Training indoors is boring, right? Not with Zwift. Hit its (virtual) roads for group rides with mates, races or coached training sessions. But can Zwift get you ready for an event from the comfort of your home?
Over the last decade, perhaps only Strava has had as big an effect on the way people train as Zwift, hitting the mainstream and capturing the zeitgeist to a similar degree. When we interview people about their training, it’s rare that Zwift doesn’t get a mention. Like turbo training has done for decades, Zwift is able to give you a hard dose of training when time or the weather might not allow. But it’s Zwift’s capacity to gamify training and its effectiveness as a social network that’s made it catch on as it has. Human beings are social animals and being able to hook up with friends for training rides and races in Zwift’s virtual reality world has always been its calling card.
It might sound like an unusual proposition, to the uninitiated at least, in the midst of the hottest summer in recent memory, but Cycling Plus was asked if a team would be willing to take on the challenge of riding training platform Zwift’s virtual reality mountains to train towards tackling a real life one...
For section editor John Whitney, the answer to the challenge was an easy yes. For years he’s trained indoors on a bike, regardless of the time of year, as a means of supplementing his cycling and never as a substitute. He has for a long while had to fend off comments from colleagues as he’s headed down to the Cycling Plus ‘dungeon’, the dingy car park beneath our office, at the height of summer for a blast on our resident Wattbike, but he’s always recognised that the work put in during those short, sharp sessions pays dividends when on the road.
Over the coming months, Cycling Plus will be diving deep into Zwift’s game world, with the aim of improving our real-life performance, which will be tested in the autumn on Tenerife’s Mount Teide, one of Europe’s most iconic climbs. While it’s not a climb used in professional races, it’s a favourite training haunt for the likes of Team Sky, who take advantage of its year-round warm climate and high altitude. Teide is also a volcano, so we chose to best reflect the iconic volcano climb on Zwift’s Watopia island course, which we know well by now.
We’ll be following our three riders, John, Adrian and Hannah, as they prepare to go toe-to-toe with Teide. They’ll regularly meet up for group rides, in person on the road and in pixels on the game, to check on their progress. So, let’s introduce you to the team…
Zwift is able to give you a hard dose of training when time or the weather might not allow
for big miles on the road has taken a hit.
“Zwift allows me to ride late at night or over a lunch break, which has meant I can keep my fitness at a decent level, so when I do get out on the tarmac I feel good,” he says. “Riding indoors can’t compare to riding through the countryside, but Zwift manages to keep my mind engaged.”
Why has Adrian decided to take on the challenge? After hitting big targets last summer, including the Maratona dles Dolomites gran fondo, he’s been largely without any goals this summer. “Like anyone, I need something to motivate myself to train, so this challenge seemed like a good fit for my life at the moment.”
Zwift’s immersive gameplay has added gloss to the indoor experience
“I’ve not been any sort of gamer since university when days and nights would be lost to Football Manager, but as Zwift gives far more than my thumbs a workout I’ve been able to make an exception,” he says.
Another reason he’s embraced Zwift is because of circumstance – he’s waiting for an operation on his shoulder, to repair a dislocation injury that is limiting the time he can spend riding outdoors. In the meantime, Zwift is proving a lifeline to help him keep in shape. He’s an experienced cyclist, indoors and out, but is keen to see how Zwift can improve his ability to ride uphill, fast.