Trust The Plan
- Henriette Albon
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 4 hours ago
Trust the Plan: How AlbonApp Builds Smarter Training So You Don’t Have To
It’s tempting to tweak your training – maybe you want to throw in an extra run or supplement with more cross-training. After all, AlbonApp lets you add your own sessions. But just because you can doesn’t mean you should.
Here’s why trusting the plan is one of the smartest things you can do for your training.
AlbonApp Plans Are Built Around You
Every run you do is analysed and scored in three key ways:
Running Impact Score – how much mechanical load your body sustained
Speed Score – how fast you were moving relative to your threshold pace
Cardio Score – how hard your heart had to work
Together, these scores help us understand your current fitness across three dimensions: Running Impact Fitness, Speed Fitness, and Cardio Fitness. Your plan is then built to match where you are today, and progress you sustainably toward where you want to go.
How We Build Your Week
When AlbonApp schedules your training for the week, it uses these three fitness values to make sure you’re getting just the right amount of training for you as an individual:
Running Impact Fitness → how much total running you get for the week
Speed Fitness → how much interval work you’ll be doing (if any)
Cardio Fitness → how much cross-training you get alongside your scheduled running training (if any)
Important: We first calculate your expected cardio load for the week based on the selected running plan, then supplement with cross-training workouts to meet your goals. For example, if you choose to build Running Impact and Cardio Fitness, you may not see additional cross-training in your weekly plan if your Cardio Fitness is expected to improve sufficiently through running alone.
When planning your training, AlbonApp will schedule a Ramp Rate that’s appropriate for your current fitness level. If you try to push beyond this rate – by adding extra running workouts – you risk doing too much too soon, increasing your chances of overtraining, fatigue, or injury. On the flip side, if your training consistently falls below the intended Ramp Rate over many weeks, you might not apply enough stress for your body to adapt and improve over time.
The beauty of the system is that it tailors this progression to you. As long as your threshold settings are relatively accurate, AlbonApp can make smart, informed decisions about what your body needs to progress sustainably without burning out. In short: the plan knows – at least to a large degree – what’s best for you in this moment of your training.
When Should You Add Workouts?
While running and cross-training workouts should generally follow the plan (provided you are healthy and injury free), there’s one clear exception:
Strength Workouts
We don’t currently track load from strength training, so this is a great area to supplement if you’re feeling fresh and want to build more robustness. But remember that strength training is a supplement to your other training. You need to first and foremost prioritise your running and cross-training workouts to build fitness as intended.
Deviating from the Plan? Here’s What to Do
1. You Did the Workout, But Not as Planned
Maybe you ran longer than scheduled. Maybe you skipped a few intervals. No stress. Here’s what to know:
AlbonApp analyses all cardio workouts (running and cross-training), even if they weren’t exactly as prescribed.
You can still tick the planned session as complete and use the tools to compare what was planned vs. executed for analysis purposes.
To keep your week balanced, consider adjusting a later session to avoid overshooting your weekly Running Impact or Cardio load.
Tip: Keep an eye on your weekly Running Impact graph – this compares planned vs. actual training day by day.
2. You Missed the Workout Completely
Life happens. If you miss a session:
Move it to later in the week if it fits with your schedule without overloading you.
If not, skip it and let it go.
The system will automatically adapt your next week’s plan based on what you actually completed – no manual tweaking required.
Key takeaway: Don’t chase missed workouts. Stay consistent and let the system adjust for you.
Trust the System
AlbonApp plans your week based on your fitness
It adjusts your training load sustainably over time
Adding extra workouts can break that logic
Stick to the plan, and you’ll keep progressing safely and effectively
Train smart. Be consistent. And let the app do what it’s built to do
Stay Consistent by Playing the Long Game
Your Training Stress graph shows whether you’re in the optimal training zone ("the green zone"). But you don’t need to always be in the green to be on track. If you’ve had a training dip due to illness or a short break, avoid rushing up to the green as this will be too much training based on your current fitness. Instead aim to trend towards it over time. Don’t panic train. Don’t chase numbers. Stick to the plan and trust the process.
What is Ramp Rate?
Ramp rate refers to how quickly your fitness score increases from week to week. Build too fast and you risk overtraining or injury. Build too slow and you may not progress. AlbonApp calculates a sustainable ramp rate based on your fitness today.
If you manually add extra running workouts, you can easily exceed your target ramp rate without knowing it – and this throws off your whole progression.
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