Today, Zwift enabled a new privacy feature so you can block other Zwifters and thus limit their ability to interact with you and your data.
How To Block Another Zwifter
To block a Zwifter, you’ll need to use the Zwift Companion app for iOS and Android. Look up the Zwifter’s profile Companion (More>Find Zwifters is one way, but there are others). Tap their name to access their profile page, then tap the 3-dot menu at the top-right and tap “Block User” then tap it again to confirm. You’ll see a confirmation message whenever you visit their profile:
You can easily unblock anyone you’ve blocked by following the basic instructions above: look up their profile, tap the 3-dot menu, then tap “Unblock User”.
What Does Blocking Do?
When you block another Zwifter, they cannot:
Send you direct messages in game/via Companion
Follow your profile (which means they will never see you listed on the “Join a Zwifter” feature)
View your activity history in Zwift
Even though you block a user, they can still:
See you in game if riding nearby
See your name listed in race results (since those are public)
Look up your profile using the Companion app (but they cannot see your profile details). They will see a basic profile screen with your name, profile image, and country, plus the message “This user is private. You must request to follow them before you can see their full profile.” (As far as I can see, if the Zwifter attempts to follow you from this screen, the attempt is essentially ignored by Zwift. Which is good.)
ATP: The Women’s Racing Community I Didn’t Know I Needed
I started riding a borrowed road bike in my late twenties. The “old guys” in their sixties and seventies taught me to ride in pacelines on the local club rides, and I got stronger and faster. I kept up even when the retired racer (or three) showed up, and I closed gaps, offered to change sides to shelter them in crosswinds, and sprinted around to tell the folks on the front to slow down. Eventually they started inviting me on cycling trips and joked that they had to bring me or they would have to pull.
One rider helped run the biweekly time trial, and one week he invited me to race. I showed up on my Cannondale with down-tube shifters and clip-on aerobars. I was nervous and was glad the held start was not mandatory – I had only been clipping in for a few months and was already concerned enough.
I bought my first road bike in 2009 and was still rocking clip-on aerobars in the time trial.
I broke the women’s course record! A few months later I joined Wild Card Cycling, the local amateur team (we’re a college town in the middle of the cornfields – there’s only the one) and immediately after that the two collegiate women racers (both of whom I had also beat in that TT) graduated and moved away. I was suddenly the only woman on the team.
Another woman moved to town for grad school. She and her partner were both expert mountain bikers, and they and some other teammates invited me to weekly cyclocross practices. I was terrible at it, but they were so encouraging. I gradually improved, and I remember the loud celebration after the first race in which she didn’t lap me. She got a tenure track position in her home state and moved. I was again the only woman on the team. I kept racing but was frequently the only woman in the field.
I was the only woman in the field at Pumpkin Hop CX. I still loved my pumpkin.
It’s not that there weren’t other women riding bikes. It’s just that our area isn’t that large, and in East Central Illinois the pancake flat farm fields don’t offer any relief from wind that’s frequently over 30 kph with 50 kph gusts. It takes raw watts to keep up with a racing team here, and my size has given me an advantage. The local women’s rides have historically toodled along averaging 25 kph, and the racing team rides all start a good 10 kph faster.
I did everything I could to try to help grow it. I led a bridge ride the day after the team ride that was in between, at around 30 kph, with racers showing up for a recovery ride and local women showing up for a hard ride. I rode as sweep on the women’s ride the day before the team ride, helping women at the back learn about drafting. I invited women to the long ride, offering to turn back early with them, so they didn’t have to go all the way to the turn.
Being a college town, the average person stays here for three years, and that happened with all my efforts to build up women’s racing. A woman or two would brave it and then move away. It didn’t help either that I had no older or more experienced women helping me, and I also wasn’t sure how to become a better racer myself. I could listen to the old guys, but I just didn’t know what to do to train myself to be able to handle the hammer dropping, whether by a teammate after the turn on a training ride, or when I braved the 3-4 hour drive to a city with a women’s field.
Not only did Mel not lap me at Furrow Euro CX the year of the whiteout, I passed her at one point.
Everything changed when I started Zwifting. The first Zwift Academy I completed included workouts that did something different than just riding with the men until I got dropped. It specifically targeted improving power at various time durations and taught me how different cadences could change my heartrate at the same power.
That first Zwift Academy race against women at my level was so pivotal that I wrote about it here on Zwift Insider. It was such a different experience than being the only woman in my local race or being outmatched by ⅔ of the field in a city race. Zwift races gave me a chance to actually practice racing in women’s fields every week, instead of it only being a thing I could drive to a few times a year.
The biggest breakthroughs, though came after I joined ATP so I could compete in Zwift Racing League. ZRL races are team competitions where you work together with your squad to win as a team. We talked, shared sweaty selfies, laughed, and strategized.
Megan and I managed to break away off the front to win a Cat C ZRL race in 2021.
I mentioned in our women’s chat that the starts of races always left me dying and some more experienced racers asked me important questions about my warmups. A nutritionist asked me about my pre-race fueling. Another woman asked me if I was “giving myself a call-up.” They solved my problem as best they could in the short term while training me for the long term.
I mentioned in the chat I was having trouble with saddle sores. They got me changing shorts every few hours during long indoor rides, using Bumalicious, a product developed by a teammate’s wife, and they eventually got me to invest in two pairs of really good shorts from Pactimo (one of which was cut off in an ER and I still mourn). My sit bones are happier.
We talk about training, racing, nutrition, and hobbies, and there are always a lot of pet pics and goofy memes. We use Discord to make the long indoor training rides less terrible (and if we can’t talk, we know we’re going too hard), and to communicate during our races (such as keeping our eyes on those Coalition women who have all as one moved suspiciously to the same place). We love each other even though most of us have never met in real life.
ATP lineup at our local Women & Nonbinary Ride, photo taken by Zwifter Whitney Patel (BettySquad)
Probably the most surprising and amazing development, though, is that it has spilled over into my hometown with women I do know in real life! I keep inviting local women to join ATP pretty much immediately if I find out they Zwift. They start Zwifting with us, and they get stronger. They’re not just relying on me to help that happen anymore – they’ve got an entire team of women helping and encouraging them.
When I show up to the local rides there are other ATP jerseys there. And it’s not all ATP – sometimes, there are jerseys for other teams we race against, too. I’ve met nearby women who race for Revo, Betty Squad, and the Herd. Some, like me, do the BMTR Flat 100 when they can in the winter. Zwift and specifically Zwift racing teams are helping encourage women’s training and racing at every level around the world.
My team, ATP, fields women’s teams at every level. We’re a pretty small team compared to others; most of our members are in North America, and I think all of our communications are in English. I found in ATP the women’s racing community I didn’t even know I needed. They helped fill in the gaps, and now in my forties I am a very different racer than I was when I joined them three and a half years ago. I don’t just get dropped immediately when I make the drive to a city for races. Sometimes I ride off the front and win.
I got lucky, didn’t crash, and TTd to a win ahead of a chase at Ken Woods Memorial Road Race in 2022.
If you’re a woman who Zwifts, I highly recommend joining a team – even if just for fun and even if you feel slow. The women’s section here has a list of teams with active women’s riders and there’s also this new post just published with tips on what to look for in a team. I can’t guarantee everyone’s experiences will be as wonderful as mine have been, but if you live in the northern hemisphere, you know what they say: Winter is coming. (And if you’re in the southern hemisphere, there’s no need to wait six months. There may already be a women’s racing community waiting for you too.)
For the casual Zwifter, Zwift offers many things—group rides, workouts, challenges, and even racing! Zwift Clubs are an additional component, and many of these clubs organize racing teams for series options such as the Zwift Racing League, WTRL Team Time Trials, Iceni Women’s Racing Series, Zwift Women’s Racing Series, and Ladder League. Racing with a team is fun and can help make the long winter months pass quickly!
With that in mind, here’s some basic advice on how to choose a Zwift Club. Your first contact might be through a club-hosted group ride, or maybe a club member has approached you and asked if you might like to join, or you may have noticed that some riders have a club name in brackets behind their name (such as Betty Ryder [Power Pedals]). Regardless of how you noticed them, if you’re interested in joining, now’s the time to dig into what makes this club special! Some considerations might include:
Language
For organization and during races, team members often communicate via audio or text. A great first question is “What languages do your teams use for communication?” Then decide if you would be comfortable communicating with them given their response.
Time Zones
A racing series may offer many time zones, so be sure to discover which time zones the club has teams racing in and look for overlap with your preferred time zone.
Category Placement
Not every club fields teams in every category, and of those who field teams in your category, not all will field teams at your level within your category. Find out if the club you’re considering fields teams of riders similar to you.
Category Advancement
Category advancement is natural as riders progress. It may be worth inquiring about room on teams above your riding level in case you are fortunate enough to cat up.
Women’s-Only Racing
Not every race series offers women-only options, but many do. If you want to race within women’s fields you should find out if the club you are joining offers women’s team racing.
A Few Extras
If you already know what kind of racing you like, ask if the club participates in that type of racing (e.g., team time trials, points racing, distance events). If you are interested in outside racing and want to use the same team for that, find out if they also do outside racing. If you are a rider looking to advance your skills, inquire about clinics within their club or mentorship programs.
Finally, is this club friendly? Are they helpful? Would you enjoy being a part of this group?
In Summary
Finding a Zwift Club that you can belong to and race with might take some time, but with careful planning, you too can find a great group of people to spend your indoor riding with!
In June, Zwift hosted its first-ever events in the Climb Portal, focusing on climbs featured in the Tour de France.
Starting in September, Zwift will be hosting a fresh set of Climb Portal events! These will be the first-ever races on the Climb Portal, and the winner is the first rider over the top of the designated climb.
Final results and a monthly GC will be available on ZwiftPower.
Event Schedule and Route Details
Climb Portal Races happen on Fridays, with events scheduled throughout the day.
The effectiveness of Zwift Academy as a training program has long been questioned. In this week’s top video, a former coach of Zwift Academy winner Jay Vine shares everything you need to know about this year’s workouts!
We also chose to highlight a video about climbing Zwift’s Tour de France-themed Climb Portals, a review of the Zwift Ride, a super thorough walkthrough of Zwift Academy, and an epic race against a former Olympian.
What They Don’t Tell You About Zwift Academy 2024
Who should be doing Zwift Academy? Will the workouts really make me faster? These and more questions are answered in SEMIPRO Cycling’s video about this year’s Zwift Academy.
I Tried Zwift’s BRUTAL Tour de France 2024 Climbs! – Isola 2000, Galibier, Peyresourde…
Benji Naesen recently tackled the Tour de France-themed climbs in the Climb Portal. Can he complete all of them?
Zwift Ride Indoor Bike – Tips and Tricks
Ex-procyclist and long-time Zwifter, Pauley P, shares his thoughts on the recently released Zwift Ride Smart Frame.
Should you skip Zwift Academy 2024? Everything You Need To Know
Is Zwift Academy worth your time? Sarah from Everything is Photogenic breaks down everything you need to know about the program.
I Raced an Olympian in a Zwift Race… Here’s What Happened
I (Oli Chi, aka ZRace Central) recently found myself in a race with a former Olympic cyclist. Watch as I provide commentary and analysis over my brutal race against a former pro cyclist.
Got a Great Zwift Video?
Share the link below and we may feature it in an upcoming post!
Pondering the Possibilities: Zwift Academy and Zwift Community College
Today, we take a look at what could be done to make Zwift Academy a more engaging offering for the everyday Zwifter.
Zwift Academy Basics
Zwift Academy began in April 2016 with the goal of recruiting one female Zwifter for the 2017 Canyon//SRAM women’s pro racing team. Leah Thorvilson won that inaugural contract (read our interview with Leah), and after another women’s-only Academy in 2017, the 2018 Zwift Academy chose both a men’s and women’s winner.
While Zwift has held Academies for triathletes and runners, it’s the cycling academies that have always been the most popular. Zwift has held one every year since 2016, making 2024’s Academy the 9th in the series.
To graduate from Zwift Academy, riders typically have to finish a set of workouts and possibly a race or two within a stated time window. Zwift Academy has always been very popular with the community, even though the vast majority of riders aren’t in a position to vie for a professional cycling contract. Over 108,000 riders participated in Zwift Academy 2023!
But there’s always been a tension between Zwift Academy as a talent ID program and Zwift Academy as a training program for the everyday Zwifter. Each year Zwift has tweaked the program to try to maintain the difficult balance between giving community riders an introduction to structured training, while providing the kind of fitness testing needed to identify the world’s top riders.
Zwift Academy 2024, which just kicked off last week, sees Zwift moving noticeably toward the talent ID side of the program. They’ve done away with the shorter (easier) workouts and made the workouts available on-demand only. The completion window is much larger so more riders can tackle the program at peak fitness. And the 6 required workouts are clearly fitness tests, not a training program of any sort:
While some community members are lamenting the loss of the community side of Zwift Academy, I can’t fault Zwift for wanting to push the talent ID aspect of the program. And the truth is, to focus on talent ID, you really have to walk away from the community training side of years past.
Because highly talented racers don’t need to go through any sort of Zwift training program to be identified. (And on the flip side, community riders don’t really benefit from completing a series of one-off pro-level fitness tests.)
As I’ve pondered the evolution of Zwift Academy, what I’ve settled on is this: it needs to become two programs. One program is the annual talent ID competition. The other is a community-friendly training program that any rider can follow to build fitness, learn training fundamentals, and learn about Zwift as a training platform.
For the purpose of this post, we’ll say the Talent ID competition keeps the Zwift Academy name. Let’s call the community-friendly program I’m proposing “Zwift Community College”, or ZCC for short. (It’s a working title.)
Zwift Community College Basics
Off the top of my head, I can think of several ways the ZCC program could be structured to offer a better training opportunity to the Zwift community than Zwift Academy currently offers. But let’s focus on my favorite approach: a year-round, progressive training program made up of 13 four-week blocks. Here’s how it could work:
Each four-week block would be its own training unit. Completing a unit would earn a badge or other achievement, similar to finishing a college class.
Each week would consist of 2-3 difficult workouts interspersed with 2-3 optional recovery workouts. Even an occasional race could be required.
To ensure a safe fitness progression, riders would be required to complete key workouts in a particular order for each unit. Some workouts (especially the recovery rides) would be optional for unit completion.
In keeping with standard training practices, the fourth week of each unit would be a recovery week consisting of fewer, less difficult workouts.
Training blocks would be planned for the full year with thought given to overall fitness progression. That is, you might feature a lot of base work in December/January, progressing riders to race-ready fitness by May/June.
Workouts would be available on-demand or as group events.
Workouts would be well-documented, so riders could know the purpose and plan of each workout before loading into the game.
The idea here isn’t to replace a high-quality training program that a seasoned cyclist may have set up with an expert coach. Rather, ZCC would be a year-round training program that would help the average non-coached rider build fitness and learn about training, all in the context of Zwift’s amazing worldwide community.
Fun For All
How can ZCC be fun for everyone? This is an important question to answer when it comes to any Zwift feature, because Zwift needs to remain an inclusive platform where everyone can find motivation and fun, regardless of fitness level.
First, it’s important to mention that structured workouts on Zwift are based on each rider’s FTP. To pull an example out of thin air: one rider may have to hold 350 watts for 5 minutes in a VO2 max interval, while another rider only has to hold 150 watts. For both riders, that interval is 115% of their FTP, which means the relative level of difficulty is approximately the same for each rider. So while everyone is doing the “same” workouts each week of each ZCC unit, in a very real sense they’re not doing the “same” workout. And that’s a good thing.
The community aspect of ZCC is important, as we tend to push ourselves harder and stick to plans better when training with others. On Zwift, group workouts run in keep-together mode, so everyone stays together regardless of what watts they’re pushing. (Plus, good news: keep-together mode was improved a few months back, so riders move at much more realistic speeds!)
Leaderboards and other competitions could be used to further engage the community around the ZCC concept. Which riders have completed the most units? Which Clubs have completed the most ZCC workouts? Where do your key fitness metrics place you in relation to other riders in your gender/age/weight group/country?
Workout of the Week Replacement
Zwift’s Workout of the Week series doesn’t seem to follow any sort of progressive training plan. Perhaps the WoW workouts could instead be pulled from that week’s ZCC workouts, allowing riders who aren’t enrolled in ZCC to experience the program and learn more about how it works.
A Progression of Progressive Training Plans
It may be a lot for Zwift to roll out a full year’s ZCC program. What if they rolled out three four-week units instead, perhaps a base training program that begins in early December?
The kinks could be worked out, then a full-year plan could come next.
Why ZCC?
Why would Zwift want to bring something like ZCC to the platform?
Training purpose and community: Zwift’s current approach to training basically offers two options: “choose your own adventure” (via the Training Plan library) or try a one-off workout that doesn’t necessarily fit into an overall plan. The first option doesn’t include a community element, and the second doesn’t help riders progress over weeks and months in a structured manner. ZCC would fill those holes.
Zwift Academy clarity: removing the community aspect of Zwift Academy allows that program to clearly function as a talent ID program.
More achievements: many Zwifters like to chase achievement badges and unlocks. ZCC would provide another way to do this as riders earn an achievement upon completing each 4-week unit.
A new way to train: as far as I know, a concept like ZCC hasn’t been implemented on any virtual cycling platform. Could you imagine 100,000 riders all taking part in the same year-round training program? What sort of cool stuff could be done with a community like that, and what sort of training movement would that create in the worldwide cycling community?
Required Game Changes
What would Zwift need to implement in order to make ZCC a reality? It could happen in a basic way today, with a little planning. Zwift could simply create/choose the workouts for each unit, set up events for those workouts, and make those workouts available in your on-demand folders.
That would be a very basic implementation, though. To really do it as I’ve described above, Zwift would need to do some additional work:
High-Quality Workout Library: Zwift already hosts many workouts, some of which are better than others. Chances are, a good number of new workouts would need to be created to fill a full year’s progressive training program with sessions that follow best training practices.
Completion Logic: Zwift would need a way to mark certain key workouts as required so riders have to finish them before going on to the next week.
Scheduling Logic: the game would need to present upcoming workouts in a way that makes it easy for riders to choose what to do next.
Achievement Assets: if riders will be unlocking badges or other assets at the end of each unit, those assets will need to be created by Zwift’s art team.
Leaderboards: fun stuff like fitness leaderboards would need to be built to bring an additional level of community interaction and competition into ZCC.
Your Thoughts
What do you think – does Zwift Academy need to become two programs? Would you attend Zwift Community College? Share below!
Hometown: Swinton Grove Manchester, UK. Now in Bedford.
How did you get into cycling? First off as a weekly commute over the Pennines to 6th form college, more recently as a follow-on sport after injury in rowing.
How many years have you been racing on Zwift? 5 years
Are you part of a Virtual team? Level Racing WattsUP women’s team
What do you love most about racing? LOL winning, my racing buds, the whole world that women’s sport opens up. The release of tension and escape from the other sides of life.
What is your favourite style of race (e.g. points, scratch, iTT, TTT, Chase, duathlon)? Love it all, TTT is my fave.
What is your favourite Zwift women’s race series? Tour de Boudicca
What is your most memorable racing experience, inside or outside or Both? Winning World Champs in rowing eons ago.
What is your favourite food to eat post-race? Ice cream
What advice would you give to a woman entering her first Zwift race? Learn how to set off hard and then draft like a demon.
Any upcoming race you are looking forward to? Off to UCI Qualifiers in Cyprus to hopefully race in the sunshine.
This weekend we’ve chosen a mix of badge hunter rides, interesting races, and a rare podcast ride highlighting the upcoming Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. See details below!
Grab some elevation toward your Tron bike challenge with this “keep-together” group ride on one of Watopia’s newest routes: Itza Party! At 47km with 506m of elevation, this route is no joke. But you’ll be accompanied by friends from the Phoenix Rising team, and as long as you keep pedaling, you’ll stay in the pack, no matter how hard you push.
The “Tour de Stars” from Four Star Racing is a multi-stage event during the month of August. Stage 2 is on Sunday, covering 1 lap of Makuri Islands’ Temples and Towers (33.4km, 319m), and it’s already got a solid number of signups, making it the most popular race on Sunday.
You can, of course, race an individual event without completing all the stages. Each category starts separately, and the race uses standard category enforcement.
We haven’t featured LEQP’s badge hunter series in a long time, but it was one of the first ride series to tackle less-popular routes, helping Zwifters earn badges that are tough to earn solo!
This Saturday’s ride features London’s Surrey Hills route. They’ll be doing two laps for a total ride of 83.2km and 1911m of climbing. Two pace options are available: a C group at 2.5-3.2w/kg, and a D group at 2.2-2.5w/kg.
The latest round of Zwift’s popular Women’s Racing Series is well underway, and using the new Zwift Racing Score metric for categorization.
This Saturday is your last chance to finish this week’s stage, which is a shorter scratch race on 3 punchy laps of Makuri Islands’ Mech Isle Loop (12.2km, 117m). It’s gonna be all about that twisty dirt climb… can you hang on?
Zwift has a huge campaign of in-game events around the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, and that includes pre-race podcast rides from the Escape Collective starting this Sunday.
Join the ride, turn up your game audio, and listen to the podcast while you spin for 40 minutes on France’s Roule Ma Poule route. Knowing about key players and stages makes watching the race (which begins August 12) even more fun!
We choose each weekend’s Notable Events based on a variety of factors including:
Is the event unique/innovative in some way?
Are celebrities (pro riders, etc) attending/leading?
Are signup counts already high, meaning the event is extra-popular?
Does the ride include desirable unlocks or prizes?
Does the event appeal to ladies on Zwift? (We like to support this under-represented group!)
Is it for a good cause?
Is it just plain crazy (extra long races, world record attempts, etc)?
Is it a long-running, popular weekly event with a dedicated leader who deserves a shout out?
In the end, we want to call attention to events that are extra-special and therefore extra-appealing to Zwifters. If you think your event qualifies, comment below with a link/details and we may just include it in an upcoming post!
Let’s face it, running on a treadmill is boring. For those that run regularly or for longer distances, staring at an LED console and watching numbers increase can be mind-numbing.
In my lifetime I’ve completed tens of thousands of kilometers on a treadmill, most of which were before Zwift existed. Other than music, there’s never been a good distraction to take my mind away from the monotony.
Then along came Zwift and treadmill running no longer feels a chore. In fact, it can be quite enjoyable! So why do many treadmill runners use it? Here’s why:
#1: It’s Immersive
As above, we’ve covered how dull staring at a treadmill screen or even worse a blank wall can be. Zwift provides that visual distraction by allowing you to run in numerous virtual worlds. Wherever you can cycle you can also run in Zwift, and there quite a few running-only routes where you can get away from those pesky cyclists if you so desire.
As you are traveling at a slower pace, it allows you to take the time to admire the scenery without it flashing by so quickly. You notice so much more, and you can really appreciate the detail that goes into creating the worlds. The Heads Up Display (HUD) has all the stats you need, such as speed, cadence, heart rate etc. You can also use the powerup circle to pick a target distance, calories, etc, and you’ll get a nice countdown to your goal. All this provides numerous visual distractions in order to take the focus away from the possible suffering of your effort.
Setting a target in the HUD
Pair your Zwift device with a monitor or large screen and it really can feel like you are there.
#2: It’s For Everyone
No matter whether you are completely new to running or a pro athlete training for your next event, there’s something for you. There is a vast workout library and training plans that cover training for a half marathon or those aiming to be a parkrun master over 5k.
Zwift Training Plans library
All you need to do is set your best times over various distances and Zwift will then tailor the workout speeds accordingly, much like setting your FTP as a cyclist does. (If you’re new to running, just do a free run and Zwift will estimate your times based on this. As you better these times then Zwift will update them for you.)
Although you cannot create your own running workouts in Zwift you can import ones you’ve created elsewhere. Zwift uses the .ZWO format that is used across other platforms. So you can create the workout on another platform and once you import these to Zwift they’ll appear in the workout library for you.
#3: Connectivity
One of the most common considerations when purchasing a treadmill is whether it connects to Zwift. The range of smart treadmills is rapidly increasing and many manufacturers provide direct connectivity to Zwift as standard but what if your budget doesn’t run to a smart treadmill?
There are many options available to you, including:
Smart watches with a virtual running option that transmits a speed signal based on the accelerometer in the watch.
Heart rate straps that transmit a speed and cadence signal.
The NPE Runn, which detects the speed of the treadmill belt as a series of stickers on the belt pass by it.
There are also some 3rd party apps where even if your treadmill is not Zwift compatible, the app can read the Bluetooth signal from your treadmill and send it to Zwift. So if your treadmill uses its own fitness app such as JRNY or iFit, chances are it can be made compatible with Zwift.
#4: It’s Addictive
Zwift currently has 30 levels which you achieve as you run. Each level increase unlocks a new piece of kit for your avatar, and throughout the year there are major events that unlock new kit, also! Some group runs also include kit unlocks.
Levelling up can be quite addictive, particularly if during your run you can see that an extra couple of KM could see you hit the next level.
There are also route badges for completing specific routes on Zwift (they added several in a recent update), and achievement badges for various distances and mile times.
All of this means that there’s always something to aim for, something to make you lace up the shoes and do that next run.
This is the biggest attraction for me. There’s a whole running community on Zwift, with many group runs throughout the day hosted by the numerous running clubs. Many of these are led by experienced runners who can offer advice and support. The chat can often provide another distraction to take your mind away from the run itself. Often these clubs have associated social media sites to join so you can feel part of something and reach out for guidance or encouragement.
Nearly all of these runs are based on your own pace, so there’s no need to feel like you can’t join in if you can only walk (for example).
#6: The Price
Best of all, running on Zwift is free. The last conversation I had with Zwift HQ was that there are no plans to change this. Although the pace of development is slower than that of our fee-paying cycling friends, Zwift running still has its own team internally, which means the future will include new and exciting things.
So, all that’s left for you to do is lace up those shoes and power on the treadmill. Let’s run!
