So I didn’t even know this hidden feature - which btw controls all the basic stuff during rides and workouts - existed. A friend showed it to me. Of course there are zero labels on the icons so I am left guessing as to what they do.
FYI these are on the game screen on Windows PC.
Reading through docs online has not been much help. I know that the first button with the right arrow is to skip to the next block of the workout. Except for me it did exactly nothing. I was tired of the 8 minute warmup in the ramp test and wanted to skip to the 1st workload. Nada. Zip nothing.
Then there are TWO pairs of up and down arrows. The first pair (counting from the left) control “% FTP” or something. Which of course isn’t explained. What’s the point doing an FTP test at anything but 100% of your current FTP. And what if you don’t have one yet?
The 2nd pair control an unlabeled orange vertical bar to the righ of the main ride info at the center top of the screen. No idea what it does. moved it up, moved it back down. I think it gets harder the bigger the bar…but only in erg mode…maybe?
This has been nothing but an exercise in frustration. I’be never come anything this poorly documented ever in the history of things.
This support article covers most of the onscreen options/explanations which I think is what you are mentioning - not sure if its 100% current.
Some of this stuff is also replicated on the Companion App to save fluffing round with a mouse while riding.
If anything is missing, grab a screen capture or photo and post it up - plenty of people will be hapy to explain/point you to good online docs/vids.
And yep, Zwift is a bit of challenge to get your head around when you first get going. Someone can probably point you to a new users guide somewhere (I have no clue if one exists) but another important thread in these forums is a Wiki that a member built up over the last 6 months or so or heaps of useful things - book mark this:
Being able to adjust a workout on the fly up or down makes tons of sense. An FTP of whatever number is no guarantee that you’ll be up for exactly that metric on a given day–maybe you’re tired from a big block of training, maybe you’re underfueled, maybe it’s just been a long day. Or maybe you’re having a really good day and you would benefit more from a few percentage points higher.
This is correct, I think. The test part of the FTP test is a free ride, and not in erg mode as I recall. If it was a ramp test, then maybe the first one starts at 90W rather than 100W or something, I don’t know.
But an FTP test is a workout. It would be pretty inefficient for them to design a separate screen tools layout just for one kind of workout. If you don’t want to use those buttons for that workout, don’t use them.
I’m not at all saying that the layout doesn’t have problems. The companion app button layout is horrible too. I’m just talking about those particular buttons. They make perfect sense to have in the workout tools layout.
In a non FTP workout, pressing the tab button skips to the next to block.
I’m not sure if it has a function in FTP workouts because I don’t do enough of them.
Also, be sure to give plenty of Ride Ons with the blue .
Don’t, it just makes noise,
As @Dean mentioned above, the Zwift Companion (ZC) app is another great way to use several of the features in the Action Bar – that’s what I use when I Zwift. You can find more info about ZC here: Using the Zwift Companion App
One thing that isn’t answered is what is the other up and down bar? not the one that changes the % of FTP at the bottom of the workout but the one next to it which causes an orange bar to appear next to the centeral white status bar and it increases and decreases. This set of icons look like a trainer with a + and. a - button on them. It’s between the lightning bolt - (FTP % down) and the (ERG) in a block which turns on and off ERG. None of the articles I can find, or anything linked to explain what that does pasted photo is the next post, red circle is what I’m talking about
Okay so free-ride mode when in a training program doesn’t put you back in the environment with hills etc, it’s just some set thing (like flat road) and this increases the gradient you’re riding on, that makes sense.
No I think ( I don’t use it ) that when you come out of ERG mode in a workout it does put you back into the Zwift world hills and all. But if you are going down hill and need to put out say 300 watts, without sprinting, you might not be able to feel enough force going down a steep hill. These tabs allow you to adjust the gradient so you can ‘remove’ the downhill feel.
Same going uphill, you might approach a hill in a good cadence, gear and at the right power and by reducing the hill you can maintain all three without changing gear.
I assume it allows you to make a hilly route feel flat, a bit like turning TD to zero?
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