Last week Best Bike Split and Zwift announced a new level of integration via Zwift’s new Training API, making it easier than ever to execute Best Bike Split-created workouts directly in Zwift.
About Best Bike Split
Trusted by some of the top pro teams in the world, Best Bike Split’s proprietary math and physics engine uses your power data, course info, and race day conditions to predict your race performance and create the perfect power plan so you can hit your best bike split ever.
It’s super-popular with TT specialists and triathletes, for obvious reasons.
Best Bike Split doesn’t have a training calendar tool like some of Zwift’s other Training API partners (see list at bottom of post). Rather, Best Bike Split helps you create powerful and accurate workouts based on real course info, so you can train to do your best on race day. Once the workouts have been created, this new Training API integration lets Best Bike Split premium subscribers click to send workouts straight to Zwift.
There are three types of workouts Best Bike Split can create and send to Zwift:
- Race Plans: create a structured workout that mimics the power requirements of your personalized race plan for a particular course on race day. Great for training for specific time trials!
- Analytics: upload your ride activity to Best Bike Split, which then creates a structured workout that replicates those efforts.
- AI Workout Builder: an innovative tool that lets cyclists and coaches create highly personalized, structured workouts tailored to specific race scenarios and individual training goals.
Pricing
You’ll need to pay for Best Bike Split Premium in order to access most of its useful features, including Zwift integration. Cost is $19/month, or get a big discount by paying annually ($119/year works out to $9.92/month).
Connecting Best Bike Split + Zwift
All of your interaction with Best Bike Split is done via the website (bestbikesplit.com). Visit the site, create your account, then connect it to Zwift under My Account/Connect Zwift:
Exporting to Zwift
Pull up any Race Plan, Analytics, or AI Workout on Best Bike Split, and you’ll see a “Zwift Uploads” section at the bottom-right. Click the button to send it to your Zwift “For You” carousel.
You can also go to Workouts → Custom and select “Best Bike Split” to see workouts you’ve exported.
It should be noted that Best Bike Split has allowed you to export their workouts to .zwo files for years, but this new integration just makes the process smoother by sending the workout directly to your Zwift profile so you don’t need to bother with moving files into the proper folders.
Complete List of Training API Partners
Best Bike Split is just the latest to be added to the growing list of Training API partners at Zwift. Here’s the complete list, which will be updated as new partners are added:
- TrainerRoad
- TrainingPeaks (using legacy API)
- TriDot
- Vekta
- Velodapt
- Wahoo SYSTM
- XERT
Questions or Comments?
Have you raced using a race plan from Best Bike Split? Share any related comments or questions below…
Can we pick a route, have it create the ideal power profile and then ride that profile in zwift to get the best time on the route?
Yes, if you have a GPX of the route, you can make a power plan for it and import it into Zwift as a workout. Just note that it doesn’t import the actual route, so you’d still be doing one of the Zwift courses, which can make it a little tough to do the workout if you’re not in erg mode because the terrain won’t match. (For example, the power plan might call for 300 W because at that point in the real route you’re going uphill, but in Zwift you might be going downhill at that time.)
I meant pick the zwift route, have best bike split determine the power plan, and then ride that exact same zwift route, so hopefully everything is in sync and you get the best time on that route. That seems like the ideal outcome of this integration?
In theory yes, you could do that Tim. BBS will create a structured workout (intervals for a specific time block at a specific wattage) to have you hit the best power numbers for each part of the course. So if you executed that workout on that course you’ll get a fast time.
How this works in practice? I’m doubtful it’s perfect. I think the race plan feature is better for generating a workout so you can practice hitting ideal power numbers across the course before racing it “live”.
The BBS numbers are only useful for individual efforts no? If you are in a race or a group ride then your best bet is gonna be to stick with the draft and ignore any specific plan usually.
For sure, yes. BBS numbers are really ideal for TT efforts.
Yeah, I think it would be hard to get it to work well because BBB sends workouts to Zwift as time-based workouts instead of distance-based workouts, so there’s no guarantee that the intervals would match the terrain in Zwift.
Here you have ‘ready-made’ Zwift routes that you can use to create an optimal power distribution:
https://www.bestbikesplit.com/zwift-routes#
This might be my favorite integration so far. I already have routes and power plans in Best Bike Split for all my races next year, it’s awesome to just push a button and be able to do them in Zwift. I hope Zwift at some point in the future supports importing the route itself with the real elevation changes, perhaps using the same system as the climb portal, that’d make this even better.
I wonder now that Zwift has acquired Rouvy, your suggestion may be possible on that platform. Unless Eric knows more, I don’t think Zwift is looking to add real world courses. Happy to be wrong, because I liked Rouvy’s real world courses when preparing for Triathlon races. Combine BBS and real world routes, I think you have a pretty good training program.