Hi all,
Since I primarily use a Polar Vantage V for outdoor trainings, I was wondering if you were aware of A) any plans to automatically sync activities from Polar Flow to TR similar to Garmin Connect?
The thing is that the Vantage V has built in Power Sensor for Running and on the way syncing to Strava this information seems the get lost (at least in my case), which is a pity when trying to control training via power/stress.
And B) as far as I know, Polar is pretty closed in terms of getting data into their Ecosystem, nevertheless, it would be incredibly awesome to export a training plan into the Polar Flow World directly to a Polar watch (e.g. bike, swim, run) similar to what I have read about Garmin connect (export trainings directly to the Garmin wearables).
This would enable using the Flow platform for recovery tracking, whereas Trainer Road for Training Planning and Indoor Trainer Control.
I doubt that this is happening anytime soon with Polars Politics, but Iāll ask anyway
Although I prefer not to, Iām really considering buying a Garmin Watch to have better integration.
Unfortunately, Polar integration is not in the pipeline at the moment .
For a fully integrated experience, a Garmin watch will definitely be your best option. I personally use the Forerunner 945 and the new outside workouts feature works very well and the app syncs quickly and easily post-workout.
Hi Bryce,
Itās been two years since we were told that Polar integration wasnāt in the pipeline at the moment. Could you please move it to the pipeline?
To speak to features like this moving up on the roadmap, itās not that the team doesnāt these features that seem āeasierā arenāt important or useful, we just have to prioritize updates that are the most effective at helping the greatest number of athletes possible get faster in the immediate future (such as incorporating unstructured rides into Adaptive Training, and refining Adaptive Training as a whole).
This podcast excerpt from Nate and Jon reiterates our messaging about how the timeline of feature requests work, its definitely worth a listen.
I heard the podcast a couple of days ago and I get that you have to prioritize stuff.
It is because I get that you have to prioritize stuff that I havenāt re-taken this thread in almost two years. Surely, Iām not the only Polar user on the platform (having relocated recently from the US to Europe, I assure you that a lot more Europeans are using non-Garmin products).
The bottomline is that in terms of integration with Polar, TR is lagging behind others, and thatās annoying. So it doesnāt need an immediate fix, but it would be good that it gets addressed eventually ā¦
Hi @IvyAudrain,
Polar user here as wellā¦ I like TrainerRoad, but with all my products being Polar this is a pain in theā¦
One other thing, which I think might be higher on the prio list, is being able to export the workouts to Zwift files (.zwo). Canāt imagine lots of your users riding your workouts on Zwift! All has to be created manual nowā¦ Time we could also spent riding our bikes!
This is a separate feature request, but in the meantime, athletes share their workarounds for running Zwift and TrainerRoad together here: TrainerRoad and Zwift together?
@Kevin_Hamer Iām a Polar user and although I have created workouts for outside workouts using Flow, the ride results will feed into TR via Strava. Regarding plans I use TR as the master plan and keep both a Flow and TR calendar.
Thanks, how do you feed Flow the TR Training? Flow seems really basic and only allows me to select a training zone for a set period of time (not an FTP %).
Zwift works in a similar way, you can feed TR via Strava.
Kevin, I just recreate the workout from scratch as a phased target in Diary. and click duration for the length of the effort in the desired HR. Then add the recovery.
Be careful to get the syntax for the time box.
For repeated efforts tick the +repeat phases then drag the boxes , effort etc into, then adjust the number of repeats.
The workout can be saved as a favourite to be used at any time. Keep it simple as complicated workouts donāt work outside as there are too many other distractions so keep the ride safe.
Thanks for the reply and sorry for the late follow-up.
Seems like entering workouts in my Polar V650 with Flow is even more of a handful than getting them into Zwift.
@IvyAudrain though I do like TrainerRoad a lot, I do think itās running way behind on basic stuff like integrations. Iāve used Join before and even in their early adaption days they had a lot of export options. Itās a ā¬6,- a month app with a limited amount of developers, how can TrainerRoad not support integrations to two of the main training platforms?
You canāt be serious that I have to manually recreate my TR trainings for Zwift and Polar right?
Kevin, I actually use a Polar m460 for outdoor workouts. However I do create workouts in Polar Flow that replicate the TR proposed one, or go to a similar one already prepared as long as its the same duration and workout type. I used HR as my guide and lap normalised power for the intensity.
Iāve no experience of Zwift.
Iāve just looked at the Join website and they donāt have that many export options, about the same as TR plus there are oddities like:
For Zwift and Wahoo you will receive the file in an e-mail, with the instructions how to put it on your device. (Note that there is no direct integration just yet; you will need to move the file manually to your device)
Which to me is hardly āintegrationā. The page was last updated three days ago so Iām assuming itās genuinely up to date.
There are two main reasons why there may not be integration between services: technical and political/legal. Technical is usually down to having engineers available to do the work rather than it not being possible. The political/legal side of things tends to be more problematic - if a company wants a closed system then thereās not a lot you can do about it. Why are .fit files so common? Garmin put the specs out there and provided a set of tools to work with them meaning that the barrier to using the format was very low.
Looking at Polarās API it seems that you can get information from their system but not send info to it. So thereās a technical limitation quite possibly backed up by political/legal stuff.
I get it for Polar as their system might be closed, but I donāt get it for Zwiftā¦ The Zwift workout files are so easy to create, itās honestly just a text file with some easy lines on it.
Thereās no direct integration into Zwift, you always have to import the file into your folder. But thatās as simple as cut and paste.
It feels to me that the political reason is on the TR side of things on this one. I mean, how would an export function to the largest workout platform around not be a priority?
I donāt use Zwift so canāt comment on that but thereās a big thread on running TR and Zwift together. Thereās also a big thread on speculation (and thatās still all it is) about a TR/Zwift merger or linkup. Also copying/recreating TR workouts is against the terms of service, not that thatās stopped people from doing it!
Agreed! I really like my Polar devices and the service that I have always received from Polar. I am not in a position to change my devices in the near future so a Polar integration would be awesome.
In the meantime I guess Iāll keep taping my TR workouts to my top tubeā¦
Ben, have you tried creating workouts using Polar. The keep them in your favourites to use again. This is for over/ unders or sprint workouts . I simply use the lap timing on the M460, for sweet spot, threshold and VO2 workouts, showing lap normalised power, heart rate and cadence only. Hit the red( lap) button and try and achieve the desired power asap, then hit the lap button again at the end of the interval to start your recovery . Outside workouts should be as simple as possible and with NP you dont see the first 30 seconds power.
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