Route for 2x20’s at SS

What is the best route on Zwift for 2x20’s at SS? I tried to find a workout but no luck.

Ed

If you do a workout (or make your own) in erg mode (presuming you have a smart trainer) the course won’t matter. If you don’t have a smart trainer I would recommend the Tempus Fugit route as it is the flattest in Zwift and should allow you to have better control over your effort, without having to constantly make modifications due to terrain changes.

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It looks like there’s one in the GCN suite: https://whatsonzwift.com/workouts/gcn/flat-out-fast-classic-2x-20/.

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Does route matter at all if you have a dumb trainer? Regardless of what is happening to the terrain you are in control of the resistance based on your gear setting.

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I run ERG mode almost all the time. However, after the release of the desert expansion, I found that I love doing my the longer steady efforts (e.g., 2x20, 2x30, 3x20, 1x40, etc…) on Tempus Fugit in sim/free-ride mode. It’s nice to settle into a gear and focus on the rhythm and wattage w/out the micro tug-of-war w/ERG mode.

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Well, now that is an excellent point! :thinking:

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  • Dumb trainer: Route will not matter. Resistance is 100% controlled by the user at home on his trainer.

  • Smart trainer (ERG mode): Route will not matter. ERG mode will control the resistance. Zwift terrain gradients irrelevant.

  • Smart trainer (sim/free-ride mode): Route will matter. Assuming trainer is paired as Controllable Trainer in Zwift, you will feel the terrain gradient changes as you would were you outside.

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Thanks for the feedback. I will be trying out Tempast Fugit on my Hammer H2 but not in erg mode. I will having control of my gearing.

Ed

The volcano circuit is a good one for intervals, IMO.

Another question is what’s the best power to use in the 2x20’s. The Zwift intervals, and GCN intervals, use FTP, but 2x20 @ FTP can be challenging with tired legs, and would result in a longer recovery than doing the intervals at for example 90% FTP, assuming FTP is correct, and depending on the level of aerobic fitness (now close one can get to FTP w/o using anaerobic energy).

I’m particularly struck by the 2x30 @ FTP intervals, since by definition is what one can sustain with fresh legs and ready to race for 60 minutes exactly. A bit of a break in the 60 minutes would help, but this would be close to TSS = 100, which is very hard and would require plenty of recovery, in theory anyway.

Route will matter to the degree to which you set the infamous Trainer difficulty slider. If you set it to 0%, it’s the same as a dumb trainer, i.e. the route will not make any difference.

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I think the point is there’s three factors contributing to power: cadence, force, and inertia. With normal riding, the force is set by the gear ratio and the road grade and wind resistance, and you pedal against that resistance. In erg mode, you pedal at whatever cadence you want, and the trainer sets the resistance to give the targeted power. So the trainer difficulty shouldn’t matter. There’s only the issue of inertia, which is in part set by how fast the flywheel is rotating, in part by the electronics in the trainer, so I’m not sure about that… but the trainer difficulty shouldn’t matter in erg mode.

Yeah, trainer difficulty has no effect on erg mode, but the bit I quoted referred to free-ride mode.