Check your training log in Strava and see if you've had any changes to volume/intensity. Any changes in food intake? Remember as you get smaller you have to eat less to maintain the same rate of loss
Apart from a couple of longer Friday evening rides locally on the Ridgeway, i've not changed my output, i've also put in more Zwift hours that previous months.
My eating doesn't change much (and it's not going to... i can't do any better, i'm OK with my eating even though many/most would frown at it massivley 🙂 )
Not sure if it has already come up, but if Bkool has a simlier interface and seemingly many more routes (even your own based on strava uploads) how come Zwift is more popular?
Sub X rides vary wildly - Tuesday's Sub2 PAC ride was just that - leader held everyone to below 2 w/kg - even on the hills.
ZZRC tend to run at around 1.9 with 2.2 on the hills for their Sub2 (plus sprints). Last Thursday's 2 laps of Box Hill on a Sub2 nearly killed me off - might of well have been racing.
ZHR H&H is good.... well if you like some pain, but not too much...
Anyone got any advice for improving my consistency on the flat? Like I said earlier, I can easy pump out 3+w/h consistently on a climb, but struggle to even hit 2-2.5 on a flatter ride.
Oct i logged 551km / 24 hours
Nov i logged 575km / 23 hours
Dec i logged 709km / 28 hours
Jan up to now 304km /10 hours
So assuming i do 2.5-3 hours this weekend (At Forest of Dean if weather acceptable, so shouldn't be too hard for 3 hours to be logged) then i'm on schedule.
Weight made me smile just now on the scales, as it's a 'post fasting' weight, which is always slightly optimistic, but read 15st 1 which is SOOOOO close... (i'll take a fasting adjusted 14 something to make me happy)
[quote=andeh ]Anyone got any advice for improving my consistency on the flat? Like I said earlier, I can easy pump out 3+w/h consistently on a climb, but struggle to even hit 2-2.5 on a flatter ride.
cadence? I find to generate power on the flat I have to really up my cadence. i tend to settle to around 80ish whereas I need to be up around 95-100ish.
andeh - i was the same until i started working on my cadence, practicing higher cadence has improved my cardio a lot helped me maintain power on flats.
Not sure if it has already come up, but if Bkool has a simlier interface and seemingly many more routes (even your own based on strava uploads) how come Zwift is more popular?
Probably because Zwift have done a really good job of marketing their product! Were Zwift there first? Were they the first to link up with Strava. Zwift have the mobile link thing too which means you don't need to buy an ANT+ dongle.
Must admit that until you mentioned it I didn't realise you could use the Bkool stuff without their own trainer, I guess lots would assume the same thing. It actually looks a more polished product.
Anyone got any advice for improving my consistency on the flat? Like I said earlier, I can easy pump out 3+w/h consistently on a climb, but struggle to even hit 2-2.5 on a flatter ride.
If it were outdoor i'd have said you need to do some interval work on flat courses on the drops, as position on the bike and gradient do make some subtle differences to the muscles recruited.
On a trainer though bike is fixed in position so it makes no sense at all other than perhaps a mental thing?
Plus Weeksy never started a thead about Bkool!
I knew you could use their software with any trainer (from skimming the DC Rainmaker roundup article) but didn't know you could race online until I read up on it properly just now. Just poor marketing compared to Zwift. And as said above, I'm sure the Strava tie-up was a massive boost.
A quick google suggests Zwift devs are a lot more active/responsive which is what is needed to grow an online community. There's just so many people on Zwift now, they've reached critical mass - the only way they could balls it up is if their servers, etc, start struggling with the volume.
[quote=tinribz ]Not sure if it has already come up, but if Bkool has a simlier interface and seemingly many more routes (even your own based on strava uploads) how come Zwift is more popular?
VHS/BetaMax etc.
probably the social aspect. i think the numbers on zwift have gone exponential in the last year. even in the couple of months I've been using it the numbers have increased massively.
plus the racing is a big draw for me. motivates me and makes me work harder like no workout plan ever has.
There's just so many people on Zwift now, they've reached critical mass - the only way they could balls it up is if their servers, etc, start struggling with the volume.
Yes, I don't think it's a reflection on the quality of the product either. The core product seems good but overall it's pretty poor. The GUI is shocking and I could write a feature wish list a mile long.
Anyone got any advice for improving my consistency on the flat? Like I said earlier, I can easy pump out 3+w/h consistently on a climb, but struggle to even hit 2-2.5 on a flatter ride.
Assuming this is Zwift with a smart turbo. So you can make good power when there's some resistance to push against and the flywheel speed is lower, but struggle when the resistance is backed off and the flywheel speed increases? The demands of pedalling with different levels of energy in the flywheel are different (though not as pronounced as on the road.) If you're an mtb'er you're likely to be better at the former. You just need to practice 🙂
In other news... my Neo has arrived at my lbs 8)
motivates me and makes me work harder like no workout plan ever has.
Which is great; just note though, as seems to stir weeksy's pot, simply smashing out sessions at intensity harder than any workout plan isn't actually as productive as it might be if you are seriously serious about getting the most out of the effort you put in.
Although i do side with weeksy on the point that a 'plan' that is 60% effective but enjoyable and therefore you stick to it, is better than a plan that's 100% effective but you scrap after a few weeks because an hour of Z1/2 active recovery just numbs to senseless.
But there is racing on BKool too! Who knew lol?! The VHS/betamax analogy is good but I think Myspace/Facebook is better. Bkool got there first, but got caught napping, and now only terrible Seattle indie bands use BKool.plus the racing is a big draw for me. motivates me and makes me work harder like no workout plan ever has.
Yep. I've tried for years to get into a winter workout plan on TR but could never manage it. Just 6 weeks on Zwift & I'm totally addicted 🙂 It actually makes the turbo [i]fun[/i].Although i do side with weeksy on the point that a 'plan' that is 60% effective but enjoyable and therefore you stick to it, is better than a plan that's 100% effective but you scrap after a few weeks
Nice. You might want to take the free hub off & grease the hell out of it pre-emptively!In other news... my Neo has arrived at my lbs
2 more techy questions (sorry)
I've now done 3 rides. One on Tues just riding around to see what it's like. 10 mins of pootling yesterday evening as a 'warmup' for the WBR sub 2.0, and 30 mins / 11 miles of the Sub2.0 before the PC ran out of battery.
All three are reflected on my activities page, but my total miles only counts the Tues ride.
Looking at it on my mobile app, even stranger because my last 7 days and last 30 days show the combined total but the all time only the Tuesday?
Glitch, or am i doing something wrong?
Second - I can't search for people to follow using the STW tag. Is there a particular trick; I've found weeksy and he has STW after his name that shows up but while 'Steve' or 'Weeks' find him, STW doesn't?
There are a lot of bugs. I wouldn't worry about it too much 🙂Glitch, or am i doing something wrong?
In other news... my Neo has arrived at my lbs
Nice. You might want to take the free hub off & grease the hell out of it pre-emptively!
this - otherwise IT IS AMAZING.... had it for a year and I love it so much ill be riding 100 miles on it Saturday.....
this - otherwise IT IS AMAZING.... had it for a year and I love it so much ill be riding 100 miles on it Saturday.....
Splendid 🙂
Does the freehub just pull off? All collected but still in the box until I'm done with work. Question is to risk using it tonight. Got a session planned that would not go well with new tech faffing. Probably best to leave it till tomorrows z2 (though weather looks ok so should really get outdoors for that.)
Is that just to unlock the achievement 🙂love it so much ill be riding 100 miles on it Saturday.....
5mm hex wrench. That bit takes a minute max! I'd probably leave it until tomorrow though... took me a while to get the cassette on, thought I was doing it wrong but just had to use quite a lot more force than usual in the end (due to the multi-spline free hub design) Then had to re-index gears as you really want to use the whole range with a smart trainer as opposed to just using 3 or 4 like I had been doing previously!Does the freehub just pull off?
Does the freehub just pull off? All collected but still in the box until I'm done with work. Question is to risk using it tonight. Got a session planned that would not go well with new tech faffing. Probably best to leave it till tomorrows z2 (though weather looks ok so should really get outdoors for that.)
its not a must do but you should do it when you get a moment
Is that just to unlock the achievement
nope for charity - a double pretzel to raise money to settle a refugee family in Elmbridge - we have done amazingly well to reach the target. I will post proof on here on Sat afternoon. http://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/help-syrian-refugee-karim-to-resettle-his-family/
It probably is just a practice thing, I've only ever ridden MTBs with a single ring on the front (oh yeah, 1x9 before it was cool 8) ) so I'm probably used to pushing a harder gear, rather than happily spinning along.
Mashie - thanks, I gave a few quid just now.
One of my kids was delivered by an excellent and very overqualified Syrian doc and I've been grateful ever since that we have such folks in our NHS.
Anyone got any advice for improving my consistency on the flat? Like I said earlier, I can easy pump out 3+w/h consistently on a climb, but struggle to even hit 2-2.5 on a flatter ride.
Exactly the same problem here - thought it was just me!
I'm the opposite thanks to my massive weight... i can wallop along on the flat with a great Aero profile Zwift seems to give me.. but put me on a hill, i'm a donkey.
How much are people spending on Tacx Neos? I noticed there's some on Amazon for £450, are these an older style or something?
[s] https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0112VE4NO/ [/s]
Also how do they compare to a Kickr?
Edit: Oh, ignore that, random scam Amazon link. Seen a few, Haibikes listed silly cheap. Apologies, it was the first thing that popped up when I tried in Tacx Neo 🙂
How much are people spending on Tacx Neos? I noticed there's some on Amazon for £450, are these an older style or something?https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0112VE4NO/
Also how do they compare to a Kickr?
Looks very dodgy to me - a just launched seller and notes cant send to all addresses please email! Steer clear
Avoid those cheap Neos on Amazon. It seems to be very dodgy, it was mentioned on the Facebook Neo page a while ago. I am guessing they ask you to complete the transaction outside Amazon when you contact them.
Neos are around £1k, but offers come up from time to time.
Mashie - thanks, I gave a few quid just now.
Thank you much appreciated. Not looking forward to Sat - likely to be non stop 6 hours on the turbo, an early start me thinks!
Yeah, sorry I didn't spot it was a dodgy seller until after posting. I've seen them doing the same with Haibikes, as mentioned before. I'm amazed Amazon don't pull these things down sharpish.
DC Rainmaker has a guide to the latest turbos, he recommends the Neo over the Kickr (especially in Europe where the price difference is much less)
[url= https://www.dcrainmaker.com ]https://www.dcrainmaker.com[/url]
Cheers! I think I went through those recently, only really peeping as the wife quite fancied joining in. I bought a Vortex only a month back. The idea of having to warm up the tyres and recalibrate every day didn't appeal.
It's a shame things like the Wattbike don't seem more common. Quite a ridiculous cost, but it'd take up less space than 2 road bikes and turbos.
Don't forget that the w/kg of a group ride depends on the size/power of the ride leader. I've done a Sub 3.0 with "Lil Lisa" leading it and averaged about 20w less than a Sub 2.5 with a 95kg bloke leading it.
W/kg descriptors are still a pet peeve of mine about Zwift! What's wrong with speed!!! At least if a ride is advertised by speed, you can go out and test it beforehand to see roughly what it may feel like.
One advertised by w/kg means nothing without the ride leaders vital stats.....
Also how do they compare to a Kickr?
Kickr is just a normal direct drive mag turbo with some electronics controlling the resistance knob. Same as Tacx Flux, Cycleops Hammer, Elite Drivo and most others at that price point. They have big solid flywheels and the "feel" of the turbo is largely dictated by this fixed element.
Neo is hugely different and a big leap forwards in that it has a virtual driven flywheel. Fancy electronics can modify the feel of the turbo to better mimic a load of different riding scenario. E.g. riding at 30mph on the flat feels very different to griding up a hill at 5mph, and Neo for the price does the best job of simulating this feel (for example, when simulating high speed riding it can actually drive the flywheel through the dead spots in the pedal stroke.) It all improves the specificity of training on the turbo which should make it more effective.
TBH, if you are spending a grand on a turbo then (reliability issues aside) you'd be an idiot not to go for a Neo. If you just want to do a bit of Zwifting and aren't bothered about maximising the effectiveness of your turbo work then get the Flux as the same as a Kickr but a lot cheaper. I can see a case for the Drivio or Hammer as they contain direct force power meters so are a lot more accurate than the Kickr. Why someone would buy a kickr is a mystery to me.
DC Rainmaker
He's a pretty good starting point for trainer reviews but I really don't think he gets the fundamental USP of the Neo and how big a step forward it is. Not sure that he's addressed that in subsequent reviews.
crosshair - MemberDon't forget that the w/kg of a group ride depends on the size/power of the ride leader. I've done a Sub 3.0 with "Lil Lisa" leading it and averaged about 20w less than a Sub 2.5 with a 95kg bloke leading it.
W/kg descriptors are still a pet peeve of mine about Zwift! What's wrong with speed!!! At least if a ride is advertised by speed, you can go out and test it beforehand to see roughly what it may feel like.
One advertised by w/kg means nothing without the ride leaders vital stats.....
Agree to a great extent, but surely if we're using W/KG then it's the job of the leader to at least sit at or around the advertised W/KG as much as possible. It was rare when i was with him or saw him on the list that his W/KG were anywhere near 2.5. Which just makes it completely pointless IMO. If i can see he's not riding at 2.5, he can surely see he's not at 2.5 either. It's not splitting the atom.
I've never done one where the ride leader isn't ballpark close? Check their Strava- you might be surprised that their average w/kg for a lap is closer than you think.....
Not on ZP results, i can't recall much about his name, Bookencamp or something along those lines.. it doesn't matter enough to worry in honesty, i know not to do the Thursday Fritter rides until i'm a chunk faster/fitter now as i've done 2 and been bombed on both.
Don't lose sleep about it 🙂
Reading your posts about the rides with interest - so as a beginner, I guess I'm just looking for rides that are marked ABCD? And then try and work out if I could keep up with a ride marked only C?
Also, I was trying to do a "custom" easy ride today, but really struggled to keep the Watts steady. Is it harder to maintain Watts at the lower end?
I think different turbos maintain W easier/harder. Mine i can sit within 5-10w for ages and barely fluctuate... but there's always a little bit as you push i guess and breathe... But shouldn't be that tough to maintain ish.
Hmmm, I'll have to do another ride at a higher effort level to check then, the only other one I did so far was the ftp test and it kept telling me More Power a lot 🙂
If you join an ride and can't keep up, what happens? Everyone else just disappears into the distance?
Pretty much yes.. There are some rides where people try and help others out, so a couple of guys/people will drop back if you're just off the pace but it's not that common.
Okay, I see. Seems there are not that many rides for total weaklings - I'd better try and get a bit stronger before attempting one 🙁
Alp_girl There are some great lower speed rides. A shout out on the Zwift Riders FB page will help you find some. Zwift Riders for Health or similar is one of them- I'll have a look....
Try the PAC group on FB and the Zwift Sub2.0 one....
The KISS D cat races generally have a massive spread of riders, the last one I did the last guy was at 1.3w/kg, there's quite a few averaging well under 2.0.
I found the FTP test an absolute slog, it's by far the worst performance I've ever had. I'd just skip it and go to races, it'll auto adjust your FTP after any race you improve anyway. You'll know very quickly where you stand!
Oh, great, thanks for the tips! I'll look out for the KISS D races and anything called sub2 and check FB.
Who are the riders with the fancy glowing wheels btw??
[quote=alp_girl ]Oh, great, thanks for the tips! I'll look out for the KISS D races and anything called sub2 and check FB.
Who are the riders with the fancy glowing wheels btw??
the ones who done enough km to unlock the tron bike.
The Tron bike is unlocked by selected the "Everest Challenge" and then simply racking up a total ascent of 50,000 m. Which could take some time.
[quote=zilog6128 ]The Tron bike is unlocked by selected the "Everest Challenge" and then simply racking up a total ascent of 50,000 m. Which could take some time.
ah. is that what the people blasting up hills at crazy w/kg are chasing?
I think I'm going to give a cat-D race a go this evening - the KISS one at 20:06.
The Tron bike is unlocked by selected the "Everest Challenge" and then simply racking up a total ascent of 50,000 m. Which could take some time.
oooh... just checked and im on 39,725m, maybe as a reward for my weekend effort on the century i can unlock it by riding 10,000m.... eeek!
I got my Kickr (just before the Neo came out) and wiggle were doing a silly discount, I think i paid about 750, which i admit is crazy money for a trainer but I'd rather have a decent trainer than a winter bike.
As for Bkool, despite looking good on paper it was just pony in practice, terrible interface and never seemed to work properly.
I havent touched it since.
Zwift and trainer road have been the best by far, they just worked.
Now that Zwift are doing the ERG workouts and they have training plans I doubt I'll be back on TR
I'm most of the way up everest, what do I get for completing that ?
Better not be just another bloody shirt
I don't think you get anything for climbing Everest, it just unlocks the next challenge, which take ages and ages - I think it took me 11 months to complete. I nearly always use the Tron bike, I don't think it is the fastest, but seems to go well up and downhill. I occasionaly use the steel bike with a seven-eleven paint job that doesn't seem too common.
alp_girl, the PAC rides are a great place to start. They stick to the advertised pace, and have sweepers to pick up anyone who drops off the group. Last night was the sub 1.5 ride which is the slowest, but sub2.0 should be fine. The ride leader and sweepers talk to each other on Discord during the ride to keep it all together.
mashiehood, 10,000m of climbing is about 20 times up the mountain, I doubt you will do that in 100 miles, but it is worth it in the end.
Just had a google, seems there might be a bike in it - trek emonda ?I don't think you get anything for climbing Everest
Oops getting my meters and feet mixed up!
Kiss C for me tonight I think. What's the odds on zwiftpower screwing up the results.
95% based upon recent history.
Hmm. Might not. 2x London 8 means twice up box hill.
Box Hill is where I'm expecting to get left for dead in the Cat-D race
only one way to find out 🙂 Get on and try !
Emonda for Everest (About 8800m). Then you keep going to 50K metres. I'm on about 12K now, annoyingly it wasn't the first challenge I selected so I racked up 20K metres doing the Cali challenge which doesn't then count.
Tron bike is one of my objectives for 2017. Yep, I'm a sad bastard.
In other news... my Neo has arrived at my lbs
Quick spin and all seems good, no funny noises, no blue smoke 🙂
Shall have a good play with it tomorrow. Quick comparison to my crank based PM shows it to be a reasonably consistent 10 watts down, which is pretty much what I'd expect. Takes up a lot more floor space than my LeMond too.
Is it still London tomorrow? How often to Zwift change the course? I was just getting to know Wattopia 🙁
I've just done the "8wk Race Day Prep Week 8 Day 3 - PRE-RACE DAY SPIN" workout.
Highly recommend if your legs are tired - mine are feeling much better for it.
I did the KISS D race - looks like I managed to average bang on 2.5W/kg but I've no idea where I finished and at no point during the race did I have any idea what position I was in!
What did that consist of Nath? I did my intervals but knocked a set off. Feeling good though! Easy spin tomorrow 🙂
2 x London 8 hurt a bit, but as far as I can see from the live results i managed 11th in C...
making up nearly 40 places on box hill on lap 1 and another 10-15 places on lap 2 helped. really need to work on getting power out on the flat. I can reasonably comfortably average 280-300W up box hill but struggle to maintain more than about 220-230W on the flat.
I think I was 6th in D. Looks like 3 of the riders in front of me were marginally over the 2.5W/kg this time but within the 0.1 W/kg limit.
Jam, catching me the other day you were consistent at 3.1_3.2w/kg. You seemed to be flying on the flat!
Yeah, in the couple of races I've done it's all a bit too much guessworkat no point during the race did I have any idea what position I was in!
I think there's just too many riders on there sometimes and racers "disappear" among them (1 guy shook me off quite cleverly last time round by using a crowd - and never mind the dust clouds!)
Ideally (for me) they'd have only active racers visible though that might need a whole dedicated server for racing or something - or at least they could try to make racers more obvious (different colour rear lights for each race, say)
Jam bo, what's your "realism" setting in the setup screen ? I've read that using more than 50% causes your problem just because you don't react instantly when gradients ease off
18th not 11th looks like and zwiftpower hasnt crapped out yet. although I think I might gain a few when the results finalise.
i can hold a reasonably steady 3.8 W/kg ish on a hill, but that's at a lower cadence and with resistance. I was 9th fastest up box hill in the C race.
3.8! And riding in C!
I could do 1 min at 3.8
yeah but I averaged 3W/kg in the race.
i've got the realism set to 100%. I've tried various settings and prefer it like that.
so what happens if you choose big gears on the flat ?i can hold a reasonably steady 3.8 W/kg ish on a hill, but that's at a lower cadence and with resistance. I was 9th fastest up box hill in the C race.
I was 9th fastest up box hill in the C race.
I passed a lot of folks in the D race up Box Hill - not sure how to tell how I compared against others in the race though. I did improve my PB by 2 minutes though, which was nice!
Great work Steve!
so what happens if you choose big gears on the flat ?
good point but i think some of it is mental. i know its only a virtual hill but it has a top and something to focus on. flat doesnt have that.
the leaderboard on the left hand side shows you your time up box hill as you pass the banner, and only the other people in your race.
Great work Steve!
Cheers!
the leaderboard on the left hand side shows you your time up box hill as you pass the banner, and only the other people in your race.
Cheers - I'll look out for that the next time.
crosshair
What did that consist of Nath? I did my intervals but knocked a set off. Feeling good though! Easy spin tomorrow
Basically ramps you up, so for me:
10 mins @ 175w
5 mins @ 225w
5 mins @ 285w
5 mins @ 330w (95% FTP)
5 mins @ 175w
3x30 secs @ 435w (with 2 mins rest in between)
5 mins @ 175w
The 45 mins flew believe it or not!
[quote=epicsteve ]the leaderboard on the left hand side shows you your time up box hill as you pass the banner, and only the other people in your race.
Cheers - I'll look out for that the next time.
quite handy as well at least on the first lap it shows you your position.
i was quite pleased with 8:34 & 8:37
Remind me to never race you on a hilly course. I think my best is 10.30!