Inserting a recovery week mid-block

When the plan calls for one

Most macrocycle plans bake in a recovery week every 3 to 4 weeks of build (a 3:1 or 4:1 cycle). The Hub does not enforce this; it is a property of the config_json on the MacrocyclePlan.

What this article covers is the unscheduled recovery week you insert when the plan as written is too much.

Signals that warrant a recovery week

Look for two or more of these in a 7- to 10-day window:

• Wellness concerning flags fired multiple days (see Logging daily wellness).
• Resting HR up 5+ bpm vs the rolling 14-day baseline.
• HRV down 15+ percent.
• Sleep quality scores trending below 5 for 4+ days.
• Soreness scores trending above 6 for 4+ days.
• Power or pace targets missed in two consecutive sessions without injury or weather explanation.
• Athlete reports general fatigue or low motivation in the wellness notes.

One concerning day is normal. A pattern is the signal.

What a recovery week looks like

The recovery week is lower volume and lower intensity, not just lower volume.

• Volume: drop to about 60 percent of the planned week.
• Intensity: cut all threshold and VO2 work. Z1 and Z2 aerobic only, with very short Z3 pickups if the athlete is restless.
• Long sessions: cut by 30 to 40 percent.
• Strength: maintenance only (one short session, no new exercises).
• Sleep: extra 30 to 60 minutes per night if possible.
• Fueling: do NOT cut calories proportionally. Recovery requires energy.

Where it goes in the block

• Mid-block (week 3 of a 4-week build): replace the scheduled hardest week with a recovery week, then resume the plan at week 4 if the athlete is responding.
• Pre-race: a recovery week 4 weeks before an A race is almost always a good idea even if not in the plan.
• End of block: usual scheduled recovery before the next build.

How to update the Hub

The macrocycle plan structure is the source of truth. To formally shift to recovery:

1. Edit the individual MacrocyclePlan for this athlete (see Editing a deployed plan).
2. Adjust the config_json for the affected week to lower volume and remove intensity sessions.
3. Optionally write a CoachNote on the athlete explaining the change so it is visible in the timeline.

If you do not want to edit the macrocycle config, the recovery week can also be communicated entirely through CoachNotes (the athlete sees the change, the plan record stays as written).

What NOT to do

• Skip the recovery week because the athlete "feels OK". The signals were there for a reason.
• Add intensity back in the middle of recovery to "make the week count". The whole point is the lower stimulus.
• Cut food intake to match the lower training load. Recovery needs calories.

See also: Editing a deployed plan, Logging daily wellness, Macrocycle plan basics.