My Pre-Zwift Training Year

As I write this, my Strava says I have logged 27,380 km in 2020. That is about the usual pace for the last few seasons but it has been accumulated in a much different way than before. I guess my first real workouts of the year were lap sessions of the hospital wing where I recovered from my final post-accident surgery in January. I didn’t bother to log them on Strava but they definitely did happen and it was hard work. I was back on Zwift by the third week of the year, stubbornly turning the pedals, body aching and not willing to give up on being ready for the first races of the season. I heard the phrase “too much too soon” a few times but it worked. I was doing practice lead-outs at 55kmh with Elevate Webiplex teammates at the beginning of February, even if I was trying to catch my breath for the next hour afterward.

I was back on top of my fitness and putting in key workouts in Southern California to prepare for the Redlands Cycling Classic in March when the light switch on our season was flipped off. Life changed again after that and so did training. I took a couple of weeks off right away to let some of the pressure off but I felt like I wanted to keep working and there were still races on the calendar tentatively. So I got back into structured training but with a little more room than usual for some fun.

I put in intervals – short, long, TT, climbing all through the summer. I also mixed in some adventures, doing a 300km epic with my buddy Deon and a bunch of big rides over 200km during the spring and summer. (I think I had only ridden 200km+ 3 or 4 times ever in training before this year.)

The training commitment wasn’t entirely wasted. It certainly helped me in the Echelon Zwift stage races but none of the other goals ever materialized. I stepped away from the structure in September when the last of the calendar was wiped clean. That turned out to be good timing for a mental break because Zwift brought some new developments for the fall.

Evaluating the Requirements

The Zwift Racing League was announced and I eagerly joined Team Finesse Wahoo for the campaign. My coach and I took time to break down the calendar and the requirements for success. The key observation was that all 5 of the “scratch races” (mass start) in the series were fairly explosive courses, none of them suiting my natural capacities as a climber/TT rider. The climbs were all between 1 and 6 minutes and would require efforts of 8-10+w/kg to make a difference, not sustained pushes at 6-7 w/kg where I usually do well. We changed course in that direction and I started doing more racing so I could feel out exactly what I needed to do to be effective.

The shift in training took on more gravity when I was selected for UCI Esports Worlds in early October. The original course appeared to feature a finish at the top of the Volcano climb. While not a pure climbers finish, that 5-6 minute slope would have fit my profile fairly well. When the final Figure 8 Reverse course (finishing on the 1.5 minute Hilly KOM) was confirmed, the preparation was again tilted in the anaerobic direction. At that point, I was okay with the switch because I had already been honing that type of form for the ZRL racing.

The Process

I started doing a selection of all-out 1-2 minute intervals in training and my power started to edge up there. When training this way, you have to be more careful with overall balance and recovery since you can’t train explosively on tired legs. I actually took a 6-day break to visit family and that helped me get ahead of the game so I could come back fresh and smash the pedals. I had a whole summer of work behind me and that little refresh was important to set the stage for the work I needed to do. Noticing the benefit of complete rest for this type of training, we built in a full off day into my schedule each week for the build-up.

However, in my first ZRL race I found myself slipping back into my IRL approach to racing. I had good legs but I chose to use them to make a steady, sustained attack on the Volcano KOM. Without a big enough burst in a key place, I never got enough of a gap and only succeeded in stringing out the field. I learned from that and came to the next race in Richmond with more focus on applying power in the right way. I managed to hit out hard to take the KOM points on Libby Hill and make another move on the Governors climb to initiate a breakaway. I didn’t commit to it and it came back but I started to feel effective for the first time. In the next scratch race in NYC it clicked and I attacked the 2 short KOMs with strong 8-9 w/kg pushes on the steepest sections and made the break that won the race for the team.

This process moulded my training for Worlds. As we get closer to the big race, we have started doing practice races as a national team to prepare. That combined with ZRL provided more than enough chance for high intensity training each week and my coach and I would try to make objectives for each event to keep improving my form.

Any success I have in high-end Zwift events will also be based on the combination of an improved punch and my usual capacity for sustained power so in the background I have continued to do aerobic work. A tempo session here and there, some longer z2 riding around races, and the ZRL team time trials have been key elements to that side of the preparation.

If I have learned anything about racing at the top level, it is not about your capacity to do one thing well. Rather it is about doing everything well enough to put yourself in position to actually use that more specific talent. If you refuse to adapt, you will always be looking for that one race that suits you perfectly and miss every other opportunity.

The Final Touches

There isn’t much to do now with around a week left until the event. There will be a couple of hard sessions left and then a careful taper to race day to find the right balance between freshness and readiness. I will be mindful of my diet to preserve my usual race weight of 61kg for the official weigh in 24 hours before the start. I also have to make sure all the technical aspects are dialled in. Then it will be time to put all the work into action and represent my country against the best in the world.

What happens to a Zwifter’s FTP when he packs up his family, cat, 4 bikes, and turbo trainer and drives 2000 miles (3200 km) and more importantly down a mile (1600m) to sea level?

I am lucky enough to live at the base of the Rocky Mountains in Denver CO, USA at an elevation of 5470 feet (1667m). I was also lucky enough to stay at two beach houses in Massachusetts, USA (both elevation ~100 feet/30m) for a 4 week period in August and September.

Background

My training FTP was at 266 prior to the trip, and I was about halfway through the Crit Crusher training plan when I packed up. I paused training for riding in beautiful Massachusetts and informal Zwifting. I did, however, do weekly FTP tests.

The Tests

For all tests I took the Ramp Test as this seemed to be the easiest repeatable test.

Just prior to leaving I took a test on the bike and trainer I would be using for the trip. My FTP was up to 274 (+3%).

My first week at sea level and not riding (4 days of driving will do that to you) my FTP rose to 275 (a whole Watt gained). This unexpectedly small gain was due at least in part to not be acclimated to the humidity and poor ventilation.

Note: Denver is extremely dry with humidity below 50% and my pain cave is in an air-conditioned basement. My setup in the living room in Massachusetts was 90-100% humidity with no air conditioning and only a small fan.

One week later, I was able to raise my FTP 282 (+3%).

After a couple more weeks I was able to find an ideal setup and time to test in the morning so I could take all the caffeine I wanted. Also, I was able to scream as loud as I wanted. Plus I used PR Lotion. I raised it to 288 (+5%)! 

Then it was back to Denver: FTP took a nosedive to 257 (-11%)! Ouch! The good news is I got it back to 266 (-8% from peak) a week later:

Other Riding

While I focused primarily on riding outside, I did ride a few non-test rides on Zwift. Two in France (route hunting), one in NYC, and an Alpe Du Zwift ride. In general, I felt more powerful and tired less easily. For instance, I did my 2nd best time up the Alpe the day after an FTP test, just missing the hour mark.

What about racing? Sorry, I don’t regularly race on Zwift and did not do any races while at sea level. I would love to hear anybody’s experience with this.

Conclusions

Clearly, elevation makes a difference in your FTP. Based on my experience (be wary of anecdotal evidence) going to sea level gave me about a  5% boost in FTP. Coming back cost me about 10%. This seems in line with what others have found (See “The Effect of Racing at Altitude” from TraininPeaks). This would be enough to move me from an upper category C to lower category B rider. 

Could Zwift give at elevation riders a boost to level things out? Certainly they could check your location via the Companion App. Should they? Probably not worth the effort given the small number of riders at significant elevation and the likelihood someone would hack it to get an unfair advantage. Just give me a Ride On when you see me cruising around Watopia.