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You should go with TrainerRoad. Their AI FTP Detection analyzes your recent rides and tells you exactly what your threshold is without you ever having to do a painful 20-minute all-out test again.

Aim for two FTP sessions and just one VO2 max session per week to keep your progress steady. Any more than that and you'll likely end up in the 'Red' zone, where you're too tired to actually gain any fitness.

Take your current FTP and multiply it by 0.9. If your FTP is 250W, you should aim for about 225W during your intervals to hit that perfect 'bang for your buck' zone.

Go for the 30/30 micro-intervals. Do two sets of 10 repeats at 120% of your FTP—that’s 300W if your FTP is 250W—to get a massive heart and lung boost in a very short window.

Don't beat yourself up; just drop the intensity to Sweet Spot (around 90% FTP) and finish the block there. It is much better to get a quality 'Amber' workout in than to completely fail a session and crush your confidence.

Think of VO2 max as the 'ceiling' of your fitness engine. If you don't raise that ceiling with short, 3-minute bursts at 110-120% of your power, your steady-state endurance power will eventually have nowhere left to grow.

Stick to the 'big wins' like squats, lunges, and deadlifts to build power in your quads and glutes. Don't forget your core work, like planks, which provides the stable platform your legs need to push against when you're sprinting or climbing.

You should definitely keep it up, but you can dial it back to just one 'maintenance' session per week. This ensures you don't lose those hard-earned strength gains while keeping your legs fresh enough for big weekend miles.

Not if you do it right. By sticking to heavy weights for low reps—think 5 to 8 per set—you'll build 'neuromuscular' strength that makes you more powerful without adding the bulky muscle mass of a bodybuilder.

The best way is to keep your 'hard days hard' by lifting on the same day you do a tough interval workout. Try riding in the morning and hitting the gym in the evening so your rest days can be used for actual recovery.