The Indoor Riding/ Zwift/ TrainerRoad etc. Thread

Vandle · 24 Jan 2022 at 05:05

Trifid said:
You can manually upload the .fit file to strava if you wanted to. Had this happen to me this week too.

Can I obtain the fit file if I only use Zwift through Apple TV?

Lethal` · 24 Jan 2022 at 09:07

Assuming it uploaded to Zwift you can grab from the website: https://support.zwift.com/en_us/your-activity-history-and-fit-files-SJbHywdNH

Vandle · 24 Jan 2022 at 21:51

Lethal` said:
Assuming it uploaded to Zwift you can grab from the website: https://support.zwift.com/en_us/your-activity-history-and-fit-files-SJbHywdNH

Thanks for that. Ride is there but looks different to the rest, no photo and when I click on it it doesn't load in like the others do. It has registered me as completing it though. Oh well, was a pretty average time anyway!

Went to do TDZ stage 5 last night but got my time difference calc wrong and it wasn't available until 7pm so started the Ineos Grenadiers training plan. First one was pretty underwhelming, bit easy. Did a loop of UCI worlds afterwards to get my heart rate up.

Nutty_Death · 24 Jan 2022 at 22:43

Did stage 5 tonight on the Richmond UCI. Nice course and I had a decent first lap but then my fatigued legs from overtraining for the past 3 weeks couldn't keep up the pace.
Think I'll give myself a day off and do stage 6 Saturday morning instead of Friday, as it's not a quick lunchtime course.

Enjoying tdz but looking forward to it being over tbh as I'm not training very sensible at the moment not wanting to miss swimming and running days...

Drollic · 25 Jan 2022 at 15:20

That hack I was talking about above could be getting more common. Seen three pairs all using it today so far.

TallPaul_S · 25 Jan 2022 at 15:35

I'm about to start week 5 of 6 on dirt destroyer, 4x sessions a week plus an outside ride once a week - coming from pretty much nothing for a month or 2 beforehand.

I'm already seeing the benefits of riding 3-5 times per week, but not sure what to go onto next after I finish work dirt destroyer.

I'm training at a calorie deficit too, to lose a few kg (mainly lockdown belly fat!) but the main goal is fitness. FTP is 210 @ 84kg, I'll do a 20 min FTP after I've completed this plan.

AndyCr15 · 25 Jan 2022 at 17:00

TallPaul_S said:
FTP is 210 @ 84kg, I'll do a 20 min FTP after I've completed this plan.

I think that's the main thing, right? Keep adjusting your FTP and your workouts will suit you still. I assume you're doing this on Zwift? I'm not sure what their plans are like, but I'm sure if you decide what you want to work on, they'll have a plan for it.

fez · 25 Jan 2022 at 21:08

Right, I have been kicked out of the road cycling thread and told to come talk to you shut ins about Zwift

What is the minimum setup I need to have a good Zwift session. I don't want to spend more than £400 if possible, less ideally if it doesn't massively compromise the quality. Happy to go second hand as well.

I have ipads, monitors etc and I have a bike already.

TallPaul_S · 26 Jan 2022 at 00:00

AndyCr15 said:
I think that's the main thing, right? Keep adjusting your FTP and your workouts will suit you still. I assume you're doing this on Zwift? I'm not sure what their plans are like, but I'm sure if you decide what you want to work on, they'll have a plan for it.

Yep, just need to find a plan that isn't too crazy with the sessions and is somewhat MTB focused. And yeah I'm on zwift.

TallPaul_S · 26 Jan 2022 at 00:02

fez said:
Right, I have been kicked out of the road cycling thread and told to come talk to you shut ins about Zwift

What is the minimum setup I need to have a good Zwift session. I don't want to spend more than £400 if possible, less ideally if it doesn't massively compromise the quality. Happy to go second hand as well.

I have ipads, monitors etc and I have a bike already.

You'll need a trainer, you should be able to get a direct drive wheel off trainer in budget, then a cassette, maybe a stand, and definitely a fan.

Spleen Sauce · 26 Jan 2022 at 10:58

Question for those using smart trainer with Garmin devices: connecting my WB Atom 2020 to a Garmin Epix 2 - is it better to connect as a smart trainer or as pwr/spd/cad sensors when using Zwift? I did have it connected as smart trainer and it flipped out half way through a ride, I then reconnected it as pwr/spd/cad sensors via the watch and realised afterwards that it records additional metrics (L/R balance) compared to smart trainer mode. Am I missing out on anything in either mode that I should be aware of? I'm not bothered about being able to control the bike from the watch particularly.

#Chri5# · 26 Jan 2022 at 12:11

fez said:
Right, I have been kicked out of the road cycling thread and told to come talk to you shut ins about Zwift

What is the minimum setup I need to have a good Zwift session. I don't want to spend more than £400 if possible, less ideally if it doesn't massively compromise the quality. Happy to go second hand as well.

I have ipads, monitors etc and I have a bike already.

A Kickr Snap is sub £400 IIRC as a wheel-on smart trainer option.

https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2017/07/wahoo-kickr-snap-2017-v2-trainer.html

Might be worth seeing if this Suito is indeed in stock? £399 and then needs a cassette.

https://www.wheelspincycles.com/acc...-suito-t-no-cassette-black-red-one-size__5510

At £500 for the turbo, there's the Jet Black volt which is £499

https://www.tredz.co.uk/.JetBlack-Volt-EMS-Direct-Drive-Smart-Turbo-Trainer_232905.htm
https://www.dcrainmaker.com/2021/07/jetblack-volt-smart-trainer-in-depth-review.html

Also the Elite Direto is £500 on Wiggle.

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/elite-direto-smart-turbo-trainer

TallPaul_S · 26 Jan 2022 at 13:56

£425 for a tacx Flux S here - https://www.bikester.co.uk/tacx-flu...3cmBx-FN35hOvszWevO4C1V91WuthLV0aAkfkEALw_wcB

I'd highly recommend going wheel off if you can.

For the fan, the vacmaster is a popular choice. https://www.cleva-uk.com/products/v...L7nsdt0oKQHxArlBmXhp1yyf3zSwOOWYaApscEALw_wcB

You can use a normal desk fan but these things even on level 1 are much better.

Here's my set up:

Elite Direto X OTS £550
2nd hand XL road bike £125
Apple TV 4k
55" OLED TV
Vacmaster fan £54
Projector stand £25

Nutty_Death · 26 Jan 2022 at 19:37

An 18inch floor fan is less than half the price and more practical for other uses I'd suggest, such as getting air flowing through the house on a hot summers evening.

gpuerrilla · 26 Jan 2022 at 19:42

Like the book pointing the fan higher! :cry:

Bit overkill on the OLED 55" for zwift, but my next turbo will be one of the direct drive types for sure.

One More Solo · 26 Jan 2022 at 21:11

Jonny ///M said:
The normalised power ignores the zeros and shows up how varied the ride was as far I can tell.

https://zwiftpower.com/events.php?zid=2378447

That was a fair steady ride for most of it hence a low average power but the spikes in power were pretty high and varied so NP is higher as the load on the body is higher.

A TT effort being steady state will have the same average and NP as there's no variable so no higher load on the body.

AndyCr15 said:
Okay, sounds like I should ignore normalised power then? Why would a spike have that much effect on the overall average? I think that's what I do best, spike power and recover quick.

That’s not quite right. Without going into the maths, NP doesn’t ignore the zeroes but attaches more weight to harder efforts, which is why rides with lots of sprinting etc will throw up a higher NP than average.

NP is basically a way of saying here’s the power you could have done if you’d ridden a steady pace but expended the same overall effort.

TallPaul_S · 26 Jan 2022 at 21:56

Nutty_Death said:
An 18inch floor fan is less than half the price and more practical for other uses I'd suggest, such as getting air flowing through the house on a hot summers evening.

True, but they're probably less than half as good. The vacmasters were being bought so much by zwifters/indoor cyclists they made a version with a remote. There's a massive thread on it on the trainerroad forums. https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t...o-fan-check-this-out-thanks-to-hugo1/9554/531

gpuerrilla said:
Like the book pointing the fan higher! Bit overkill on the OLED 55" for zwift, but my next turbo will be one of the direct drive types for sure.

Yeah the vacmaster has set angles and that one isn't quite high enough so just needs a slight lift to direct the air onto my body and face.

And yeah I didn't include the OLED price for obvious reasons

but if you have it, why not use it

Jonny ///M · 26 Jan 2022 at 22:05

One More Solo said:
That’s not quite right. Without going into the maths, NP doesn’t ignore the zeroes but attaches more weight to harder efforts, which is why rides with lots of sprinting etc will throw up a higher NP than average.

NP is basically a way of saying here’s the power you could have done if you’d ridden a steady pace but expended the same overall effort.

Yeah I've tried to read and make sense of it before but math isn't my strong point. I see the results of it if I've been jumping about rather than sitting in.

Feeling quite comfortable in zwift races recently even with my winter weight. If only I could just behave and sit in rather than trying to animate races I'd potentially get a win.

I'll see how it works out at a 4th cat crit at the end of the month

Nutty_Death · 26 Jan 2022 at 22:51

TallPaul_S said:
True, but they're probably less than half as good. The vacmasters were being bought so much by zwifters/indoor cyclists they made a version with a remote. There's a massive thread on it on the trainerroad forums. https://www.trainerroad.com/forum/t...o-fan-check-this-out-thanks-to-hugo1/9554/531

Have to admit the one with a remote does look pretty cool. I find my big fan on its lowest setting more than enough so unfortunately have no reason to replace it.

TallPaul_S · 27 Jan 2022 at 00:11

Nutty_Death said:
Have to admit the one with a remote does look pretty cool. I find my big fan on its lowest setting more than enough so unfortunately have no reason to replace it.

The main difference is the vacmaster has a very directed air stream, it's not very wide - a normal fan has a much broader air flow. You only need a narrow directed stream when you're on the bike.

I do sweat a bit in a typical 1-1.5hr session but only normally need to towel my head a few times, and that's on level one. Not had too put it on level 3 yet.