Discussion
Lord 
said:
said: I have a couple of zwift questions as a newbie. Last night i did the first day of the 6 week beginner ftp builder. My ftp is 160 as a result of the FTP short test last week.
First of all, the training seemed a bit to easy. It was basically alternating between 85 and 115w, i hardly broke a sweat in 45m. But what i did struggle with was keeping the cadence high. It always stated that i should be between 90-100 cadence. i really couldn't do it, at least without going over the specified wattage. My Tacx Smart Flow was in ERG mode. Is the cadence more important that the watts, or the other way around?
I did the same workout the other day and felt pretty similar to be honest, it doesn't seem that difficult. It is the first day of the plan though and I believe it's designed to focus on endurance pace rather than out and out sprints. I'm riding the second day of that workout tonight, "strength", which I think has some more bursts of higher power in it.First of all, the training seemed a bit to easy. It was basically alternating between 85 and 115w, i hardly broke a sweat in 45m. But what i did struggle with was keeping the cadence high. It always stated that i should be between 90-100 cadence. i really couldn't do it, at least without going over the specified wattage. My Tacx Smart Flow was in ERG mode. Is the cadence more important that the watts, or the other way around?
I was also a bit perplexed with the cadence prompts - I ignored them...but I am also riding single speed
If you haven't done an FTP test before, you've probably set your FTP too low. It takes a few goes to work out how much effort you can sustain for 20 minutes so that you are still going strong at 19:59 but collapse into a sweaty mess at 20:01.
If the workouts are too easy, make them harder!
I did my first run on Zwift last night. Absolutely brilliant. Technically the solution was bang on (Wahoo TICKR and Milestone footpod both integrated seamlessly) and reported my speed consistent with the treadmill to within 0.1kph. It was my first run of any kind for a year, as I managed to injure myself last time I tried - I think Zwift, by giving me something to focus on, will help me to keep my runs slow and steady as I build up my leg strength to match my fitness.
If the workouts are too easy, make them harder!
I did my first run on Zwift last night. Absolutely brilliant. Technically the solution was bang on (Wahoo TICKR and Milestone footpod both integrated seamlessly) and reported my speed consistent with the treadmill to within 0.1kph. It was my first run of any kind for a year, as I managed to injure myself last time I tried - I think Zwift, by giving me something to focus on, will help me to keep my runs slow and steady as I build up my leg strength to match my fitness.
Echoing what others have said
Your first FTP is likely to be lower than it really should be. Gauging the 20 minute effort is something that you get better at after a few goes.
Check how it feels if you do one of the sweetspot workouts, e.g. https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/less-than-an-hou...
Week 1 Day 1 of the 6wk beginner ftp builder is a very easy day. In zone terms, you have 30 minutes zone 1 and 20 minutes zone 2 and that's it. A stress points score of only 31.
On these easy effort days, there is a benefit to hitting the suggested cadence numbers where you can.
You will find that the majority of structured training plan rides on zwift (and other platforms) look for cadence of 90 / 95 / 100 for much of the time
If that is faster than you pedal now, then you will likely find some benefits from upping your cadence (there are some specific fast pedal workouts on there to help you, e.g. https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/gcn/race-prep-fa...
If you follow that 6 week plan as it is set out, it will only be on Week 1 day 4 that you have any cause to sweat imo in the first week (if you hit the cadence targets as well as the power targets)
I find the ride intensity of the 4 week FTP Booster plan to be a bit higher (and I can vouch for the c.10% FTP boost claims that it makes)
Your first FTP is likely to be lower than it really should be. Gauging the 20 minute effort is something that you get better at after a few goes.
Check how it feels if you do one of the sweetspot workouts, e.g. https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/less-than-an-hou...
Week 1 Day 1 of the 6wk beginner ftp builder is a very easy day. In zone terms, you have 30 minutes zone 1 and 20 minutes zone 2 and that's it. A stress points score of only 31.
On these easy effort days, there is a benefit to hitting the suggested cadence numbers where you can.
You will find that the majority of structured training plan rides on zwift (and other platforms) look for cadence of 90 / 95 / 100 for much of the time
If that is faster than you pedal now, then you will likely find some benefits from upping your cadence (there are some specific fast pedal workouts on there to help you, e.g. https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/gcn/race-prep-fa...
If you follow that 6 week plan as it is set out, it will only be on Week 1 day 4 that you have any cause to sweat imo in the first week (if you hit the cadence targets as well as the power targets)
I find the ride intensity of the 4 week FTP Booster plan to be a bit higher (and I can vouch for the c.10% FTP boost claims that it makes)
I discovered Zwift towards the end of last year. Bear in mind I only bought a bike in April then upgraded to a second hand road bike later in the summer. My fear was undoing any gains made in the summer whilst not riding outside in the winter. The roads round us are horrific, lots of traffic and I have no desire to end up in A&E.
Zwift has been a revelation for me. Invested in a direct drive Tacx Flux trainer so accurate power figures and I'm honest with height and weight. I tried to do an FTP test with Zwift altering the resistance of the trainer and gave up. I just do group rides, mostly with the PACK group. A great motivator and the trainer replicates hills very well. FTP figures automatically calculate within the ride and Strava allows analysis of ride data should you wish to look at certain segments.
In the group rides I limit myself so as not to shoot off ahead but if there's still any juice left after the group ride I will stay on and do some harder riding. Then Strava is good for looking at power figures.
Zwift is all about power, forget speed. For one thing no one has the balls to go downhill in the real world like you do on Zwift! Power / kg is a key measure as is height for draft purposes. There is a significant degree of technique to riding on Zwift, particularly in a group. It's very easy to waste energy in the wrong places for little or no gain. Pedalling like hell downhill might not do much good if the other person is heavier than you but some extra effort going up hill quickly reels people in as an example. Get over 55kph going down a significant gradient and you can stop pedalling totally to go into aero mode.
The long and the short of it, I've massively increased my training distances and times since discovering Zwift and it's helped me to lose 18kg since April '17 with no particular diet, I had fish & chips last night.... My FTP has increased I no longer feel in the near room to death whilst climbing Box Hill (in fact I sometimes do a second hill after our group rides just for fun).
I've moved up through the PACK rides to the point where their "Social" ones are do-able and I might even try some of the less demanding races once I feel able to deliver "D" group performance of 2.5W/kg over a long enough distance.
There are some very capable riders on Zwift, I have no doubt there are also lots of people juggling the figures to flatter themselves but I'm only interested in my personal improvement against myself.
The proof of the pudding will be to see what happens when I get out into Windsor Great Park again and see if I still need medical attention whilst climbing the hill up to the Guards Polo fields
Henry
Zwift has been a revelation for me. Invested in a direct drive Tacx Flux trainer so accurate power figures and I'm honest with height and weight. I tried to do an FTP test with Zwift altering the resistance of the trainer and gave up. I just do group rides, mostly with the PACK group. A great motivator and the trainer replicates hills very well. FTP figures automatically calculate within the ride and Strava allows analysis of ride data should you wish to look at certain segments.
In the group rides I limit myself so as not to shoot off ahead but if there's still any juice left after the group ride I will stay on and do some harder riding. Then Strava is good for looking at power figures.
Zwift is all about power, forget speed. For one thing no one has the balls to go downhill in the real world like you do on Zwift! Power / kg is a key measure as is height for draft purposes. There is a significant degree of technique to riding on Zwift, particularly in a group. It's very easy to waste energy in the wrong places for little or no gain. Pedalling like hell downhill might not do much good if the other person is heavier than you but some extra effort going up hill quickly reels people in as an example. Get over 55kph going down a significant gradient and you can stop pedalling totally to go into aero mode.
The long and the short of it, I've massively increased my training distances and times since discovering Zwift and it's helped me to lose 18kg since April '17 with no particular diet, I had fish & chips last night.... My FTP has increased I no longer feel in the near room to death whilst climbing Box Hill (in fact I sometimes do a second hill after our group rides just for fun).
I've moved up through the PACK rides to the point where their "Social" ones are do-able and I might even try some of the less demanding races once I feel able to deliver "D" group performance of 2.5W/kg over a long enough distance.
There are some very capable riders on Zwift, I have no doubt there are also lots of people juggling the figures to flatter themselves but I'm only interested in my personal improvement against myself.
The proof of the pudding will be to see what happens when I get out into Windsor Great Park again and see if I still need medical attention whilst climbing the hill up to the Guards Polo fields
Henry
I thought I'd give it a go.........
Tried to install it on my macbook air..................it fails.
https://support.zwift.com/hc/en-us/community/posts...
Seems common.
Tried to install it on my macbook air..................it fails.
https://support.zwift.com/hc/en-us/community/posts...
Seems common.
I've ended up running Zwift on my iPhone with an HDMI converter plugged in.
My 2012 MacBook does load Zwift but when I try to connect the trainer via Bluetooth it crashes. I'm going to try an Ant+ dongle. But the iPhone runs well. You do have to swallow hard when paying for the iPhone HDMI converter though. I used man maths and a £10 Argos voucher to lessen the blow
When discussing with Zwift they seemed to say my 2012 MacBook was on the cusp of what could support Zwift.
Henry
My 2012 MacBook does load Zwift but when I try to connect the trainer via Bluetooth it crashes. I'm going to try an Ant+ dongle. But the iPhone runs well. You do have to swallow hard when paying for the iPhone HDMI converter though. I used man maths and a £10 Argos voucher to lessen the blow
When discussing with Zwift they seemed to say my 2012 MacBook was on the cusp of what could support Zwift.
Henry
JPJPJP said:
I use zwift with iPad Pro. Bluetooth to wahoo kick snap and wahoo cadence sensor
There is a bug which means turning the iPad off / on before zwifting avoids some instances of riding alone on screen
But the set up through Bluetooth is easy and quick
An hour uses the best part of 20% battery on my 12.9
The latest update claims to have fixed the riding alone bugThere is a bug which means turning the iPad off / on before zwifting avoids some instances of riding alone on screen
But the set up through Bluetooth is easy and quick
An hour uses the best part of 20% battery on my 12.9
https://zwiftinsider.com/update-1-0-23637/
‘Fixed an issue where iOS and Apple TV devices could get into a state where they never see other riders until app was manually killed. This was a common complaint, so I’m happy to see its been fixed.’
This pleases me
Henry-F said:
I've ended up running Zwift on my iPhone with an HDMI converter plugged in.
My 2012 MacBook does load Zwift but when I try to connect the trainer via Bluetooth it crashes. I'm going to try an Ant+ dongle. But the iPhone runs well. You do have to swallow hard when paying for the iPhone HDMI converter though. I used man maths and a £10 Argos voucher to lessen the blow
When discussing with Zwift they seemed to say my 2012 MacBook was on the cusp of what could support Zwift.
Henry
I bought the iPad 2017 with a handlebar mount and it works great with my Wahoo kicker!My 2012 MacBook does load Zwift but when I try to connect the trainer via Bluetooth it crashes. I'm going to try an Ant+ dongle. But the iPhone runs well. You do have to swallow hard when paying for the iPhone HDMI converter though. I used man maths and a £10 Argos voucher to lessen the blow
When discussing with Zwift they seemed to say my 2012 MacBook was on the cusp of what could support Zwift.
Henry
New to Zwift having purchased a Tacx Flow last year - it certainly makes indoor training more tolerable ! My 1st off just before Xmas (due to black ice) was a not so gentle reminder to be sensible about riding conditions.
I've found the Flow an ideal entry level smart trainer given that I can't afford a Kickr or similar - a few essential extras such as a decent fan and a phone mount and the pain cave (ok conservatory) isn't such a bad place to be:
https://youtu.be/R6lrcI08hJc
Much as i quite like getting out on my MTB over winter, I'm less keen on all the post ride cleaning etc.
PO
I've found the Flow an ideal entry level smart trainer given that I can't afford a Kickr or similar - a few essential extras such as a decent fan and a phone mount and the pain cave (ok conservatory) isn't such a bad place to be:
https://youtu.be/R6lrcI08hJc
Much as i quite like getting out on my MTB over winter, I'm less keen on all the post ride cleaning etc.
PO
Edited by Pot Odds on Monday 5th February 19:21
Finally got myself into some Zwifting after procrastinating over buying a smart trainer.
As others have said, it’s transformed my ability to endure turbo training. I’m now averaging an hour rather than my previous dumb trainer 30 mins. I reckon it makes it easier to put in more physical effort because it requires less mental strength to push yourself.
I am running Zwift on an iPad so had to look for a Bluetooth heart rate sensor (as I have a Garmin ant+ only one). I picked up a Decathlon sensor only (sans strap) for £14.99 and it pops right onto the Garmin strap and works a treat!
As others have said, it’s transformed my ability to endure turbo training. I’m now averaging an hour rather than my previous dumb trainer 30 mins. I reckon it makes it easier to put in more physical effort because it requires less mental strength to push yourself.
I am running Zwift on an iPad so had to look for a Bluetooth heart rate sensor (as I have a Garmin ant+ only one). I picked up a Decathlon sensor only (sans strap) for £14.99 and it pops right onto the Garmin strap and works a treat!
Dannbodge said:
That's great!
Nice to see people trying it out and enjoying it.
My Zwifting has come to a stop once again.
3 weeks, 5 hours and 100miles and my 3rd Tacx Flux has died again.
However, it's back in Holland and come next week, a new Tacx Neo will be on its way back to me.
It was reading about all these unit failures that put me off smart trainers for so long.Nice to see people trying it out and enjoying it.
My Zwifting has come to a stop once again.
3 weeks, 5 hours and 100miles and my 3rd Tacx Flux has died again.
However, it's back in Holland and come next week, a new Tacx Neo will be on its way back to me.
I hope the Neo works better for you. It’s my next upgrade if I become hooked on Zwifting!
To those of you with the Tacx Smart Flow. How do you calibrate the thing in Zwift? I have gone through the calibration in the Tacx app, but i cannot get the Spanner icon to appear in Zwift. Im under the impression that you need to connect to the FE-C version of the ANT transmission but i am not able to do that. Has anyone done it and would you mind giving me a guide to it?
Dannbodge said:
That's great!
Nice to see people trying it out and enjoying it.
My Zwifting has come to a stop once again.
3 weeks, 5 hours and 100miles and my 3rd Tacx Flux has died again.
However, it's back in Holland and come next week, a new Tacx Neo will be on its way back to me.
You will love the Neo, it's an incredible piece of kit. Nice to see people trying it out and enjoying it.
My Zwifting has come to a stop once again.
3 weeks, 5 hours and 100miles and my 3rd Tacx Flux has died again.
However, it's back in Holland and come next week, a new Tacx Neo will be on its way back to me.
Chicken Chaser said:
You will love the Neo, it's an incredible piece of kit.
I hope so. The Flux was great, just a shame it was so unreliable.Neo was shipped today, so hopefully will have it by early next week.
I'm looking forward to attempting the radio tower climb on it, at a proper 17% this time.
Not that i can change what i've bought now and dont wish to get near to 1k for the trainer.... but..... has it been that much better over the flux.
I hope my Flux will be ok, bought from Halfords to more easily return and replace but obviously nervous after properly researching all the issues faced by people so far.
I hope my Flux will be ok, bought from Halfords to more easily return and replace but obviously nervous after properly researching all the issues faced by people so far.
CooperS said:
Not that i can change what i've bought now and dont wish to get near to 1k for the trainer.... but..... has it been that much better over the flux.
I hope my Flux will be ok, bought from Halfords to more easily return and replace but obviously nervous after properly researching all the issues faced by people so far.
Honestly. Yes it has/is better than the fluxI hope my Flux will be ok, bought from Halfords to more easily return and replace but obviously nervous after properly researching all the issues faced by people so far.
It reacts faster to changes, it folds up so can be packed away, it's quieter, there is no calibration to be done and where it has no flywheel you can get your watts as low as you physically want. Having no gradient ceiling like the lower end ones mean that Alpe du Zwift, the radio tower climb, Innsbruck and Leith hill are much harder than before.
Dannbodge said:
Having no gradient ceiling like the lower end ones mean that Alpe du Zwift, the radio tower climb, Innsbruck and Leith hill are much harder than before.
I can vouch for this... On my old Tacx Flow you could cruise up these climbs fairly easily if you wanted to, albeit slowly. Now there is no hiding place and you just need to get your head down and slog up.Night and day difference
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