Classic Fives
75 min · 64-78 TSS · IF 0.74 · 105-112% FTP · Zone 5+ (VO2max)
What this workout does
Four five-minute efforts at the low end of your VO2max range. Five minutes is long enough to pull your breathing to its ceiling and hold it there - where the biggest aerobic adaptations happen.
Five-minute reps give oxygen uptake time to climb to its ceiling and then hold there for two to three minutes per rep - the raw stimulus that grows maximal aerobic capacity. The 105-112% FTP target keeps the effort honest without borrowing too heavily from anaerobic stores. One of the most proven formats for raising the aerobic ceiling.
How to ride it
Indoor / trainer
Warm up 15min with 3 short openers. 4x5min at 105-112% FTP with 5min easy between. Cool down 15min. Ride the first 2min of each rep conservatively - the effort catches up.
Outside
A long steady climb or a flat road with no junctions both work. Settle into 105-112% FTP within the first 30s and hold it - breathing deep and rhythmic, only a word or two possible. Spin easy for 5min between reps.
Workout structure (75 min)
- Warm-up 15m 55% 3x - Opener 30s 110% - 1m 30s 55% 4x - Effort 5m 109% - 5m 55% - Cool-down 15m 55%
Targets are a percentage of FTP. This is the same shorthand the free workout builder understands — paste it there to edit any step, or download the workout for Zwift, Garmin or any smart trainer.
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