TL;DR. Preparing for The Traka 200 requires at least 12 structured weeks in three blocks: aerobic base and metabolic efficiency, specific intensity above threshold, and adjustment with tapering and race plan. The three variables that decide whether you finish are sustained normalised power for 8-10 hours, the ability to oxidise fat, and mechanical adaptation to gravel. Without all three you will finish — but you will pay an unnecessarily high price.
The Traka 360 is not a gravel race. It is a resource management exam over 360 km and more than 6,000 metres of elevation through the dirt roads of Girona. But even the 200 km version demands specific preparation that most amateur cyclists do not have.
Three months is the minimum to do something real. And “something real” does not mean accumulating kilometres.
What makes The Traka so hard compared to other gravel events?
What distinguishes those who finish The Traka from those who do not are three measurable variables.
Most cyclists arrive with generic preparation: long rides, some intensity, maybe a 120 km gran fondo in their legs. That is not enough for a race with this profile. The problem is not volume. It is that the type of effort The Traka demands — variable power, technical terrain, 8-10 hours non-stop — cannot be improvised with weekend rides.
The most common mistakes from cyclists arriving without specific preparation:
- Arriving with reasonable threshold power but no fat efficiency: they blow up at km 130 when glycogen runs out
- Arriving with high volume but no force endurance work: the legs hold, the body does not
- Ignoring mechanical adaptation: gravel fatigues muscle groups that tarmac never touches
What FTP do I need to finish The Traka 200?
The first variable is normalised power sustained for 8-10 hours. In the Traka 200, the shredded profile of the Catalan roads forces constant intensity changes. The average IF usually sits between 0.68 and 0.72. If your FTP does not exceed 3.0 W/kg, completing the race in a reasonable time is difficult. If you have not done any specific force endurance work, you arrive without the base to sustain the pace.
How do you build that force endurance base? With sessions of 3-4 hours at 75-80% of FTP, not with short intervals. The body learns to sustain normalised power over real time ranges, not 20-minute windows. The key sessions in the intensity block include:
- 3×20’ at 95-100% FTP with 5’ recovery between sets
- Sessions of 3-4 hours at IF 0.72-0.76 over terrain with gradient changes
- Strength blocks: 6×5’ at 110% FTP to recruit fast-twitch fibres
Signs that FTP is not where it needs to be: if in your 3-hour long sessions average power drops more than 12% compared to the first hour, the threshold is not consolidated. It is not an endurance problem — it is an insufficient power base problem.
Overtraining signal in this block: sustained morning HRV drop for more than 3 days, heavy-leg feeling in warm-ups that normally activate well, power drop in identical tests week over week. If two of these three signals appear: recovery week, no more pushing.
Why is metabolic efficiency more important than power?
The second variable is metabolic efficiency. The Traka penalises glycogen-dependent cyclists. The 200 km and 3,000 m of elevation burn between 4,500 and 6,000 kcal. No cyclist can ingest that volume of carbohydrates in real time without gastrointestinal issues.
Those who finish well are those who have developed fat oxidation capacity at medium intensity, reducing dependence on carbohydrate replenishment in zones 1-2.
How to train nutrition for an 8-10 hour race:
Fat oxidation cannot be improvised on race day. It is built in the base block with long rides in zones 1-2 — 2.5 to 3.5 hours without carbohydrate in the first two hours. The goal is to push the fat oxidation threshold upward: if in W1-W2 you oxidise fat efficiently up to 180W, by W3-W4 that ceiling should be near 195-200W at the same heart rate.
Progressive carbohydrate intake protocol:
- Weeks 1-4 (base): 40-50 g of carbohydrate/hour on rides of 2+ hours. No gel until after the first hour.
- Weeks 5-8 (intensity): 60-70 g/hour on sessions over 3 hours. Introduce glucose-fructose blends (2:1 ratio).
- Weeks 9-12 (adjustment): 80-90 g/hour on simulation rides. Test the gut at real race intensity — IF 0.68-0.72.
The goal is not to arrive at the race eating as much as possible. It is to arrive accustomed to absorbing carbohydrate at high speed without the digestive system rebelling at km 160.
Most common nutrition mistake: starting to eat late. In races of 8+ hours, if you wait until you feel hungry, you have already arrived late. Glycogen depletion does not hurt — it arrives as mental fog, loss of ability to push on climbs, navigational errors.
Which muscles need preparation beyond the legs?
The third variable is mechanical adaptation. Hours of gravel with constant vibration fatigue muscle groups that tarmac never touches: trapezius, triceps, lumbar and cervical extensors. If you have not trained specifically on similar terrain — or at least incorporated stability and functional strength work into the programme — muscular fatigue will arrive before energetic fatigue.
Stability and functional strength protocol: 2 sessions per week of 30-40 minutes across all 12 weeks, with emphasis on:
- Progressive front and side plank: foundation for lumbar and obliques
- Band rows: trapezius and rhomboids, the muscles that hold the torso in a gravel riding position for hours
- Loaded hip extensions: gluteus maximus as pelvic stabiliser at low cadence
- Specific cervical work: neck isometrics with manual resistance, 3×10 seconds in four directions
Race warning sign: tingling in the hands before km 80. This indicates the trapezius is already giving out and the torso weight is being absorbed by the ulnar nerve. It is not a handlebar problem — it is an untrained muscular stability problem.
Equipment mistakes that amplify the problem: tyre pressure too high (above 40 psi on a 40 mm tyre on mixed terrain), stem too long (above 90 mm on a cyclist with average shoulder mobility), saddle with positive tilt that loads the lumbar region.
How are 12 weeks of preparation for The Traka structured?
With three months, PUSH TRAINING 360 structures the preparation in three blocks of four weeks. Below is the week-by-week detail that separates real preparation from kilometre accumulation.
Base block (W1-W4): volume and metabolic efficiency
Block objective: build the aerobic base that sustains 8-10 hours, develop fat oxidation, and prepare the musculoskeletal system for gravel.
Sample week in W1-W2 (moderate load):
- Monday: rest or mobility 30’
- Tuesday: 1h30’ zone 2, technical gravel ride if possible
- Wednesday: functional strength 40’ + trainer 45’ zone 1
- Thursday: 2h zone 2, includes 2×15’ at zone 3
- Friday: rest
- Saturday: long ride 3h-3h30’ zones 1-2, no gel first 2 hours
- Sunday: 1h30’ zone 2 recovery
Target weekly TSS: 350-420.
Sample week in W3-W4 (high load + recovery week in W4):
- W3: add 30-45’ to long sessions, introduce a 4h ride on Saturday
- W4: reduce volume 35-40%, keep frequency. Evaluate FTP at end of W4.
Base block mistakes: climbing too quickly to zone 3. Base aerobic work is built in real zone 2 — not perceived zone 2. Without a power meter, use heart rate: zone 2 is 65-75% of HRmax. Above that, the base aerobic stimulus dilutes.
Intensity block (W5-W8): threshold work and force endurance
Block objective: raise functional FTP, build the ability to sustain high normalised power for hours, and develop lactate tolerance at real effort ranges.
Sample week in W5-W6:
- Tuesday: 1h with 3×10’ at 100-105% FTP, 5’ recovery
- Thursday: 2h30’ with 45’ central block at IF 0.76-0.80
- Saturday: 4h at IF 0.70-0.74, terrain with gradient changes, gravel
- Sunday: 1h30’ zone 2 active recovery
Sample week in W7-W8:
- W7: extend threshold block to 3×20’, introduce 6×5’ at 110% FTP on Tuesday
- W8: recovery week. Keep one short intensity session on Thursday.
Overtraining signals in this block: if power in the 20’ intervals drops more than 5% between the first and third set, recovery is insufficient. It is not a motivation problem — it is an accumulated load problem. Reduce the next intensity stimulus by 20% before repeating.
Adjustment block (W9-W12): tapering, race nutrition and mental preparation
Block objective: arrive on The Traka start line fresh, with the nutrition protocol rehearsed, and the race plan clear in your head.
Sample week in W9-W10:
- Keep session frequency but reduce volume by 20%
- One simulation session per week: 5h at IF 0.68-0.72 with full race nutrition protocol (80-90 g CH/hour, same products as race day)
- Reduced strength work: 1 session per week, maintenance only
W11-W12 (real tapering):
- W11: volume -35% vs peak week. One 3h session with 2×20’ at 90% FTP in the centre.
- W12 (race week): short rides 45’-1h on days 1-3. Day before: 45’ activation with 3×3’ at 95% FTP. Nothing else.
What most people get wrong in tapering: eliminating intensity entirely. The body needs short high-intensity stimuli to not lose neuromuscular activation. Reduce volume, not intensity.
Which Traka distance is right for you?
The Traka is not a single race. It is three events with radically different effort profiles, and the right choice depends on your level and how much time you have to prepare.
The Traka 100: the entry point. For cyclists with a solid aerobic base but no long-distance gravel experience. Requires 8-10 weeks of specific preparation from a base of 8-10 hours per week. Minimum useful FTP: 2.6 W/kg.
The Traka 200: the most sought-after goal in the ecosystem. The event that justifies 12 weeks of structured preparation, a 3.0 W/kg FTP and a well-trained nutrition protocol. For the well-prepared amateur, it is the most complete race on the European gravel calendar. If you are preparing for the 200, read the specific Traka 200 guide.
The Traka 360: the real test. For cyclists who have already completed a 200 km or longer event, with the ability to manage multiple nights and an accumulated effort load that no other race on the circuit replicates. It cannot be prepared in 12 weeks.
If you are unsure which distance fits your current level, see the full Traka race page or apply to the training programme and we will assess it together.
Preparation for The Traka is not complicated. But it demands specificity. Each block has a concrete objective, and skipping one — or treating the base block as a bureaucratic requirement to reach the intensity block — makes the whole structure less solid than it appears.
If you want to do it properly: apply to the programme and we will build the 12 weeks from wherever you are right now.