Cant wait for the integration, would make my life so much easier and also im 100% certain it would make me more consistently hit till those workouts Every week
Just an interesting tidbit, Iâm sure TrainerRoad is on top of it but I found the application form to integrate with Zwift using the new API
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I donât think this is really a priority for TR.
Iâm going to take out the 30 day trial with Xert to see how I get on with their system. I have been kinda interested to see how Xert works for a while and having the Zwift integration is the push to finally get around to it.
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A recent episode of The Performance Process interviewed the head of Xert, maybe you find this of interest. (I donât know whether the episode is behind a paywall, though.)
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Yeah, it could be any combination of
- the APIs are not very mature (and thus, hard to use or plain buggy),
- it is a feature that is lower on the list of priorities or
- TR doesnât like the implementation for good/bad reasons
as well as of other reasons I cannot think of now. If I were TR, one question Iâd want to have an answer to is âHow can we prevent to merely become a feature of Zwift?â At my previous job (unrelated industry, very different product) this was a huge problem where a much, much bigger partner proposed a lopsided collaboration thatâd put their product in the center and ours was an accessory.
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Semi-related to this thread, and an example of why proper integration would be nice, is a current problem I am having with TR in Erg while also riding in Zwift.
If I connect my Saris H3 to TR via ANT+ and connect to Zwift via BT on my AppleTV and use the companion app to pair multiple BT devices, ERG ceases to function in TR. The trainer is only connected to Zwift for power readings, not resistance, so that is not the issue.
But if I connect the trainer directly to ATV and just live with the two BT connections (trainer and HR), erg works just fine.
What is weird about the whole thing is that the two programs are using different connection protocols (ANT vs BT), so there really should be no interference anyway.
Not a huge deal since I really only need the trainer and HR to connect in ATV, but it would be nice to be able to use my Play controllers for the in game menus, ride ons, power ups, etc.
If I could just port my TR workouts over, it wouldnât be an issue at all.
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I just signed up for xert because of this feature⌠Pushing workouts to Zwift is easy. I love the interaction. I like TR workouts better so would prefer TR
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This is exactly why TR/Zwift integration needs to get done! I am toying with the same action.
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I signed up too for a year, but their price looks set to increase in December. So, if you are thinking about it, better now than later. It works seamlessly, but like the other poster, I too prefer TR workouts. i even like TR player, but it would be super if Zwift and TR were integrated.
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Thanks for the heads up, on the 30 day trial at the moment. Will likely take out the annual plan to give it a good test. Thereâs definately more to et your head around with it v TR. Todays workout synced perfectly to Zwift but I had a race instead 
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I just tried out xert, its no where near TR in quality.
Its all i got for now as i want everything on one platform (zwift) without any hazzle but im so bummed TR is not integrated yet. When it is i Will swap back to TR in a heartbeat.
Please TR make this happen <3
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Xert is far from as polished as TrainerRoad, but is has a few unique features.
One main feature is that you get a real adaptive training plan. If do a workout/ride/race, the plan is adjusted based on what you actually did. So if you skip a workout, you will have to do the work later. Or if you do something with a different intensity than planned, your upcoming workouts will be adjusted.
Special data fields on the Garmin Edge will also help you to reach the target for the day when riding outside.
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How is that different from TR?
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If you do a race and hit some new PRs, do the workouts in your TR plan get adapted?
Those are not unique for xert, join does that too. Itâs easy to push join workouts to zwift too, you just need a free training peaks account set up and the workout will appear automatically in zwift or rouvy
I havenât used tr in a while but in join when you eg skip a threshold or vo2max workout, the next workout will change to threshold or vo2max (unless you spend significant amounts of time in those zones in the ride you did instead)
Yes, TR adapts. I know what you are getting at, WLv2, but it sure does adapt:
- Depending on race priority, it will insert a taper and recovery before and after the race.
- It takes the accumulated fatigue into account by looking at the race data (which isnât different from any unstructured ride in that respect). It will dynamically suggest/insert endurance and rest days.
- If your race power numbers translate to you being able to perform better in workouts, itâll adapt their difficulty.
- It currently does not adapt PLs. It is not clear whether most race efforts will lead to increased PLs, though, although there are exceptions like TTs.
I think it is worth asking a few questions about Xertâs algorithms. All I know are the explanations I have heard on a recent episode of Performance Process:
- What factors does Xert take into account (e. g. fatigue, power PRs at a given duration, context of those power PRs, etc.)?
- How good are those algorithms actually? E. g. how good is Xertâs fatigue meter (if it exists) compared to RL/GL?
- Are race numbers a good yard stick for your training? In my experience, I can achieve things in a race that I could never do, even during hard workouts that left me panting on the floor.
Iâm not sure Iâd want that, because it breaks the rhythm of the week. It doesnât necessarily sound like a missing feature, but a difference in implementing training principles.
Itâs up to you to do the workout. If you donât want to thatâs fine too. The plan will adapt either way. I like the feature of not really knowing whatâs ahead. It stops me from dreading certain days and not feel guilty not doing a workout when the weather is nice and I just want to ride. With trainerroad I had to adapt to the plan, join (xert too?) adapts to me
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If you do an endurance ride instead of. the planned hard workout (e.g. threshold or VO2Max), TrainerRoad will just keep the planned endurance ride for the next day. Xert will notice that you are fresh the following day (i.e. ready for high intensity work) and that you are behind the plan. It will therefore schedule a high intensity workout instead of the planned endurance ride.
You also set your availability (number of hours) for each day (default for each week day + the posibility to override for specific dates). So if you know you will have other commitments a certain day, Xert will automatically adjust your plan to ensure you keep the total workout as planned. Xert might assign a higher workload the day before and the days after. If you have high availability one day, Xert might schedule a long ride and give you a rest or recovery day the day after if you are ahead of your schedule or tired.
Xert doesnât use TSS, but XSS for for low (sub threshold), high (super threshold) and peak (peak power). Using TSS you will get the same amount of TSS for e.g. 4x10 min @ FTP vs 1x40 min @ FTP (assuming the total rest time and intentensity is the same), but Xert knows the strain is higher with the latter. It also knows that 100 TSS for zone 5 work is different from 100 TSS of zone 1-3 work.
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