Tempo Touches
90 min · 65-80 TSS · IF 0.69 · 65-80% FTP · Zone 2-3
What this workout does
A Zone 2 ride with two 10-minute touches of light tempo. Enough stimulus to nudge your aerobic ceiling, gentle enough to stay a genuinely moderate day.
The tempo blocks at 76-80% FTP recruit more muscle fibers and push aerobic development slightly harder than Zone 2 alone, nudging up the sustainable effort that underpins your FTP. Kept to two 10-minute touches, they add stimulus without turning the day into a hard session. A good bridge from pure base riding toward structured intensity.
How to ride it
Indoor / trainer
Ride at 65-72% FTP. Include 2x10 minutes at 76-80% FTP with 5 minutes easier at 60-65% FTP between. The tempo sections should feel purposeful, not hard.
Outside
Any steady road or gradual climb works for the touches. Lift to 76-80% FTP for 10 minutes - concentration required, conversation reduced to short sentences - then settle back into Zone 2.
Workout structure (90 min)
- Warm-up 10m 58% - Steady 25m 69% 2x - Tempo touch 10m 78% - Settle 5m 63% - Steady 20m 69% - Cool-down 5m 53%
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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