One of the best ways to track fitness over time isn’t with lab tests or fancy data, it’s with  key workouts you come back to again and again. These are sessions I’ve used for years in my own training and with the athletes I coach. When these workouts start to feel easier, you feel stronger, and your power/speed improves, you know fitness is moving in the right direction.

     Below, I’m sharing six of my go-to benchmark workouts: two on the bike, two on the run, and two in the pool. None of them are flashy, but all of them are effective. They challenge you just enough to expose weaknesses, while still being repeatable so you can measure real progress over time.

🚴 On The Bike 

Workout 1: 30/30's

Focus: VO2 Max

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 20 minutes, including build efforts to 110%

• Main set: Up to 40 minutes straight of 30/30's, but it can be broken into 3 or 4x (10 min 30/30's, 2 min easy)

• Cool-down: 10 minutes easy

     30/30's are at a VO2 Max effort, which is around 110-120% of your threshold (FTP or CP). I generally target the higher end of this range for 30/30's. I'm always amazed how slow the 'On' feels and how fast the 'Off' feels. These are a great way to accrue a good amount of time in the VO2 Max range, and your HR stays high throughout. 

Workout 2: Sweet Spot Intervals

Focus: Sweet spot (88-92% of threshold) 

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 15-20 minutes, including build efforts to 110%

• Main set: The basic workout is very straight forward: 8' sweet spot, 2' easy. I've done this up to 2 hours straight, so 12x the workout. Based on your fitness level, you can adjust things accordingly. 

• Cool-down: 10-15 minutes easy

     Sweet spot is a zone that is best described as comfortably hard riding. Your body gets accustomed to riding for longer durations without getting overly tired, and you get a big fitness boost. Sweet spot workouts are easier to recover from, so a great bang for the buck, time wise. 

     Both of these workouts can be used as benchmark workouts to track fitness over time. Look at your HR, power, and RPE over several weeks and months to track fitness gains and trends. 

🏃 On The Run 

Workout 1: Tempo intervals

Focus: Incorporating tempo pace in long runs

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 10-15 minutes easy w/a few short build efforts

• Main set: 2x (3 miles tempo, 2 miles easy)

• Cool-down: 10-15 easy with a few strides in the final 10 minutes

     Tempo runs are pretty similar to sweet spot bike sessions. Tempo pace is about 20–30 seconds per mile slower than your 5k race pace, and a bit faster than half marathon pace.

     Tempo runs help you train to maintain a faster pace for longer without "hitting the wall." By practicing at a tempo effort, you increase your lactate threshold, which helps sustain speed on race day.

Workout 2: 2 mile 70.3 intervals

Focus: 6-8 miles at 70.3 run pace

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 10-15 minutes easy w/a few strides to 90%

• Main set: 3-4x (2 miles 70.3 pace/effort, 1/2 mile easy)

• Cool-down: 10-15 easy with a few strides in the final 10 minutes

     I would often do this workout on a Wednesday as a mid-week long run, usually totaling around 11-12 miles. The pace here isn't all that fast (around open marathon pace), but it teaches the body to get comfortable at race effort.

     In a 70.3 race I race based on a HR zone, so this run would be targeting (for me) a HR in the low 160's. I'd gauge fitness on pace correlating to HR and effort over weeks and months of making this a weekly or bi-monthly workout.

🏊 In The Water

Workout 1: 100's on short rest

Focus: Holding threshold pace

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 800-1000 yds w/some drills & build 50's

• Main set: 2-3x (8x100 threshold on 10" rest, 200 pull)

• Cool-down: 200-400 easy

     Threshold pace is generally around your 400 time trial pace. So, if you swim a 400 yd in 6 min flat, you'd be targeting around 1:30-1:32 pace on these 100 yard repeats. If the pace in this workout starts to feel a bit too easy over time, repeat the 400 time trial to adjust your threshold pace.

Workout 2: Fast 50's

Focus: Hard 50's with longer rest

The Workout:

• Warm-up: 800-1000 yds w/some drills & build 50's

• Main set: 3-4x (12x50 fast on 20" rest, 200 pull)

• Cool-down: 200-400 easy

    These faster 50's are great for reinforcing good technique and form. In shorter efforts, your muscles don't fatigue as much and you can focus on good form. They also develop good speed, power, and feel for the water. This translates into endurance, which is what we want as triathletes.

     Similar to the bike and run workouts, these swim sessions are easily repeatable, and you can track your progress and fitness gains.

     I hope you can try some of these workouts and incorporate them in your training as benchmark sessions.