If you haven't already, join the "Road to A" club on Zwift. Either search for "Road to A" in the companion or simply click this link: zwift.com/clubs/073fb18e-ae9b-440e-b4c3-d95d935898c1/home
Zwift racing is a great way to improve fitness, no doubt about it. If you’re new to cycling or getting back into it, it’ll help you make big gains. That’s what happened to me, I went from 3.2 to 4.1 w/kg over 16 months in 2022 and 2023. But I think I hit a plateau, so I switched to polarized training in 2024. In just 7 months, I got to 4.5 w/kg, and now I’m close to 4.7. Zwift racing is super fun, but if you don’t recover properly, it can hold you back. I still do the occasional race because I love it, but I’m keeping it light while I focus on hitting 5 w/kg. Not sure if I’ll get there, but I’m giving it a shot!
That's some excellent progression, no doubt you'll hit 5 wkg soon. What's great about Zwift racing is that as long as you vary the races (short, long, flat, short hills, long climbs) there is a different stimulus in each of them.
I did the same race earlier in the day, our times are pretty close and the ZRS bump up was identical (pre/post race), up to 520+ now so going to get our legs shredded!! Great content on your site, keep up the good work! TJ Ps-be good if you dropped a few of your upcoming races on here, maybe some of the subscribers could join for a smash fest!!
I've been zwifting for 2 months. I was injured from getting hit by a car and crashing out of the peloton a month later. My ftp was 170w first ftp. 60 days later, my ftp is 260w and my stats keep going up. Eat right. Train right. You will get those numbers. Honestly the slower you go, the faster you get. Zone 2 gets ya faster in the end game ❤
@RoadtoA thanks brother, it forced me to get an indoor trainer. Ive always done all year outdoor with indoor rollers. I have kids, people are getting worse at driving. I need to train smarter and actually enjoy my rides and not fear if I'm going to die. It was an eye opening season that's for sure.
have you ever considered to make shorter video's here you show us a sped up version while you are giving commentary and slowed down on the spicy moments? I really love you're work keep it up and wish you the best for the new year!
Yup! I did that for example here: ua-cam.com/video/92GQSvWKxk4/v-deo.htmlsi=pofXSA4hbSodDZze The format of my race videos is still something I experiment with and test the response of the audience. Previously those videos didn't have the best response from the audience, but that was when my audience was considerably smaller, I will definitely try different formats again!
I do it myself :) As in I basically follow Adam, Gerben and DGDC and I basically watch the intro...the switch to 2x speed and skim through to the parts that get spicy...where you can see breaks occurring. I watch these race videos mainly to see different peoples tactics. DGDC has started using more 'helicopter view' which I have gotten a tonne out of as well because quite often you get to see how the attacks occur and how and who reacts etc etc. Agree with the comment re the over dubbing of commentary because I am mainly interested in understanding Zwift racing and the tactics and would enjoy hearing your commentary after the fact on what was happening and what you were thinking at the time...what you thought were good decisions and what were bad etc etc etc. I will continue as a 'subscriber' regardless because I have learned a tonne from your content as someone just starting out.
@ the 2x trick sounds great! I as a viewer prefer race summary with commentaries, too (NorCal Cycling is incredible for that) - but then again, I can see in the analytics there actually is plenty of people who watch the whole thing (I guess it's just relaxing to pop it into background on the TV and watch people suffer? 😂). Like I said, I'll try different formats for sure, I actually have several in my head for the coming months!
It was the real Road to A! :D (Me being M. Verhaegen) I did a Flat is Fast race before this which is basically a 20min max effort at my weight. So as a low B after a race, I had to settle in with your C group halfway in the Titans descent. I was quite surprised everyone just kept my wheel on the volcano though. Some good riders in our group! Just checked the numbers, I pulled half the volcano at a steady 4.5w/kg with most keeping my wheel arround 4.0w/kg.
Great progress - must keep it fun, where else can you find people to race 24/7 from around the world ... its just so convenient. Here's how I approach it. Z2 mostly Zwift (group rides, Tour Zwift etc 1-2 hours, 6 hours a week) , structured workouts Zwift (1 or 2 a week), outdoors more longer epic rides like today I did 80 km | 1800 m climbing. Racing on Zwift? I prefer the group rides where I can self seed and go hard for certain sections or whole ride, one problem I had was doing 'too' much intensity on Zwift, hammies sore for weeks. Now it depends what your targeting to keep fit, base - can't beat Zwift, increase ftp, Zwift all the way as its structured. A fondo must go outdoors for event specificity. Bottom line is do what you enjoy, eat right, have a 3 week on, 1 week rest cycle, happy days.
If your goal is to train efficiently and with Max result It should be a small part of your week, definately not the majority. 80 % should consist of solid endurance work, especially of you havent got 10+ years of training behind you. But yeah, once a week its great 🔥
It didn't REALLY go down that much. My FTP around Christmas was at 297 and I had a goal of getting over 300 before the end of the year. Instead I got a cold. I spent a week off the bike and it took about three rides back before I did a climb portal interval of 21 minutes at 333 watts. You lose a bit, but you'll bounce back pretty quickly.
It depends on how much you ride too. If you ride almost every day, 2 races are fine. If you ride 4 times a week then yes, 2 races are going to be too much.
If you haven't already, join the "Road to A" club on Zwift. Either search for "Road to A" in the companion or simply click this link: zwift.com/clubs/073fb18e-ae9b-440e-b4c3-d95d935898c1/home
Zwift racing is a great way to improve fitness, no doubt about it. If you’re new to cycling or getting back into it, it’ll help you make big gains. That’s what happened to me, I went from 3.2 to 4.1 w/kg over 16 months in 2022 and 2023. But I think I hit a plateau, so I switched to polarized training in 2024. In just 7 months, I got to 4.5 w/kg, and now I’m close to 4.7. Zwift racing is super fun, but if you don’t recover properly, it can hold you back. I still do the occasional race because I love it, but I’m keeping it light while I focus on hitting 5 w/kg. Not sure if I’ll get there, but I’m giving it a shot!
That's some excellent progression, no doubt you'll hit 5 wkg soon. What's great about Zwift racing is that as long as you vary the races (short, long, flat, short hills, long climbs) there is a different stimulus in each of them.
@@RoadtoA Same, it varies the zones i am unlikely to do on my own. If i was left to my own devices everything would be steady hahaha
I did the same race earlier in the day, our times are pretty close and the ZRS bump up was identical (pre/post race), up to 520+ now so going to get our legs shredded!!
Great content on your site, keep up the good work! TJ
Ps-be good if you dropped a few of your upcoming races on here, maybe some of the subscribers could join for a smash fest!!
@@AnthonyUrch-j6g thank you very much!:)
Your progress is amazing. The road to A is open for you!!
Thank you, mate!
I've been zwifting for 2 months. I was injured from getting hit by a car and crashing out of the peloton a month later. My ftp was 170w first ftp. 60 days later, my ftp is 260w and my stats keep going up. Eat right. Train right. You will get those numbers. Honestly the slower you go, the faster you get. Zone 2 gets ya faster in the end game ❤
@@christianCarbstrong oh my god dude...in this case the progression is irrelevant. Thank god you are alright after the accident!
@RoadtoA thanks brother, it forced me to get an indoor trainer. Ive always done all year outdoor with indoor rollers. I have kids, people are getting worse at driving. I need to train smarter and actually enjoy my rides and not fear if I'm going to die. It was an eye opening season that's for sure.
have you ever considered to make shorter video's here you show us a sped up version while you are giving commentary and slowed down on the spicy moments?
I really love you're work keep it up and wish you the best for the new year!
Yup!
I did that for example here: ua-cam.com/video/92GQSvWKxk4/v-deo.htmlsi=pofXSA4hbSodDZze
The format of my race videos is still something I experiment with and test the response of the audience.
Previously those videos didn't have the best response from the audience, but that was when my audience was considerably smaller, I will definitely try different formats again!
@@RoadtoA I would love to see it comming :)
I do it myself :)
As in I basically follow Adam, Gerben and DGDC and I basically watch the intro...the switch to 2x speed and skim through to the parts that get spicy...where you can see breaks occurring. I watch these race videos mainly to see different peoples tactics. DGDC has started using more 'helicopter view' which I have gotten a tonne out of as well because quite often you get to see how the attacks occur and how and who reacts etc etc.
Agree with the comment re the over dubbing of commentary because I am mainly interested in understanding Zwift racing and the tactics and would enjoy hearing your commentary after the fact on what was happening and what you were thinking at the time...what you thought were good decisions and what were bad etc etc etc.
I will continue as a 'subscriber' regardless because I have learned a tonne from your content as someone just starting out.
@ the 2x trick sounds great!
I as a viewer prefer race summary with commentaries, too (NorCal Cycling is incredible for that) - but then again, I can see in the analytics there actually is plenty of people who watch the whole thing (I guess it's just relaxing to pop it into background on the TV and watch people suffer? 😂).
Like I said, I'll try different formats for sure, I actually have several in my head for the coming months!
@@RoadtoA I'll watch them all. Learning from it all.
Good report. Thank you.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Happy new Year. Good job.
Happy new year!
It was the real Road to A! :D (Me being M. Verhaegen)
I did a Flat is Fast race before this which is basically a 20min max effort at my weight. So as a low B after a race, I had to settle in with your C group halfway in the Titans descent.
I was quite surprised everyone just kept my wheel on the volcano though. Some good riders in our group!
Just checked the numbers, I pulled half the volcano at a steady 4.5w/kg with most keeping my wheel arround 4.0w/kg.
@@MrMattie725 This race actually bumped me back up to B, so the C days are over for me. This race is good that it is mixed though!
Great progress - must keep it fun, where else can you find people to race 24/7 from around the world ... its just so convenient. Here's how I approach it. Z2 mostly Zwift (group rides, Tour Zwift etc 1-2 hours, 6 hours a week) , structured workouts Zwift (1 or 2 a week), outdoors more longer epic rides like today I did 80 km | 1800 m climbing. Racing on Zwift? I prefer the group rides where I can self seed and go hard for certain sections or whole ride, one problem I had was doing 'too' much intensity on Zwift, hammies sore for weeks. Now it depends what your targeting to keep fit, base - can't beat Zwift, increase ftp, Zwift all the way as its structured. A fondo must go outdoors for event specificity. Bottom line is do what you enjoy, eat right, have a 3 week on, 1 week rest cycle, happy days.
@@marcus_velo_9970 I do usually races on Zwift, commute and z2 outside (or on Zwift if the weather is bad), workouts on Zwift.
If your goal is to train efficiently and with Max result It should be a small part of your week, definately not the majority. 80 % should consist of solid endurance work, especially of you havent got 10+ years of training behind you. But yeah, once a week its great 🔥
AJ-Do you is there a gear that you find is most comfortable as you ride Zwift? Thank you
That depends really on the gradient, speed of the group etc. Usually there is one gear that "feels right" for the current circumstances though.
ive got flu and my ftp gone down from 202w to 140w
and i overtrained, 202w with 5 months of training
@@bartix5839I am sorry to hear that. You'll get back!
It didn't REALLY go down that much. My FTP around Christmas was at 297 and I had a goal of getting over 300 before the end of the year. Instead I got a cold. I spent a week off the bike and it took about three rides back before I did a climb portal interval of 21 minutes at 333 watts. You lose a bit, but you'll bounce back pretty quickly.
@mathewrose2951 i was overtrained not cycling for more than a month
Heat, train in heat. It works alot
True!
Zwift racing was terrible for my fitness. Completely wore me out and I had no endurance.
You have to polarize your training. 80/20 method works great.
@@mrsmtw5210 Went far too deep on the zwift races. Even 2x per week was too much.
How often did you race? Did you do longer z2 rides as well?
Agreed. Zwift race should take place of a hard workout.
It depends on how much you ride too. If you ride almost every day, 2 races are fine. If you ride 4 times a week then yes, 2 races are going to be too much.