3×10-Minute Race-Effort Turbo Session: Sprint and Olympic Power

Session Overview

Three 10-minute blocks at sprint or Olympic triathlon race power — this deceptively simple session builds the specific capacity you need to hold hard watts over your race bike leg. It’s an intermediate session that works equally well at any point in the race season as a quality mid-week effort.

What You’ll Need

• Turbo trainer or smart trainer
• Power meter (recommended) or heart rate monitor
• Cycling kit, towel and fan
• Hydration — you’ll sweat

Warm-Up (12 minutes)

Start at an easy Zone 2 spin for 8 minutes, building cadence from 80 to 90+ rpm. Then complete 4 × 30-second accelerations — each one building to just above race effort — with 30 seconds easy between each. These openers prime your neuromuscular system and prepare your legs for the race-pace work to follow. Finish the warm-up with 2 minutes easy before the first interval.

Main Set

Race effort means the power or heart rate you expect to hold on race day. For a sprint triathlon this is roughly 90–95% FTP; for Olympic distance, 85–90% FTP. Each interval should feel hard but sustainable — you should be working at RPE 8–8.5 and able to hold the same output for all three reps.

• Interval 1: 10 minutes at race power (sprint: ~90–95% FTP / Olympic: ~85–90% FTP)
• Recovery: 3 minutes easy spinning at 50–60% FTP
• Interval 2: 10 minutes at the same target power
• Recovery: 3 minutes easy spinning
• Interval 3: 10 minutes at the same target power

Cool-Down (8 minutes)

8 minutes easy Zone 2 spin, gradually reducing cadence to 80 rpm. Focus on breathing out fully and relaxing your upper body. Stretch your hip flexors and quads off the bike — indoor sessions are particularly taxing on your hip flexors due to the fixed position.

Coaching Notes

• Aim for consistent power across all three reps. If you’re dropping 20+ watts in Rep 3, you went too hard in Rep 1.
• Cadence target: 88–92 rpm. Avoid grinding at low cadence — race pace should feel like controlled speed, not muscular force.
• If you don’t have a power meter, use perceived effort and heart rate. By the final minute of each interval your heart rate should be approaching Zone 4–5.
• To progress this session: reduce recovery to 2 minutes, or add a 4th interval. To make it accessible: target 80–85% FTP and extend recovery to 4 minutes.