Has anyone moved from a following structured training plans in TrainerRoad to solely using the Zwift training plans and/or roll your own with intervals calendar?
I’ve been a big fan of TR, but having to cut down on monthly outgoings, so it has to go as I’ve really enjoyed the WTRL season 1 race series and intend to compete in season 2.
From what I can see Zwift has no concept of the various stages of a season, like TR has with base, build, speciality phases etc.
It also doesn’t have a calendar, but I am thinking I can use intervals.icu and manually use a variety of Zwift workouts as planned workouts into intervals.icu.
I’m thinking I’d try and follow something like TR do, ie 4-6 weeks of base work, then some build work with more VO2/harder workouts and then perhaps some more specialised workouts.
I think Zwift has plans like an FTP Builder and Build me up, but don’t think they can flex or be moved around, and it has no concept of calendars from what I can worko out?
Very interested to hear if others have done similar and how they found it?
I think it depends on your level of knowledge. In my case as a beginner, I looked at all the Zwift plans and found very little guidance or “wisdom” there for someone who doesn’t know well how to organize his/her training plan. There’s little to no concept of rest or periodization, only short-term quick plans… and I felt that I would most likely end up overtraining or undertraining, but in either case not getting good results and risking injury.
I loved TrainerRoad and learned a ton from their base/build/specialty cycle, the importance of Zone 2 long rides and Sweet-Spot work to build endurance and an aerobic base, and the critical/essential/fundamental/non-negotiable role of rest and recovery in creating that base, then being able to build upon it.
What I’d say is, you need to have a calendar to track your stuff, a set of workouts with which to work, someone’s wisdom to design plans for what you need in each block and when you need more/less/different work, and then a way to execute those workouts.
From what you’re saying, you can get everything but the wisdom from IICU/Zwift. So the only question is: who’s going to guide you with the stuff you don’t know?
I do like zwift but not a fan of their training plans, save for the academy I did this year. I’ve watched a lot of YouTube on the subject, including Dylan Johnson and Dr Seiler and started to make up my own. It seems to be going ok, but mostly working on zone 2 for the winter. I’ve also borrowed a workout or two from trainer day.
I used to use TrainerRoad then used either Xert or Zwift. You are correct that the Zwift training plans have no concept of periodization. I have not stopped using Xert & Zwift. I now create my own workouts in ICU & sync to Garmin Connect then run them off my Garmin. I also now use RGT instead of Zwift.
Also don’t forget that while Intervals.icu is “free”, a donation is highly encouraged.
David does an amazing job with this tool, and has very affordable options on Patreon.
When I got back onto the bike this summer I did the 12-Week Build Me Up plan on Zwift. I feel it did me well, but beyond that, there’s not a ton a variety.
You can download workouts from Trainer Day for more variety, but it still seems that you need to know what you’re doing to get the right mix (not a judgment on you, but definitely one on me).
I’m not to the point where a coach would make sense. I’m not even riding IRL, just on the trainer, and I’ve got less than 6 months back in my legs. So, I’ve moved over to The Sufferfest and am doing their eRacing plan. So far, it’s kicking my butt. I rarely experienced the “Dear god, I don’t know if my legs are going to make it to the end of this rep” over on the Zwift workouts, but I’m regularly hitting it in the Sufferfest workouts. I think I attribute it to the fact that it can vary segments based on 4 different power profiles, and the ones that target my weakest areas (all weak, but one has to be the weakest) can be a real doozy.
I’m only 2 weeks into it, so there’s plenty of time left. I’m looking forward to seeing what the results are at the end.
Take a look at TrainerDay. It’s mostly free or there is a very reasonably priced subscription option for some extra features
Personaly, I used to use TR but got a bit bored with it so I’m giving Sufferfest a go at the moment. There is a Wahoo coupon code (KICKSTART60) you can use for an extra 60 days trial on top of the standard 14 days so you you can give it a good go and see if it works for you - and it’s a bit cheaper than TR too.
You could also try “Kudo Coach”. I think that I got a trial period of 60 days; I admit, I don’t use it, I’m already on another platform (Xert), but my rides/workouts are still sync’ed there, so I could still get some training tips, or just follow their recommendations for several weeks, if needed. They give you a training plan based on your event dates, with Base/Advanced Base/Build/Peak/Race/Transition…
If you’re looking at self coaching, without having a formally structured plan, Xert is great: the adaptive training coach will recommend the right activity every day.
For something more structured I really like the SufferFest, pretty engaging (I didn’t think I’d like the videos ) and the workouts are designed by the best coach around Sir Neal Henderson.
Regarding TrainerDay, I would like to give it a try but none of those code appear to be working? But there is a code for $10.99 for 4months using winter11; then 14.99 each 4 months
