I’m brand new to intervals.icu. Wow. How did I not hear about this earlier?! It’s fantastic! Congrats to the devs - it looks great and the rate at which great new features are being added is eye-watering!
Ok, so I’m a long-time TP user. I was trying to think what might make me ditch TP for intervals.icu? The list isn’t very long!
I make use of the metrics tracking and graphing in TP to track those subjective assessments of how I’m doing (stress fatigue, etc). I see that coming along in the ‘wellness’ features here.
Integrations - I track my weight on a daily basis using a Withings scale which pushes the data to TP. I also track HRV using HRV4Training which also integrates with TP.
I have a workout library which I am building out myself. I manage those in TP. They make it easy to build and arrange them in folders. I still have to check out the workout designer here, so it might work.
I have on occasion used the annual training plan building capability TP has. It works well to roughly lay out my year (seasons, races, etc) and I then fill in the rides and workouts and follow the training load and periodization guidelines it generates.
a mobile app. A big ask for a small dev team, I know but the mobile app is indispensable and almost a base requirement nowadays. The TP mobile app is in many ways better than their web app.
The graphing in TP is terrible. I bought WKO5, but find it too primitive and incomprehensible. Turns out more isn’t always better. I feel like they’ve become somewhat complacent. Hopefully they’ve taken a look at what you are doing and are starting to sweat a little!
Anyway, keep up the great work! I’m going to poke around and if in a week or two I’m still here I’ll gladly subscribe!
Intervals.icu does work on a phone sized screen. Thats not the same as an app but not too far off.
Intervals.icu can sync weight from Strava so if you can get your scale to update there it will work. Weight can also be pulled from Garmin Connect and Apple Health (via HealthFit app).
All the wellness info can be plotted on the fitness and compare pages.
There is a workout library with folders (click the book on the calendar page). You can import MRC, ERG and ZWO files and it is easy to create new workouts.
There isn’t a plan builder but you can add workouts to your calendar and see your future fitness, add races and so on.
And, what David normally fails to emphasize,
a feature he had from onset,
which, to my knowledge not other have implemented in the level Intervals.icu has it;
Anybody you trust can become your guiding trainer,
as you can for others,
which could, with multiple connections, be as good as one pro.
( Not that my experiences in the 60+ group speaks to this, but we are all oldtimers way beyond listening and learning abilities. It does give though, some reasurences regarding workout planning, knowing what others are doing.)
Thanks for the reply, David! As I said, you are doing a fantastic job! It’s a really impressive product.
Yes, a responsive web app is a good way to provide a mobile experience. It also means only maintaining one code base - makes a lot of sense! The real challenge is the mobile experience isn’t what a native mobile app might be. This isn’t meant to be a criticism, just an observation. I took a look at the web app on my iPhone and it looks pretty good!
I will try the Strava or Garmin route for my weight. Shoulda thought of that myself.
As I said I hadn’t checked out the workout library functionality you have. I’ll do so today!
Not sure a plan builder is a requirement, except perhaps for your coaches? The TP Annual Training Plan Builder is something different. Here’s a description of what it does. Not sure it would be considered useful for your product, but it has been for me in the past.
An ATP style high level season planner would be awesome. Almost like a macro view. What I do in the meantime is enter week long ‘notes’ to cover phases.
Just subscribed! Also going to share this with my riding buddies.
Another random thought / idea. I use Zwift to execute the workouts I build in TP. Zwift distracts me from the intervals and gives me something more interesting to look at than the interval and a progress bar.
The TP workouts I create and add to my TP calendar show up in Zwift on the right day under the TrainingPeaks category in the Zwift workout selector.
I could use a separate workout tool to control the trainer (I used to do that with TrainerRoad with an extra Ant dongle), but it’s just more faff.
Anyway, either having a native workout executor in intervals.icu (ala Xert, which I’ve also used and don’t anymore - too complicated for what is supposed to be simpler) or some form of direct integration to Zwift.
I realize that’s probably not high on the priority list, but there it is … This kind of trainer integration is really only useful to us poor souls stuck inside during snowy and cold northern hemisphere winters and then only for the winter months.
Thanks for that. Unfortunately it looks like it requires the user’s Zwift username and password. I have mailed them again asking for API access. No such luck
"We have been inundated with partnership requests over recent weeks and our teams are currently working to deliver our existing obligations. As such, we have paused all new partnership requests for the time being. Your email has been forwarded to the relevant member of our team who will reach out if there is a pressing opportunity in the meantime, otherwise we recommend reconnecting in 8 weeks time. "
Well, hopefully they come around some time. As you said, you have a large and growing number of Zwift users on your platform! Meanwhile we still have a way to get our workouts to Zwift.
The normal way to do it is to use OAuth which means the service requesting access (Intervals.icu) never sees the user’s credentials + the user can revoke access at any time. However this requires pre-registration with the data holding service to get a client_id and secret and you can only call official API endpoints.
Using a username and password to connect to private APIs works and has the nice advantage that you don’t need to get permission from the data holding service. However it is risky for the user and Intervals.icu.
I would agree that good maps are available elsewhere … Getting that right would be a big dev effort, I would imagine! With most of the rides coming from somewhere with maps, I think it’s not required? That’s just me though.
The one thing I did see that was kinda nifty on Xert (?) was that they’d give you a link to Google Street View of the point at which you had a ‘breakthrough’ as they term them. I guess so you could admire the scene of your achievement without the tunnel vision or stars?
Anyway, it’s not massively useful outside of a system like Xert that is built around ‘breakthroughs’, IMO.
If you use a Garmin head unit, workouts that you put on your Invtervals.icu calendar seamlessly sync to your head unit. Then you can watch a movie while your head unit controls the intervals.
I have never even noticed that there are no maps. like you said I look elsewhere for that. I really love this site and it has an important place for my training now and so does Strava for different needs. I don’t see a need for maps on here myself especially if its lots of effort.
@Max_Nelson, Yes, that would be an elegant way to handle workouts. I use a Wahoo Elemnt Bolt though. When I start riding outdoors I tend to just mentally manage the intervals my training calls for (I use a simple polarized interval approach). It’s really about getting the workouts into Zwift for me, but again all I have to right now is hit download and save it in the right place for Zwift to pick up. Not exactly a hardship!
I’m not sure I know my LTHR for any of those activities you listed - When I do a long hike and compare my HRSS in TP with my TSS (based on running pace) the difference is enough to a make me delete the whole thing from my PMC and keep it confined to cycling and running. AM I missing something?
I feel like they’ve become somewhat complacent. Hopefully they’ve taken a look at what you are doing and are starting to sweat a little!
