Try these Workouts to Prepare for RAGBRAI!

Welcome Coach Oliphant!

This week we welcome Coach Erin Oliphant to our Training lineup! In addition to being a coach, she is a full time member of the RAGBRAI team, and triathlete. Stay tuned for more posts from Coach Oliphant! To find out more about Coach Oliphant, scroll to the bottom of this post.

Beat Decision Fatigue

Let’s be real – sometimes we just need someone to tell us what to do. I know after a long workday, I sometimes have really bad decision fatigue and don’t want to think about what to do on the bike; I just want to get on and follow a prescribed workout. The three workouts below are for those days and can be done in or outside. While each workout has a slightly different physiological goal, all will make you a better rider and prepare you for RAGBRAI!  

A Note About These Workouts

In these workouts, you will see the abbreviation RPE. This stands for rate of perceived exertion and is used to describe effort level. For the purposes of these workouts, please use a 1-10 scale with one being the easiest, five is going to be around your zone 2 effort (refer to Coach Ertl’s last blog post for more info!), and ten being the hardest.

No-Brainer Workouts to Prepare for RAGBRAI

Cadence Shifts

Total Time: 1:06:00

Cadence work is a great way to work on your pedal stroke. In addition, low cadence work is a great way to improve your muscular endurance and prepare for hills while high cadence work focuses on increasing your cardiovascular fitness. In the set below, both cadence speeds are featured and bonus: that also helps your neuromuscular connection!

• 10 minute Warm Up
• Pre-Set:
  • 5X
  • :20 strong effort
  • :40 easy effort
• 5 minutes easy before the Main Set
• Main Set:
  • 6X
  • 2:00 RPE 7 RPM 55-65
  • 2:00 RPE 7 RPM 85-95
  • 2:00 Easy Pedaling, Choice Cadence
• 10 minutes Cool Down

Sweet Spots

Total Time: 01:15:00

Sweet spot intervals help train our bodies to ride harder and faster for longer, which is perfect for RAGBRAI! These should feel hard, but doable. You’ll be looking at the clock wanting it to be over, but you could theoretically keep going for a while longer. For all of you who like to train with power zones, this should be at your upper end of Tempo/Z3, lower end of your Threshold/Z4.

• 6 minute Easy Warm Up
• Pre-Set – Building Efforts to get the body ready
  • 1:00 RPE 5
  • 1:00 RPE 6
  • 1:00 RPE 7
  • :30 RPE 8
  • :30 RPE 9-10
• 5 minutes easy before the Main Set
• Main Set:
  • 5x
  • 8:00 RPE 7
  • 3:00 RPE 4-5
• 5 Minutes Cool Down

VO2 MAX

Total Time: 1:00:00

Your VO2 Max refers to how efficiently your body oxygenates your muscles. The work intervals in a VO2 Max workout are done above your threshold at an RPE of 8-9. At the end of each interval, you should be breathing very hard. While being an effective way to increase fitness, VO2 max-focused workouts often place more stress on the body so be sure to fuel afterwards!

• 10 Minute Warm Up
• Pre-Set:
  • 5x
  • :20 strong effort
  • :40 easy effort
• 5 minutes easy before the Main Set
• Main Set:
  • 5x
  • 2:00 RPE 8
  • 1:00 RPE 9
  • 4:00 super easy
• 5 Minutes Cool Down

Find All 2025 Training Blogs

Find all of Coach Oliphant’s Training Blogs, as well as the 2025 Training Plan in our Training section on RAGBRAI.com.

Coach Erin Oliphant

Coach Erin Oliphant has been passionately coaching endurance sports for the past 10 years.  In addition to coaching, Erin also works for RAGBRAI full-time in customer service. You can find out more about her accomplishments and Coaching Programs here: https://erin-oliphant.com/