bump your FTP up in the short term, but the results don't really hold up long-term. They're great workouts for when you're getting near your race season and really want to tease out a peak.

With that said, if you think that the boredom of the above workouts will lead to you getting fewer quality workouts in, a VO2 max workout would be far better than a skipped session or an easy spin.