[ryanoelke]

Hey Y’all 🙂 After focusing on only running for about 6 months, I’m going to add in a few cycling days/week, but need to do a TT to set my power/hr. Curious if you all do TT just with a Garmin watch or if you actually somehow use an app like Zwift to do TT and structured workouts? I’m assuming for 8020 mostly I need to just use my watch like I do for running, but I have only used Wahoo SYSTM in the past, never have tried Zwift.

I have a ‘dumb’ trainer, Keiser M3i, if that matters. Connects via bluetooth, I just have to manually adjust gears.

Thanks!
-Ryan

[ryanoelke]

Ok, looks like I got a big problem. But first, perhaps I used ‘dumb trainer’ incorrectly, after reading some articles. My bike does power, cadence, and hr, and transmits it via Bluetooth to apps. It just can’t receive data, do ERG mode, etc.

Right now I can only get speed and cadence from the Keiser M3i to my Garmin Fenix 5x. Looks like someone sells a little device that might send speed/cadence/power to the watch, but I’m not 100% and would have to spend about $100 for it. Wondering if it’s at all possible to easily do the 8020 workouts in an app like Zwift.

I’m searching through the forum now but feeling a bit confused and that this is going to be a mess.

[Charles]

I use both 80/20 and Zwift workouts with my Schwinn IC4 – I have to set the resistance manually, no erg capability, and no interface to the watch. It’s not a problem, in fact there are some of the Zwift workouts where you are prompted to disengage erg mode in the middle of a workout.

Zwift and Training Peaks can connect. If you have your 80/20 bike workout on Training Peaks you can find and select if from the Zift workout menu. At the completion of a workout you will be given a prompt to save your data to Training Peaks.

[ryanoelke]

Thanks for the reply, Charles 🙂 Whew. I was reading through posts in the forum and it sounded like it would be more complicated. I’m used to doing the Wahoo Fitness and manually setting resistance, so not a problem. Just need the workout to let me know when to do what 😛

The one thing I was seeing in the forums here was people talking about power zones. Does Zwift show you your 80/20 zones? Or do you just have that in front of you and adjust accordingly?

[Charles]

Zwift is a 5 Zone setup and 80/20 is 7 Zone. I just set my Training Peaks threshold at whatever the FTP test on the Zwift Ramp test calculates and don’t worry about it.

Zwift will prompt you to make power adjustments for both type of workout. But Zwift only gives a static power prompt during the workout; Zwift color codes the zones so you know if you drift high or low. I don’t recall how they do that with 80/20 workout so you would need to try it to find out.

I only use the bike for cross training for running and have come to prefer the Zwift workouts. Zwift is able to ramp up/down within zones, something that Training Peaks cannot do. Also, Zwift will give cadence and position prompts during a workout which I really like. Results are fed back to Training Peaks so I have a decent log regardless of whether I am using a Zwift or 80/20 workout.

I just completed the 6-week Zwift Academy FTP Builder. I had to drop running two weeks into the plan – it’s brutal. Try it for fun and discomfort. I think it helped my running and I learned a LOT…

[ryanoelke]

Thanks, Charles! I used Wahoo SYSTEM open ride to do my time trial and get my FTP, put that into Zwift today. Like you, I’m going to use cycling for cross training, and primarily just to swap a few easy run workout days, give me more volume w/o the impact. So the 80/20 zones should be easy to follow for that.

Are you able to track 80/20 balance in doing the Zwift workouts? Aside from their 6-week program, I mean. I did nothing but Sufferfest workout plans in 2021 and in retrospect, it was sometimes a bit unbalanced for me, even though it was a fun challenge lol. But yeah, having prompts for cadence and position, along with power is much more nuanced.

[Charles]

Training Peaks will bin everything according to how you set up your zones, so even though I do a Zift workout with it’s 5 zones it shows in the 80/20 zones in the Training Peaks workout report.

It’s been quite a while that I used the 80/20 cycling workouts and my memory is a little fuzzy but I do recall that Zwift would prompt workout intervals at the middle of the prescribed zones, something to be aware of during your workout and may be problematic if someone were using erg mode. Since you are manually controlling resistance you should be fine. You will need to check…

[ryanoelke]

cool, thanks! Yeah, no ERG available for me, so sounds like maybe I’ll have an ok time at it. I’ll probably give it a go this week.

That being said, I’m now scheming to sell my Keiser M3i and buy a cheapish road bike and the Zwift hub, which would be about the same cost as I paid for the M3i to begin with. Wish the Zwift hub was out back then (or maybe it was?).

Thanks again!
-Ryan

[Charles]

Smart. I would do the same. But I would have to buy the bike as well – got rid of mine – advancing age and slowing reflexes I will not go out on the roads again…

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