Methodology

Mathematical and physiological reference for the standard phase types used in periodised endurance training plans. Base, Build, Peak, Taper, Race, Transition, Recovery, and the duration, load, intensity, and adaptation-stimulus characteristics that distinguish each. Documents the classical Matveyev and modern Issurin block frameworks, the load-vs-intensity dose-response logic that governs phase sequencing, the typical macrocycle assembly for single-peak vs multi-peak seasons, and the boundary conditions where phase compression or skipping degrades the adaptation cascade.

Mathematical and physiological reference for the two dominant training-intensity distribution (TID) frameworks in endurance sport, polarized (≈80/0/20) and pyramidal (≈70/20/10). Documents the three-zone classification system anchored on the lactate thresholds, the time-in-zone vs session-goal accounting conventions, the empirical evidence base from controlled crossover trials and elite-cohort observational studies, and the periodization heuristics that govern when each distribution is metabolically appropriate.

Mathematical and physiological reference for the graded ramp-test protocol, a short, low-fatigue maximal-incremental test that estimates Functional Threshold Power, Maximal Aerobic Power, and the velocity at VO₂max from a single ~30-minute session. Documents the standard step-protocol, the FTP estimation formula (~75 % of MAP), and the systematic biases that arise in athletes whose physiological profile sits at the extremes of the W′ distribution.

Mathematical and physiological reference for the training-zone framework, partition of the maximal-effort intensity continuum into bands defined relative to threshold-anchored quantities (FTP, CP, LTHR, MAP), each band targeting a distinct physiological adaptation through a typical time-in-zone training stimulus.