TrainerRoad

I haven’t had any prior experience training with structure or using intervals as a training tool in the past. I took on a lofty goal of finishing Unbound 200 and after getting 4 months of zone 2 base miles in my legs using Zwift, I decided to try and ultimately commit to Trainer Road to help me reach the finish line. I learned a lot for their Ask a Cycling Coach Podcast which built a base of knowledge to supplement the training with the app. I feel like I went 0-100 with all of the resources they provide across all of their platforms. I adhered to the training plan it created for me very closely after taking into account my goals and schedule. I trained for 9 months with TR leading up to Unbound and I’m proud to say I finished through the terrible conditions on course. Mud, wind, heat, lightning storm, hours of rain, a little hail, more mud, a mechanical. NOT ONCE during the race did I doubt my legs. I charged up every named climb clean, the repeatability I inherited is like nothing I’ve ever experienced in my few years of casual cycling. Thank you Trainer Road for your help, I’m continuing to train with the platform with bigger goals in the future (Unbound 200 again, Gravel Worlds 300, BC Epic in the years to come). If you’re wondering if the cost is worth it, I’m here to say it’s a no-brainer 👍🏼

It isn’t a marketing ploy. This app actually works. Of all the thousands of dollars you spend on your bike, this is the best investment you can make and it costs hardly anything by comparison. I have ridden outdoors for years with no change in my VO2 max (as judged by my Garmin). One month after starting this and my VO2 Max actually went up one day. Totally unexpected. I have started to actually improve in nearly every category. I am climbing faster now. I am climbing more comfortably. My pace is faster. My spin is smoother. Plus the mysterious “Coach Chad” who sends you text messages during the rides actually provides incredibly detailed Sports Physiology insights that I have never learned before. I have applied Coach Chad’s teachings to my incredible benefit. He teaches you about form, fitness, and even nutrition. But not just what you should eat, actual insights like how your body digests food and how energy is released and how you can manipulate this information to your performance benefit. It is incredible stuff. I am sure Coach Chad is a robot somewhere stuck in the mainframe, but I’ve really enjoyed the personification that he provides for the app. Anyway, I can’t recommend this app enough. It is money well spent and this is probably the most affordable way to see actual insights and improvements in your cycling. If I had to identify a weakness of the app I would say that picking a training plan can be very confusing unless you are training around preparation for a single cycling event. The training calendar online is good for cycling, but fairly useless with logging your runs or swims or skis or other activities. I would be nice to have a single place to track your TSS, but it looks like I am still going to have to juggle between Garmin and TrainerRoad for that for the foreseeable future.

TrainerRoad has changed my life. I’ve been riding regularly for 5+ years, entered races for fun, raced competitively as well as worked in a bike shop for most of those years. I battled with the elitist attitude in the cycling world regularly and mainly just wanted to get myself and others out and ride. I had never cared or given much thought to statistics besides miles, speed, and cadence. Last year I was signed on to a local racing team and knew I needed more “training” but the other riding/training app didn’t bring any motivation to the table. We have cold winters in South Dakota and indoor rides are a must. A friend and fellow cyclist recommended TrainerRoad and immediately I was hooked. The team has put so much work into tailoring each block, educational and motivational text during rides, not to mention and the podcast and forums. Using TR makes me excited about the next ride as soon as I finish one. I tell everyone I know that rides about it because it is a beautiful balance between beginner and elite cycling and I cannot thank y’all enough.