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The Ultimate Guide to Getting Started With Zwift

Zwift is the training “video game” that has taken the cycling world by storm.  The Zwift app allows cyclists from around the world to connect with one another.  They can ride alongside each other from all corners of the globe, and the virtual environment allows people of very different fitness levels to ride together.  With the right equipment, your indoor training can closely mimic an outdoor ride without the cars, bugs or potential for crashing.

I'll show you how to get started with Zwift and how you can jump online today and start your Zwift training adventure!

Things You'll Need To Get Started On Zwift

Getting started on Zwift doesn't have to be difficult.  If you have an indoor trainer, you're already most of the way to starting on Zwift.  The only things you'll need to start training with Zwift are the app itself and a way to connect your bike and sensors to the app.  You can do this in a number of different ways, each with its own pros and cons.  Check out the recommendations after the jump and figure out the best way to connect to Zwift.

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The Best Training For The Zwift Island Volcano Expansion

The virtual training paradise known as Zwift Island (also called “Watopia”) has recently gotten a little bit bigger.  On Monday, January 23rd, the Zwift island volcano expansion dropped.  An entirely new route has become available, offering yet another training ground option for riders to conquer.

After riding the route several times, I've got a few tips to help you get the most fitness possible out of the volcano loop.

I'll start out by saying that I'm a huge proponent of using a smart trainer (like the Elite Drivo or Wahoo Kickr) with Zwift.  One of the biggest complaints of riding a trainer is that it doesn't feel like riding outside.  A smart trainer goes a long way towards mimicking the feel of outdoor training.  By utilizing Zwift with a smart trainer, it also mimics real world conditions.  This means even a “flat” road isn't really flat.  Slight variations in gradient can change the type of training significantly.  This is where a smart trainer shines, and you can read more detailed posts about training on Zwift with a smart trainer here.

That being said, click through the break to find out what kind of training I recommend on the new volcano expansion.

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Muscular Endurance Cycling Training With Zwift

Zwift has revolutionized the way we train indoors with a trainer.  The emergence of smart trainers has turned Zwift into an immersive virtual riding experience.  Muscular endurance (ME) is one of the basic fundamental skills that create a well-rounded cyclist, but it can be boring to accomplish on a trainer.  Combining the two together provides you the opportunity to get tons of high-quality training and keep things from getting stale.  But before you can go about building a ton of muscular endurance and making your body bulletproof, you have to understand what the goal of a ME interval is.

So, first of all, what is muscular endurance and why is it important?

Muscular endurance is your body's ability to resist muscular fatigue under pedaling tension.  That pedaling tension is where the magic happens in your pedal stroke.  The more tension in the pedals, the more power gets to the rear wheel and the faster you go.  I'm sure you've experienced a time when you have to really dig in and push hard to catch your riding buddy.  After a short time, your legs start to get heavy and tired and you have to rest.  The more times you have to repeat this kind of move, the harder it becomes because your legs are just tired out.  Maybe your legs cramp up or maybe you just can't make the move.  No matter what the outcome, you just need more ME training in your program.

In this article I'm going to give you tips to improve your muscular endurance training with Zwift.  Click through the jump to find out how:

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Zwift Training – Rolling Climbs

Zwift training is a hot new form of indoor training that has people excited.  In a nutshell, Zwift training allows you to sit on a trainer in your living room and ride in a virtual environment with people from all over the world who are doing the exact same thing.

How cool is that?

In previous videos, I discussed how to include some Fartlek training in your Zwift training sessions and how to use the new workout builder to create a custom workout in Zwift.  In this video, I'm going to explain and demonstrate how to roll a climb.  This kind of skill work is a perfect use of your Zwift training time because it's hard to understand how to execute it properly without being out on the road.  Fortunately, Zwift is the perfect virtual road to demonstrate on.

Check out the video below and then read on for some additional tips to help get a little more out of your Zwift training session.

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Custom Workouts In Zwift

Zwift has taken the indoor training world by storm, offering massive potential for riding with people across the globe, training through built-in workouts and Fartlek training.  The ability to build custom workouts in Zwift has been teased since the platform launched a few months ago.  In the interim, the lack of ability to build and program your own custom workouts has been a major downside of the platform (at least for many cyclists looking for a training solution on the virtual platform.)

Until now.

The programmers behind the popular online social training platform have introduced the ability to build custom workouts in Zwift.  You don't even need to exit the application in order to design any workout you can imagine.  This short how-to video will give you the basics on how to build custom workouts in Zwift and what they look like when you ride them.

Click through for the video, and don't forget to share with your friends!

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