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Your 12-Week Gravel Ride Training Plan

Planning on doing a gravel ride soon? Whether it's 80 or 120 km, this plan will get you there.

BY MOLLY HURFORD |
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Photo: Specialized

Gravel racing is a perfect entry to cycling events: You can ride with other people in the race, or ride solo. You can take your time at aid stations or blaze right through. You can walk the super technical sections, or blast through that river crossing with no regard for your bottom bracket. It’s dirty, gritty, and a ton of fun.

Your 12-Week Gravel Training Plan to Crush Your First Race

Longtime off-road cycling coach Peter Glassford of ConsummateAthlete.com put together this simple 12-week plan, designed for gravel races from 80 to 120 km in length.

One important reminder before you get started: The more time you spend riding outside versus indoors on the trainer, the better prepared you’ll be for race day. “A lot of athletes rarely do their intervals in the environment they race,” Glassford says. “With the advent of indoor training software making it easy to do intervals exactly at the right power, there is a perception that ‘perfect’ means their power intervals are 100 percent in the zone and look pretty in a graph.” But really, you want intervals that match the environment in which you’ll race.

“You can ride the trainer when you need to, but get outside when you can,” Glassford adds. “That way, on race day you are able thrive in that environment versus getting intimidating or making technical errors. An example would be doing intervals on a gravel hill that challenges you to find traction, shift, and deal with bumps and that you are going to descend in your recoveries to work on technical skills.”

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Workouts on Your Gravel Training Plan

Easy Rides: These are the rides you could do for a long time. You should be able to talk in sentences and keep steady pedalling—minimise coasting and sprinting. Go for road rides or smooth gravel for these easy sessions.

Moderate Pace: This is not maximal effort; you should be able to say words but not full sentences with heart rate around 80 to 90 percent of max.

Fast Intervals: Accelerate athletically, and ride smooth and fast—but don’t go all out. This isn’t max effort or sprinting.

Hilly Route: Pick a gravel route that has several hills on it. Try to mix it up and practice navigating. This could also be a group ride at your level.

Sunday Long Ride: Choose a smoother route. Practice fueling and keep legs moving for an extended time, with minimal stopping.

Hard Group, Hard Route, 20-Min TT: Choose what works best for you, but make this a harder day to simulate racing and get some feedback on your progress. For the time-trial, go hard and try to keep your effort steady—not going up and down.

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