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How to Test with the 20-Minute & 8-Minute FTP Tests

With the Ramp Test as our recommended assessment, we still offer two alternative options to test FTP: The 20-Minute and 8-Minute FTP Tests. How to Test During the test intervals, totally ignore the graph's recommendations. Whether you're above, below, or exactly in line with the graph makes no difference. It's important that these assessment efforts are not restricted or guided in any way. We're simply trying to get a reasonably close estimate of your Functional Threshold Power, something we can't do if your smart trainer is limiting your power. FTP (Functional Threshold Power) is automatically calculated upon completion of any of our test workouts. 20-Min VS. 8-Min Test If you do decide to use one of these alternative tests, whether you use our 20-minute Maximal Lactate Steady State (MLSS) interval or a set of 8-minute Power at VO2max (pVO2max) efforts, it's best to choose a format that you will stick with and one that fairly represents your fitness at the time. Each test has its own pros & cons. We'll elaborate on each of them briefly below in order to help you choose a format that best suits you, both in terms of your current capabilities & capacity for suffering. 20-Minute Test https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfdNQMik6Mk The 20-Minute Test is an ideal format to break into shorter, more manageable segments. By breaking the 20-minute effort into four 5-minute segments, riders can subtly tweak their effort every so often based on longer periods of muscular feedback, i.e. a rider can slightly reduce their pace every 5 minutes based on perceived exertion or how their body feels. The 20-minute test is a relatively long testing effort and pacing can sometimes be an issue for less experienced riders. Because of this, the 20-Minute Test is usually more ideal for seasoned riders who have a good sense of how to pace well. Additionally, many riders play it safe during the longer formats and end up finishing with too much gas left in the tank. Evidence of this is illustrated via a 2 or 3-minute surge in power at the end of an effort that would ideally be evenly-paced over the entire 20 minutes. As a result, their FTP and relative power levels are likely to be underestimated a bit (or a lot) rendering all subsequent FTP-based workouts less productive than they would be otherwise. TrainerRoad calculates your FTP from the 20-Minute Test by multiplying your average power for the test interval by .95. In other words, your FTP is 5% less than your average power of the test interval. 8-Minute Test https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmJr4r1pWYM Our preferred format for less experienced riders is the 8-minute protocol comprised of two 8-minute efforts. The 8-Minute Test yields a greater amount of information by demonstrating power at VO2max via each 8-minute interval, sustainable power/FTP once the average power of the two 8-minute intervals is reduced by 10%, and you can even track improvements in your aerobic fitness when comparing the 2 efforts afterward, i.e. a substantial difference could indicate a limited ability to recover & insufficient aerobic capabilities. TrainerRoad calculates your FTP from the 8-Minute Test by multiplying your average power of the two test intervals by .9. In other words, your FTP is 10% less than your average power of the two test intervals. Erg Mode vs Slope/Resistance Mode Building on the information found in our Erg Mode Explained article, these FTP test alternatives, when completed on a smart trainer, have to be done in the appropriate mode: Slope or Resistance mode (depending on your particular trainer). Fortunately, TrainerRoad switches modes for you when you assess your FTP via our 20-Minute Test or our 8-Minute Test. Why Erg Mode is Bad for the 8- and 20-Minute FTP Tests If a smart trainer is left in Erg mode during the testing portion(s) of a 20- and 8-Minute test, the workout will lock you in at your current fitness level instead of allowing you to pace the duration of the test interval at your own power target. To avoid this, the assessment needs to take place in Slope/Resistance mode in order to allow a rider to work at his/her own pace rather than having the trainer determine a pace based on the input FTP. TrainerRoad automatically switches you to Slope/Resistance mode during your test interval(s). If you wish to use a higher or lower Slope/Resistance setting, you're free to adjust it yourself and it makes no difference if you use different Slope/Resistance settings from interval to interval or test to test. The last setting you used will be applied the next time you enter Slope/Resistance mode. By switching to Slope/Resistance mode, you're allowed to go hard without being forced to maintain the calculated Target Power that would be forced on your legs in Erg mode. You can pace according to your current capabilities such that you ride as strongly as possible for the assessment interval(s).

Assessing your Fitness Level (FTP) • Last updated on Aug 13, 2026

Cycling Drills in TrainerRoad

Drills - Not Just for Base Season Though often relegated to base training phases, on-the-bike drills should have a place in your training plan year-round. Improvements in efficiency, strength and power are of benefit to riders at any level, beginner to professional. And when you consider how often you turn over the pedals in the course of a minute, also consider the potential effect of even the smallest improvement in your efficiency when carried over hundreds and thousands of times. Form drills are inarguably one of the best ways to break up the monotony of longer intervals and riders, so sprinkle these in liberally paying particular attention to the drills that most benefit you in terms of personal weaknesses and limiters. Efficiency Drills Efficiency drills seek to improve your overall cycling efficiency by addressing pedal economy (pedal speed and control) and muscle efficiency (gradual reduction in muscle stress at similar workloads). - Endurance Spinning (ES) - Practice spinning slightly quicker than your natural, self-selected cadence. Ride at a cadence that's at the very top of your comfortable rpm range (often this is your natural cadence + 3-5rpm) and remain there for a solid 5 minutes. The goal is to learn to turn the pedals more quickly with less force/muscle stress thereby improving your ability to remain predominantly aerobic over a wide range of rpm. If your HR rises more than a few bpm, you're pedaling too quickly - take it easy and stay relaxed but quick. - Single-Leg Focus (SLF) - The objective here is to learn to apply power more effectively through the entire pedalstroke by focusing strictly on one leg's activity through the bottom, upstroke, and over the top of the pedalstroke. For 90 seconds at a time, devote your attention to one leg before switching to the other. Your cadence may fall slightly, but these drills typically come more naturally to less experienced riders than "one-leggers" (described below). Pay particular attention to lightly pulling your foot across the bottom, lifting your knee lightly upward and then softly kicking over the top of each pedalstroke. Add this drill indoors or outdoors as often as you like, more frequently if you recognize a substantial difference in one leg's strength or coordination. - Isolated Leg Training (ILT) - Also known as "one-leggers" and similar to SLF drills, the objective here is to learn to more effectively apply power through the entire pedalstroke by focusing strictly on one leg's activity through the bottom, upstroke and over the top of the pedalstroke. Completely unclip one foot from the pedal and rest it on your trainer, a stool, or anything that allows it to safely rest without interfering with your other leg's pedaling. Begin with slow cadence (very slow in some cases) and periods of 10-20s per leg unless you can pedal longer without "knocking". Don't worry about your temporarily low power - these drills aren't about strength. As you improve, your cadence will increase as will each leg's duration. Pay close attention your kick and pull (described below) thinking more in terms of horizontal or back and forth pedaling especially if you begin feeling deadspots in your pedalstroke or you begin hearing a knocking sound due to those deadspots. Keep tension on the chain and switch legs anytime your form degrades; don't practice bad habits just to tack on 5 or 10 more seconds. Include this drill indoors 2-3 times each week accumulating 5-10 minutes per leg each workout. - Pedalstroke Quadrants (P/KP) - Each quadrant of a 360-degree pedalstroke can be emphasized over the course of a complete round of quadrant drills, but in the interest of keeping things more fluid, the 4 quadrants have been combined into 2 opposing muscle actions: up and down, backward and forward. - Pistons (P) - Few if any riders need to practice pushing down on the pedals, but improvements in how well your knees move are both beneficial to economy and joint health. As you pedal, pay close attention to how your knees track. They should move directly up, directly down - like pistons - with little if any lateral movement, especially at the top of each pedalstroke. Focus on one knee for 30-60s before switching sides. - Kick & Pull (KP) - A balanced pedalstroke is dependent upon consistent tension on your bike's drivetrain throughout the entire pedalstroke. Reinforce your ability to maintain tension through the weakest portions of the pedalstroke, the top and bottom quadrants. As your knee approaches top-dead-center, lightly kick your toes into the fronts of your shoes, and as your feet approach bottom-dead-center, lightly pull your heels into the backs of your shoes - kick and pull. Focus on just the kick for 30-60s, just the pull for 30-60s, then eventually both for 30-60s simultaneously. - Form Sprints (FS) - Sprints are for everyone, not just sprinters, because they "wake up" muscle fibers that too often don't get trained but will get used. Practice high-rpm sprint simulations at low power outputs to reinforce proper sprinting technique by jumping out-of-the-saddle and winding up a light gear. As your cadence reaches its controllable peak, gracefully transition into the saddle where you can shift gears if necessary. These sprints are only 10s long and are all about leg speed, form and technique. Experiment with which foot leads the sprint and learn how to generate a lot of leg speed in very little time. Strength Drills Strength drills not only enhance muscular contribution/activity but they can improve the health of your connective tissues and thus enhance joint stability in your knees, hips and ankles. - Strength Sprints (SS) - Sprints are for everyone, not just sprinters, because they "wake up" muscle fibers that too often don't get trained but will get used. These standing-start sprints consist of slowly turning over a big gear as forcefully as possible in order to recruit as many muscle fibers as you can. They're done from a near stop and in the biggest gear you can gracefully turn over without exceeding 90rpm in 12 pedalstrokes. While standing, hold onto your handlebar drops and drive each foot down as hard as you can while retaining the excellent sprinting form you practiced during Form Sprints. If you reach 90rpm inside of 12 pedalstrokes, choose a larger gear next time and abandon the drill if you encounter any knee pain. You can track your progress by comparing your max and average power output from week to week. - Force Intervals (FI) - Often riders need to create power at very low cadences, e.g. over-geared coming out of a turn, very steep climbs, starting from a dead stop, etc. These intervals are also excellent for improving the resilience of your connective tissue gradually and they provide an excellent opportunity to focus on your ability to control the lateral movement of your knees, especially at the top of the pedalstroke. If you currently have no knee issues, use a gear that allows you to hold your Target Power while riding between 50-60rpm. Focus on the top of the pedalstroke as well as the downstroke by kicking over the top and pressing your foot downward. - Hill Simulations (HS) - These are Tempo/Sweet Spot workouts performed with an elevated front wheel based on the typical grades you'll encounter in your target events. By raising your front wheel up to 6 inches above the level of your rear wheel, you can more closely emulate the slightly different demands that gradients place on your muscles even if there's no conclusive evidence of its benefit. Try to keep your cadence above 80rpm when seated and above 75rpm when standing. Most of your focus should fall on the top and back quadrants of the pedalstroke and this can be achieved by focusing on lifting your knees upward and then gently kicking your feet forward, especially when standing. These simulations are an attempt to increase the level of hill-climbing stress specificity as much as possible without riding actual hills. Power Drills Power drills can drastically improve both the number of muscle fibers you recruit during explosive efforts but also how quickly those fibers are recruited. They can also reduce muscle fiber fatigue over long rides by effectively distributing the workload over more muscle fibers. - Power Sprints (PS) - Power Sprints are the culmination of Form Sprints and Strength Sprints and teach you to overcome heavy resistance quickly. At a reasonable cadence, 85-95rpm, jump out-of-the-saddle and wind up a big gear but not as big as the gear used during previous Strength Sprints. These sprints are only 10s long and should allow you to get in a maximum of 24 pedalstrokes and reach a high rpm, 130rpm or higher. Practice winding up a lot of watts in the briefest time possible while maintaining the form and technique you picked up during previous Form Sprints. Experiment with which foot to lead with and don't hesitate to practice leading with either. - Advanced Hill Simulations (AHS) - The advanced version of HS are Sweet Spot/Threshold workouts which are still performed with an elevated front wheel based on the typical grades you'll encounter in your target events. Raise your front wheel up to 6 inches above the level of your rear wheel and more closely emulate the slightly different demands that gradients place on your muscles even if there's no conclusive evidence of this benefit . When specific cadence recommendations aren't detailed in the workout's Description and on-screen instructions, try to keep your cadence above 80rpm when seated and above 75rpm when standing. These simulations are part of a continued attempt to increase the level of hill-climbing stress specificity as much as possible without riding actual hills. - Strength Endurance Rides (SER) - Synonymous with Muscular Endurance, the intervals comprising these rides effectively take the place of Force Intervals and further your ability to turn bigger gears for longer durations. Put another way, they'll help you ride stronger in the wind, climb hills at a faster rate and maintain higher paces for increasing periods of time. Strength is only so useful without the ability to sustain it, so make sure you're rested and ready to tackle each of these workouts as they're quite difficult and sure to challenge the strongest of riders but well worth the effort.

Plan Execution • Last updated on Aug 13, 2026

Syncing ROUVY with TrainerRoad

You can complete scheduled or recommended TrainerRoad cycling workouts in ROUVY when you connect your ROUVY account to your TrainerRoad account. Here’s how to get the sync between the two platforms set up: How to Connect ROUVY and TrainerRoad You'll establish a connection between the two platforms through the TrainerRoad website: Step One: Navigate to Training Platforms from the Profile navigation menu on the TrainerRoad website here: Account > Connections > Training Platforms  Step Two: Select Connect under ROUVY Step Three: Read and Agree to the connection terms Step Four: If you’re already logged in to ROUVY, this will bring you to the ROUVY authorization page. Click “Authorize” to confirm the connection. (If you’re not already logged into ROUVY, you’ll be prompted to do so first). After clicking “Authorize” you’ll be brought back to the Training Platforms section in the TrainerRoad settings menu. You have now successfully synced ROUVY and TrainerRoad! To confirm that the connection has been made successfully, a green border and an option to disconnect will now appear in the ROUVY option on the page. Check out this article for instructions on completing your TrainerRoad workouts within ROUVY. What Syncs Between the Two Platforms?  Upcoming TrainerRoad Workouts: Today's planned TrainerRoad cycling workout will be pushed to ROUVY.  Note: Ramp Tests and FTP tests will not sync to ROUVY! All other indoor workouts scheduled today will be sent over to ROUVY on the day that they are scheduled. Completed ROUVY Activities: Workouts completed in ROUVY will be pulled back into TrainerRoad.  When are Workouts Synced Between Platforms?  TrainerRoad Workouts: TrainerRoad Workouts scheduled for today will be pulled into ROUVY almost as soon as they are scheduled. Once a workout has been synced to ROUVY, you’ll notice the ROUVY icon appear in its footer on your TrainerRoad calendar.  Workouts sent to ROUVY will appear prominently on the day they are scheduled on the ROUVY home screen.   They’ll also appear as the first item in the ROUVY “Workouts” tab: Completed ROUVY Activities: Workouts completed in ROUVY after establishing a connection between ROUVY and TrainerRoad will be synced to TrainerRoad shortly after ending the workout. This sync may take a few minutes. Historical training data in ROUVY won't be pulled into TrainerRoad.  How to Disconnect ROUVY and TrainerRoad Step One: Navigate to Training Platforms from the Profile navigation menu on the TrainerRoad website here: Account > Connections > Training Platforms Step Two: Select Disconnect below ROUVY and then Disconnect to confirm the change. You have successfully disconnected ROUVY and TrainerRoad! You can re-enable the connection at any time by following the steps above.  Frequently Asked Questions For more information and answers to Frequently Asked Questions about ROUVY and TrainerRoad check out our FAQ article here: Training in ROUVY with TrainerRoad: FAQs.

General Usage • Last updated on Sep 28, 2026

Choosing the Right Discipline For Your Events

TrainerRoad builds your plan around your A event's selected discipline or type. This guide is here to help you understand what each discipline trains and how to choose a match for your event. Why Event Type Matters Your event type influences: - Which training phases you get (for example, a plan that emphasizes sustained power vs short, punchy power) - Which training zones and workout profiles are emphasized - What fitness you are most prepared to express on event day No discipline is “better” than any others. Each discipline simply trains your body in a different way to prepare for different event demands. The Simple Way to Choose In many cases, the event’s advertised label is enough: - Criterium → Criterium - Time Trial → Time Trial - Cyclocross → Cyclocross - XCO, XCM, Short Track → the matching MTB discipline - Triathlon Event → the matching triathlon discipline It gets trickier when the event label is broad, like Road Race, Gravel, or Gran Fondo. When that happens, use these four factors to identify the dominant effort type your event will demand: 1. Advertised discipline 2. How long you will ride (duration) 3. Climbing profile (how many climbs, how long, how steep) 4. Your goal (race for results vs ride for a steady finish or target time) A helpful reminder: distance alone is not a reliable guide. The same distance can mean very different effort types depending on terrain, surface, and speed. Duration tells you much more about pacing demands. A quick Decision Guide For More Ambiguous Road & Gravel Events Road races: Rolling Road Race vs Climbing Road Race Start here if your event is a mass start road race and you are unsure which road discipline fits. - Rolling Road Race is usually best when the decisive moments are repeated surges, attacks, and short climbs. Think punchy efforts and frequent changes in pace. - Climbing Road Race is usually best when long, sustained climbs are the defining feature. Think sustained climbing power and longer efforts. Helpful shortcut: - If the key climbs are short and punchy, lean Rolling. - If the key climbs are long and sustained, lean Climbing. If you are not sure, pick the discipline that best matches where you expect the hardest efforts to happen. On some courses, long climbs early do not decide the race, and the event can still be ridden like a Rolling Road Race. Long Road Events: Gran Fondo Gran Fondo is the best fit for events where the dominant demand is steady pacing and endurance. - Typical match: long road events where your goal is to finish strong, ride a steady pace, or hit a target time. - Terrain can be flat or mountainous. For most riders, the pacing challenge is still the main limiter once the duration is long enough. Gravel Events Gravel events can be very different, so the best match depends on duration and how the event is raced. - If your event is primarily a long, steady endurance day where pacing is the priority, Gravel is usually the best fit. - If your event is shorter and raced aggressively with frequent surges, you may also consider Rolling Road Race, Climbing Road Race, or Cross Country Marathon, depending on terrain and surface. Helpful shortcut: - Over about 4 hours: Gravel is usually the best starting point because pacing and endurance are critical for most athletes. - Under about 4 hours: Gravel still works well, but a more race-focused discipline(Rolling/Climbing Road Race) can be a good option if the event is punchy and you are racing for position. Time Trials Time Trial discipline is built around steady, controlled efforts against the clock. - Best fit: most TTs, especially flatter courses or those where pacing is steady and continuous - If your TT is unusually punchy or very climb-heavy, Climbing Road Race can be a reasonable alternative, depending on how the effort actually feels on the day. Hill Climbs There is no dedicated hill climb discipline, so match based on climb duration: - Over about 20 to 30 minutes: Time Trial - About 2 to 30 minutes: Climbing Road Race - Under about 2 minutes: Rolling Road Race or Climbing Road Race (choose based on whether the effort is more punchy or more sustained) If you are doing a season of mixed hill climbs, Climbing Road Race is usually the most well-rounded option. Stage Races Stage races are their own category because day-to-day recovery becomes part of the performance demand. Choose the discipline that matches the stage race type you are doing. If your stage race includes mixed stages, pick the discipline that best represents the dominant demands across the event. Off-Road Event Types in TrainerRoad Off-road events vary significantly. The easiest way to pick the right TrainerRoad event type is to match the discipline to the effort you will repeat most often: short surges, sustained hard laps, or long pacing with hard climbs late. Short Track Cross Country (STXC) Pick STXC if your event is: - About 20 to 30 minutes - Very fast and intense with constant accelerations This plan builds repeatable high-intensity efforts and quick recovery between surges. Cross Country Olympic (XCO) Pick XCO if your event is: - About 60 to 100 minutes - Lap-based with repeated climbs and technical features This plan builds the ability to repeat hard efforts near and above threshold across a full race-length effort. Cross Country Marathon (XCM) Pick XCM if your event is: - About 3 to 8 hours - Off-road with meaningful climbing and repeated hard sections This plan builds long endurance and fatigue resistance, while still preparing you for surges and hard climbs late in the race. Cyclocross (CX) Pick Cyclocross if your event is: - About 45 to 70 minutes - Constantly changing pace with repeated bursts, corners, and short run-ups This plan builds repeatable high-intensity efforts and recovery for one-hour racing. Off-Road Triathlon Many off-road tri formats align closely with Olympic distance demands on the bike, even if the bike leg is shorter, because the terrain is more demanding. - Best starting point: Off-Road Triathlon - Only choose Sprint, Half, or Full if the event distances truly match those formats Quick Tie-Breakers - XCO vs XCM: around an hour and very intense, choose XCO. Multi-hour pacing with hard climbs late, choose XCM. - XCM vs Gravel: if it feels like an off-road race with frequent punchy efforts, choose XCM. If it is more about steady pacing for a long day on mixed surface, choose Gravel. Common Exceptions: When A Different Event Might Help You If there is more than one good option, that is normal. Look at your event’s advertised type, expected finish time, and whether you are racing for results or pacing for a finish or target time. Long events where you are racing for results If the event is long but your goal is explicitly competitive and the race is likely to be decided by surges, attacks, and climbs, you may choose a discipline that places more emphasis on variability and intensity. That can be a good choice, but there is a trade-off: - More emphasis on punchy and race-like fitness - Less emphasis on the deepest steady endurance compared to Gran Fondo or Gravel If your main goal is to pace steadily and finish strong, Gran Fondo or Gravel is still usually the best match. longer climbing events or stage races where you will ride a steady pace In these cases It can be smart to pick a Gran Fondo or Gravel plan, to train for smooth steady efforts instead of training to chase and make breaks up a climb. Mixed terrain/discipline race like a stage race or mixed surface event In those cases, pick the discipline that best matches: - The effort type you will spend the most time doing - Will you be holding a steady pace, or chasing and making breaks? - The effort type you most want to improve for your goal An example could be a longer event where you ride Road, Gravel, & Single Track with plenty of elevation gain: - If you intend to hold a steady pace, Gravel would be a good choice. - If you are going to race it, Climbing Road Race or Cross Country Marathon would better fit that intent for most athletes. Between those you would want to pick what you want to improve. Have More Than One A event? A events should be planned at least 8 weeks apart. TrainerRoad will focus the plan around your A events, in order. After each A event, the plan can shift focus toward the next A event. After the final A event, the plan uses your last B event discipline, or your last C event discipline if there is no B event. A events are the strongest drivers of plan focus. Changing Your Event Type In many cases, you can change an event’s discipline. When you do, TrainerRoad may prompt you to update your plan so training matches the new discipline. There are a few situations where changing discipline requires deleting and recreating the event instead, such as switching between cycling and triathlon categories, or switching between stage race and single-day event categories. FAQs How do I Build a Custom Training Plan? You can use the resources below to learn how to build a custom plan and to dig deeper into their structure: - TrainerRoad Plan Builder Over View & Walk Through - Understand the structure & science behind TrainerRoad Plans. How to Choose Which Event to Make My A Event? In most cases, you want your A event to be your primary event for the season. You can learn more here: - How to Add A, B, & C Events to Your Calendar - How to Prioritize Your Races and Build a Seasonal Race Plan I'm not Training For an Event, What can I do? TrainerRoad has many goal-based plan options as well. You can learn about them here. How Should I Choose the Event Intensity? It's helpful to think of the intensity rating of the event as the aspirational pace you want to ride it. Every athlete is different but here is a bit of general guidance: - Recovery - Tempo could be an all-day or repeated-day effort(rest day or easy day during a stage race). - Tempo - Hard could be a race level effort for 3-8 hours. - Hard - All out efforts would be a max level effort for shorter events(1-3 hours)

Choosing Your Training Plan • Last updated on Feb 13, 2026

Why is AI FTP Detection Only Available Every 28 Days?

Changes in fitness take time. The physiological process that drives changes in your functional threshold power (FTP) can take months of training, recovering, and getting faster, as your body gradually adapts to repeated training stress. This is why AI FTP Detection isn’t available more often than every 28 days. Updating your FTP too frequently isn’t only unnecessary, but doing so can actually have negative impacts on your training. That’s because structured training is based on the principle of progressive overload, in which carefully chosen workouts incrementally increase in difficulty to appropriately challenge the right physiological systems and build your fitness. Frequent FTP changes can disrupt the pace and magnitude of this progression and can prevent you from completing key sequences of workouts you need to reach your goals. In other words, using AI FTP Detection at intervals of 28 days or longer doesn’t just reflect the gradual pace of changing fitness. It also helps you get the most out of your training and makes you faster. What if my Abilities Change Within 28 Days? FTP is not the only measure of your fitness. Between AI FTP Detections, your Progression Levels monitor your progress and track subtle changes in your abilities from day to day, even when your FTP doesn’t meaningfully change. Progression Levels track your capacity to express your current FTP in different training zones at any given time. For example, increasing your ability to hold steady power within your VO2 Max training zone from one minute to three minutes at the same FTP demonstrates significant progress and is reflected by changes in your Progression Levels. Progression Levels allow TrainerRoad AI to customize your training each day, ensuring that your workouts always match your changing needs. Whether you crush a breakthrough workout or take some unexpected time off, your Progression Levels will respond, and your training will adjust to keep you on track for your goals. Simply put, your abilities will change between AI FTP Detections in ways FTP alone can’t accurately reflect. Progression Levels have you covered, working hand-in-hand with AI FTP Detection to track every change in your fitness, whether big or small, up or down. I Didn’t Accept my Recent AI FTP Detection. Can I Get a New Detection Sooner Than 28 Days? If you keep your current FTP instead of accepting AI FTP Detection’s results, the newly-detected FTP will still be available for you to accept at any time during the next 28 days. Simply click the AI FTP Button from your Account Settings or from any FTP Test, and you’ll again be presented with the option to accept it, along with a countdown to when your next detection will be available. If you haven’t accepted your newly detected FTP and something happens to significantly decrease your fitness within 28 days (for example, if you take extended time off the bike), AI FTP Detection will automatically adjust your still-available prediction downwards to make sure you get the right workouts and power targets. This will prevent you from accepting a too-high FTP, and it won’t affect the 28-day countdown until your next detection is available.

TrainerRoad AI • Last updated on Jul 16, 2026

Re-build, Off-season, or Maintenance for Your Fastest Season

Getting faster isn’t confined to training within the typical Base, Build, and Specialty training phases. You have other options to continue your quest for speed after a typical training season. Once athletes complete a full cycle of training, the next step will depend on their goals until the next training cycle is scheduled to begin. This period of time may vary from rider to rider, but I will outline three different rider scenarios that should provide enough direction no matter what circumstances you’re under. The Transition After Specialty Training With 52 weeks in the year, and with the full Base, Build, Specialty sequence typically lasting 28 of those weeks, many riders wonder what they can do to fill in the gap. This is the period of time most refer to as the “off-season”, and I will outline 3 different approaches based on three different goals. 1. There are some riders who are targeting another high-priority event/competitive season following the completion of a full Base, Build, Specialty sequence of training. 2. There’s another camp who chooses to fill their time focusing on a limiting aspect of their performance, appropriately known as a “limiter”. 3. Then, others prefer to simply maintain the fitness they’ve established throughout the previous months of training until the next training cycle is scheduled to begin. One thing is clear for each and every rider coming out of the Base, Build, Specialty cycle: a small period of time-off (1-3 weeks) is recommended before going down one of these paths. Depending on your fatigue and/or motivation, this time off can be spent with some totally unstructured riding, active recovery rides, or time off the bike completely. But my biggest concern in making this recommendation is to provide brief stress relief on the autonomic nervous system and endocrine system before diving back into training. How to Build a Second Fitness Peak Athletes who choose to target another high-priority event following the final phase of training can continue getting faster by manipulating Base, Build, Specialty to fit a shorter time frame. Depending on how long the gap is between the event you “peaked” for at the end of your Specialty training and the second event you’re targeting, you will return to Build Phase training. This is what I like to call a “rebuild”, in which case you will do the latter half (typically 2-4 weeks) of your Build training before “re-specializing” (i.e. entering another Specialty training phase). For Example: Say you have 12 weeks between two high-priority events. Since you won’t have enough time to complete entire Build and Specialty phases, the solution is to complete the partial revisitation of Build training before reassessing your fitness and completing another Specialty phase training plan. Should the gap be longer than that, you can apply this “rebuild” principle by extending the time revisiting the Build and even Base training. Note: Athletes who follow the re-build approach to target another event should also schedule a small break between their second high-priority event and the beginning of the next training season. Off-Season Focus on a Limiter Athletes who aren’t planning for another event following a full training cycle, but wish to focus on a limiting aspect of their performance, can address that limiter using similar principles as the re-build approach. Just like the re-build approach, you’ll need to evaluate the time period you have until your next season of training is scheduled to begin. With that in mind, you have the option to return to Build Phase training for 2-4 weeks and follow that with a Specialty plan of your choosing. If you’re designing your own plan, you’ll select workouts that specifically address the weaknesses that are plaguing your performance. For Example: You complete a small break after your high-priority event following a full training cycle and take note that your climbing ability was the aspect of your performance that held you back. After taking a look at when you’d like to begin training next season, you find you have 18 weeks to address the limiter. You’ll also account for 1-3 of those weeks to include a significant reduction in training volume/intensity in anticipation for the next training cycle. With 16 weeks to dedicate to training, you’ll have enough time to focus on the limiter in the same format as a Build and Specialty sequence of training. So you’ll use 8 of those weeks to build your climbing capabilities through a blend of strength endurance work (Sweet Spot power zone), lactate tolerance workouts (Threshold power zone), and maximum aerobic power intervals (VO2max power zone). And you’ll take this one step further by reassessing your fitness and entering into a 8-week revisitation of a Specialty training plan. The workouts you’ll focus on in this period will emphasize a split between high-power, often explosive efforts and extended, near-FTP efforts that all find their way into your climbs. Note: Refer to the Build and Specialty Phase sections of this ebook for help in manufacturing your own off-season approach to addressing a limiter. Maintaining Fitness in the Off-Season The final possible route an athlete may take is to simply maintain the hard-earned fitness they’ve established through the previous training cycle. The good news is properly established fitness takes comparatively little to maintain than what it took to build. There are four separate types of fitness that I’ve outlined below. If you’d like to simply maintain any/all of them, research supports that you can do so on relatively little work. If you’re not too concerned with slight decreases in any of these categories, feel free to leave it/them by the wayside. - Aerobic Endurance: Once every 2 weeks, do a long, low-intensity ride. Ride long enough that the fatigue comes as a product of the ride’s duration, not its intensity. - Anaerobic Power: Once a week. Something along the lines of 30- to 60-second repeats upwards of 130% FTP should suffice. - Muscular Endurance/Threshold: Once a week. Try a 2×20-minute Threshold or even Sweet Spot workout. - Sprint Power: Once a week. Perform 4-6 all-out efforts somewhere between 20-30 seconds long. Note: Athletes who follow a maintenance approach to the off-season will not require the “padding” of downtime before the training season that follows.

Choosing Your Training Plan • Last updated on Aug 13, 2026

FTP Testing - The Cornerstone of Training

Few components of power-based training are as important as measuring and tracking FTP. In fact, it could be argued that nothing short of actual performance ranks as highly in terms of overall importance. With this in mind, we offer the following primer on what your FTP represents, what an FTP test is, how and why we assess FTP, and when we assess it. What is FTP? Functional Threshold Power (FTP) is — quite simply — a measure of fitness. FTP represents the power (measured in watts) that you could theoretically maintain for about an hour, and it's the single metric we use to scale each of your workouts in our shared quest to keep your fitness growing. With regards to what's taking place within your body and the muscles themselves, riding at your FTP pushes you right up to that limit where pushing any harder will drastically limit the duration of your ride. But as long as you stay just below that acidic tipping point where your muscles light up and uncomfortably tolerable minutes become barely tolerable seconds, your muscles are in balance with the workload - for about an hour, anyway. What is the FTP Assessment? An FTP assessment is a snapshot of your fitness at any point in time. By measuring your fitness and assigning it a number, we can track changes in your fitness over weeks, months, and years. The assessment we use to measure this level of fitness is our Ramp Test. How is FTP Calculated from the Ramp Test? TrainerRoad will automatically calculate your FTP upon completion of your Ramp Test workout. If ridden correctly, you can expect your FTP to be about 75% of your highest 1-minute power sustained during the test. Note: More complicated calculations may be applied when determining FTP from a Ramp Test depending on how accurately a rider followed the format of the test. This means, 75% of a rider's 1-minute power may not translate to their actual FTP calculation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWHgMzpvH7c How is Functional Threshold Power Assessed? During a Ramp Test assessment, riders first follow a sufficient, stepwise warming period before progressing to their higher-intensity steps. The power that you average over the last, highest minute of your test allows us to mathematically estimate your current FTP. The goal here is to obtain a reasonably close estimate of one's sustainable power, or in power-based training nomenclature, your Functional Threshold Power/FTP. Why Do We Assess FTP? By assessing FTP, not only can we track changes in fitness, but we can also establish training zones, i.e. power levels. And as your fitness changes, we can update these power levels accordingly. Each type of interval, e.g. Tempo, Sweet Spot, VO2max, etc. represents a percentage of your FTP. For example, Tempo intervals fall in the 76-90% FTP range while VO2max intervals fall in the 106-120% FTP range. Different types of intervals target different energy systems and consequently different training adaptations, so it's important to have a personal measure of your fitness that will allow us to tailor your workouts to your specific needs and capabilities. When Should I Assess My FTP? It's a good idea to assess your FTP prior to beginning each training season unless you already have a good sense of your current fitness and your sustainable power. But even if you think you have a good grasp on your current fitness, it's still a good idea to back up your perception with actual performance. It's also recommended that you assess or reassess FTP before embarking on a new training plan. Finally, you should reassess your FTP about every 4-6 weeks in order to account for changes in your fitness and to keep your power levels in line with your performance potential. What if I'm Feeling Stronger Before My Scheduled FTP Test? Of course, testing roughly every 4-6 weeks is just a general guideline. Your FTP very well may have increased prior to 4-6 weeks after your last test. If you find yourself breathing easily through workouts with high-Intensity Factors (IFs)® or that you're often manually increasing the workout intensity before it's time for your next test, don't hesitate to manually edit your FTP. No need to wait for an FTP test if you know you're stronger. :)

Your First Ride • Last updated on Aug 13, 2026

Smart Trainer Modes Explained

A "smart" ("electronic") bike trainer has electronic features that allow riders to choose how they would like to work out: with resistance that's controlled automatically, or resistance controlled manually a la a mechanical trainer. This can be accomplished using two modes. The terminology for each mode differs between manufacturers, but the functionality of each mode is the same. Let's dive in... Note: TrainerRoad will display the modes that are supported by your trainer when you pair your trainer. ERG Mode (Resistance Control Mode) This is the most commonly used mode. TrainerRoad can automatically control the trainer's resistance in accordance with the workout's profile while in ERG mode. There's no need to shift in this mode as the resistance will change automatically, and we recommend keeping a steady and easy-to-hold cadence throughout the entire ride (unless workout instructions tell you otherwise or you need to "ramp up" your pedaling for a tough interval). Tips when using ERG mode: Gearing can affect the nature of your workout. Follow these gearing tips when completing a workout in ERG mode: Set your gearing - In order to maintain smooth, even power across all of your power zones, you should maintain a mid-ring gearing in the rear cassette, and either a mid (if you have three) or inner (if you have two) front chainring. Your chain should follow a straight path from rear to front. This will also help you avoid hitting a wattage floor. When in doubt, check your Trainer's manual for their recommended gearing settings or reach out to us. Mid-gear in the rear cassette IMG_0284-2.jpg Inner chainring in the front IMG_0293-2.jpg Maintain your gearing - In most cases, you should not change gears once you've set your gearing. Changing your gears may confuse your smart trainer and can result in a temporarily uneven delivery of resistance. Cadence can directly change your output power during your workout if you're changing your RPMs significantly (e.g. >10-15 RPM). When increasing your cadence, your power will attempt to rise; to counteract this, your trainer will lower the resistance. The opposite will occur when lowering your cadence; an increase in resistance will be felt. Anticipate upcoming intervals by slowly ramping your cadence before the interval begins. You should ramp to your desired cadence that you'd like to maintain during the interval. This will help you be able to manage the upcoming change in prescribed power. Maintain a steady cadence - With the exception of the previous point, it's recommended to maintain a constant cadence within a range from 80-100 rpm during your workout. This is the best practice unless otherwise stated in the workout description and/or text. For even more information on ERG mode, click here. Resistance Mode This mode mimics the functionality of a magnetic trainer with a linear power curve. This mode includes a variable resistance setting that can be electronically adjusted. Tips using Resistance Mode: Changing Gears When using resistance mode, you'll need to change gears as you typically would while riding outdoors. To reduce wear on your trainer, try to select your gearing that limits cross chain as much as possible. This will also keep you riding as quietly as possible indoors. Finding the right Resistance Percentage You may find that the "default" resistance percentage of 50% that many trainers default to is far too high to actually train at based on your gearing - it might be impossible to turn the pedals. If you plan on using Resistance modes, we highly recommend finding the right Resistance mode percentage before starting your workout. If you use the TrainerRoad desktop app, you can use the left and right arrow keys to adjust the Resistance mid-workout. Standard Mode This mode mimics the functionality of a fluid trainer with a non-linear, exponential power curve. This mode includes a variable resistance setting that can be electronically adjusted. The major advantage of the Fluid Power Curve (Standard Mode) is that one setting can cover a wider range of wattages. Since the curve ramps up, the maximum power you can generate in a giving setting is greater than the Magnetic curve (Resistance Mode), which can be seen in the graph. magnetic-resistance-turbo-trainer-power-curve-2.jpg Shown above is a power curve of magnetic and fluid trainers. Resistance Mode mimics the linear power curve of a magnetic trainer while Standard Mode mimics the non-linear curve of a fluid trainer. Our Recommendations For most training sessions, we recommend using ERG mode. In this mode, smart trainers constantly adjust resistance to match TrainerRoad's target power - no shifting or cadence adjustments necessary. ERG mode allows you to focus purely on the workout at hand. That said, there are a few special cases where using ERG mode is not recommended. 1. FTP testing intervals on an 8-minute or 20-minute FTP Test Test intervals inside of one of an 8 minute or 20 minute FTP test will need to be done in either Standard or Resistance mode. Since these intervals should be done as hard as you can, we don't want ERG mode limiting your power output. Don't worry though, TrainerRoad will automatically switch your trainer out of ERG mode during test intervals. Note: The Ramp Test used to calculate FTP can be completed in any mode, but ERG mode is recommended. 2. Sprint intervals ERG trainers perform a brief ramp up to an interval’s target power. For longer, less-intense intervals, this ramp-up is hardly noticeable. However, this ramp is more pronounced for short, high-intensity intervals. If an interval is under 30 seconds, riders may want to consider riding in Resistance mode to avoid any lag time in reaching their target watts. Changing Modes on Mobile (Android & iOS) Before starting your workout - First pair your device under the Device tab. - Once paired, tap on your trainer to bring up the device settings. - From this page, you can now change between your trainer's available modes. settings_KICKR.gif During a workout - Tap the devices button in the bottom right-hand corner of your workout screen. - This will take you to the Device Quick Actions menu. - Tap Smart Trainer to initiate a spindown calibration - Tap Power Meter to initiate a zero calibration. quicksettings_KICKR.gif Changing Modes on Desktop (Windows & Mac) Before starting your workout - First, pair your device under the Device tab. - Once paired, tap on your trainer to bring up the device settings. - From this page, you can now change between your trainer's available modes. change_mode_before.gif During a workout - From the bottom toolbar, click on the menu showing your current mode. - From the menu, select your desired mode. - Use the slider to the right to adjust modes (if applicable). - Then continue to ride! change_modes_during.gif

Smart Trainers • Last updated on Aug 20, 2026

Swim Drills and RPE Table

In addition to everything you need to get faster on the bike, our Triathlon plans include swim and run workouts. Of course, your swim and run workouts will be done outside of the TrainerRoad application, but this article should help you better understand the recommended drills we assign you in the pool as well as rates of perceived exertion both in the water and on foot. Swim Drills - Back Sculling (BS) - Keep your arms at your sides and point your fingertips back toward your toes as you propel yourself with those familiar figure-eight movements without moving your hands any wider than shoulder width. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvkCqpTsvEQ - Bilateral Breathing (BB) - Swim your regular freestyle stroke while breathing during every third stroke forcing yourself to discover and improve your weaker side. If this is challenging & uncoordinated at first, hang in there - your clumsy side will improve with practice. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaCbquF5lm0 - Catch-Up (CU) - Your lead arm will remain fully extended in front of you until your working arm completes a full stroke. The working arm now becomes the lead arm and remains fully extended in front of you until your working arm completes its full stroke and "catches up". Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpczzwoXbyQ - Chest Sculling (CS) - With your chest facing down, bend your elbows and point your fingertips down while keeping your elbows high. Make the same figure-eight patterns with both hands to propel yourself forward, effectively repeating the center of the stroke. - Fastest Average (FA) - Swim each repetition at a pace that is as fast as you can sustain for the entire set, while still being able to complete all the repetitions at the given RPE. Aim to maintain a consistent time for each repetition throughout the set. For example: If doing 4 x 100m freestyle, it would be better to swim 1:20, 1:21, 1:19, 1:20 (with an average pace of 1:20 per 100m) than to swim 1:18, 1:18, 1:20, 1:28 (averaging 1:21 per 100m). - Fingertips & Thumbs (F&T) - During your normal freestyle stroke, keep your elbows high and lightly drag your fingertips across the water as your working arm recovers. Then, as your working hand exits the water on the release, lightly scrape your thumb against your thigh. These two actions can be done individually or combined. This is sometimes referred to as a "fingertip drag" drill. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36lp6NgDYF0 - Fists (F) - Swim with clenched fists and focus on rotating your shoulders and bending your working elbow during the catch, creating a pull that's nearly as powerful as one done with an open hand. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HH0TlKA-UFU - Front Sculling (FS) - Stretch your arms out in front of you, fingertips pointed forward, arms no more than shoulder-width apart and use both hands to propel yourself forward by "sculling" in a figure-eight pattern as you simulate the catch over & over. Use a minimal kick and do this with your head up or down. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1ex2GbQ9WI - Half Catch-Up (HCU) - This abbreviated catch-up will bring the full catch-up drill closer to your actual freestyle stroke. Instead of waiting until your working arm reaches your lead arm, start pulling with your lead hand a little earlier when your working hand is even with your lead arm's elbow. This is sometimes referred to as an "almost catch-up" drill. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRCDgVG9GuM - Kick & Rotate (K&R) - Begin kicking on your side for 3-5 seconds, then rotate onto your belly and "catch up" to your leading arm with the other arm bringing both arms out in front of you. Pull with the arm that was leading as you roll onto your opposite side. Kick for 3-5 seconds on this side, catch up with the other arm, and immediately pull the previously leading arm and rotate to the opposite side. Over time, try to spend only 2 seconds at a time kicking on each side. This is sometimes referred to as a "kick-switch" drill. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wBE0Dk1BE5s - Kicking (K) - Swim facedown using only your feet to propel you as you breathe just as you would during a freestyle stroke by rolling to the side and turning your head to catch some air. Focus on "pushing" your chest down while keeping your legs & hips up toward the surface as you practice balance & kicking technique. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l55T3gby54o - Side Kicking (SK) - Swim on your side with your lower arm extended ahead of you and the upper arm resting against your side. Rest your head against your shoulder and look down, keeping your head completely submerged while using only your kick to propel yourself. Rotate your head slightly when inhaling and try to keep your hips & legs high throughout as you swim a full pool length before switching sides. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5gfI3SRLQE - Sighting (S) - Instead of turning your head to the side to breathe, raise your head to look forward and "sight" a landmark toward which you'll swim. Breathe just as you would when turning to the side by inhaling before lowering your head, exhaling underwater, and learn to disrupt your stroke as minimally as possible in the process - eventually not at all. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNdvm_VLlqc - Single-Arm (SA) - Restrict yourself to one arm’s use for an entire pool length by keeping the opposite arm extended in front of you or at your side (advanced). If necessary, perform these drills using fins until you improve to the point that you can eliminate them. Try to use a moderate kick and normal body positioning, rolling into your working arm. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YXOT_HQtjM - Stroke Counting (SC) - Target your stroke efficiency by trying to reduce the number of strokes you use to reach the opposite side of the pool. Count your strokes on your first trip across, then try to reduce the number of strokes during the next 2-3 trips across the pool by taking longer, more powerful pulls, rotating more & gliding a bit longer. This is sometimes referred to as a "distance per stroke" drill. Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2sxK3Pz6TM Swimming/Running Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) Key | | | | | --- | --- | --- | | RPE 2 | Recovery | Active Recovery | | RPE 4 | Easy | Warmup/Cooldown | | RPE 6 | Easy-Moderate | TR Endurance | | RPE 7 | Moderate | TR Sustained Power | | RPE 8 | Moderate-Hard | TR Threshold | | RPE 9 | Hard | TR VO2max | | RPE 10 | All-Out | TR High Power | | RPE N/A | Sprint | TR Burst Power | Select the following link for more information on the RPE Table: Swimming/Running RPE Key Explained Getting Your Swim Workout to the Pool Looking to bring your swim workouts with you, but don't want to get your phone wet? Here is our suggestion: - Simply write down your swim workout for the day or copy and paste the workout and drill instructions into a document that can be printed. - Next, go ahead and place your workout in a plastic baggie for safekeeping. - When you get to the pool, you can then stick your workout on a kickboard for easy reference during your session. No phone needed!

Triathlon Training • Last updated on Aug 20, 2026

What are Post Workout Surveys?

After you complete a workout, TrainerRoad asks one quick question: How did this effort feel? Your answer gives TrainerRoad AI qualitative feedback that power data alone can't capture, and it's one of the things that helps your training adapt to you. When you tell us how a workout went, and why, TrainerRoad AI can account for it instead of guessing. survey-edit-modal.png Surveys only take a few seconds. If you skip one, complete a workout offline, or ride outside, you can still add your response later. You have up to 7 days after the activity to edit a response or add one in. How Should I Answer Surveys? When it comes to surveys our biggest piece of advice is to not overthink it. Rate the overall difficulty of the entire ride, not how you expected it to feel, and not the single hardest interval. There are no right or wrong answers, and answering honestly matters more than answering "correctly." I f you catch yourself tempted to answer differently to sway your future workouts or your FTP, that's a sign you might be overthinking it or giving TrainerRoad the wrong data. We also recommend answering right after the workout while the effort is fresh in your mind. How to Rate Your Effort - 1 - Easy This ride felt easy and non-taxing, requiring little effort or focus. You could repeat the ride and pass it without issue. - 2 - Moderate This ride was somewhat comfortable but required some focus to complete. You felt a little challenged but had confidence that you could finish. If the ride had an additional set of intervals, you could complete it. - 3 - Hard This ride required effort and focus and was challenging to complete. It felt tough, and you looked forward to the ride ending. If there were an additional set of intervals, you could have done it with significant focus. - 4 - Very Hard This ride was very difficult to complete, and it tested you. If there were one more set of intervals, you wouldn't have been able to complete it. - 5 - Maximum Effort This ride was extremely difficult. It pushed you well beyond your abilities and took a massive amount of energy and focus to complete. You felt like you barely made it to the end of this ride, and that you had to pull out every mental trick in the book to finish. If you had to pause during a workout to catch your breath or adjust the power demand down, the workout was likely a maximum effort. - If a workout was a maximum effort because of external factors like illness, poor sleep, or fatigue, be sure to add that detail in the follow-up question. Follow-Up Questions Some workouts get a second question. TrainerRoad AI analyzes your ride data to decide which survey you see. If it looks like you struggled, didn't hit the workout's power targets, or ended the workout early, it asks why, and your response can confirm or correct what it detected. - If the workout looked like you struggled to finish, you'll be asked for the primary reason today's ride was challenging. - If you didn't hit the workout's power targets, you'll be asked what kept you from hitting them. - If you ended the workout early, you'll be asked what best explains why you cut it short. Depending on the situation, the reasons you can choose from include: - Time ConstraintIntensity - Too Easy - Fatigued - Under-fueled, - Poor Sleep - Stressed/Unmotivated - Sick - Injured, Equipment Issue - Heat - Menstrual Cycle - Other: with room to add your own note when none of the options fit. Pick the option that had the biggest impact on your workout. How TrainerRoad AI weighs a tough day depends on the reason: struggling because of poor sleep or under-fueling is not the same as struggling because the workout itself was too intense and a workout you cut short because you were overheating is not the same as one you cut short because you've lost fitness. If TrainerRoad AI got it wrong, say so. That's what "I didn't struggle with this workout" is for. And on outside workouts, where power data can't tell the whole story, you'll also see "I Did Not Pass" for rides that didn't go as prescribed, regardless of why. (You won't see "I Did Not Pass" on indoor workouts — indoors, TrainerRoad AI reads your power data directly and serves the right survey automatically.) Surveys for Outside Rides, Races, and Zwift Surveys aren't just for indoor workouts, you'll be asked how every ride felt, including unstructured outside rides and races. Those responses are a really important part of analyzing your fitness, especially if outside riding makes up a big share of your volume. - Outside workouts: If your ride was matched to a structured TrainerRoad workout, rate the structured portion of the ride, not the extra volume you added before or after it. And rate what you actually did: if you pushed above the targets until the effort felt hard, answer "Hard," even if the workout as originally prescribed would have felt easy. - Unstructured rides and races: just rate how the ride felt overall. An all-out race that felt brutally hard simply because racing is intense isn't a red flag about your fitness. If you get a follow-up question, "Intensity" is usually the right reason to pick. - Zwift: you'll answer the effort survey right in Zwift when you finish a TrainerRoad workout there. If TrainerRoad AI needs the struggle follow-up, you'll complete that part in the TrainerRoad app afterward. How to Add or Change an RPE Response If a survey wasn't completed right away, whether it was skipped, or the workout was completed offline or outside you can still add a response for up to 7 days after the activity. You can change an existing response in the same places: Web Step One: Open the ride from your Calendar or Activity List. Step Two: If a response is missing, you'll see a banner asking "How difficult was this workout?" Click this banner ride-analysis-missing-response.png Step Three: Pick your rating, and hit Save. If you already responded, click your rating in the "You rated this workout as:" banner. From there you can select a new rating and select Save. App Step One: Find the workout on the Calendar that you would like to add or change the RPE of. Tap the rating (or the missing-response prompt) in the workout details. Screenshot 2026-07-23 at 1.35.26 PM.png Step Two: Select or change the RPE survey and hit Save Screenshot 2026-07-23 at 1.40.13 PM.png If you receive a survey reminder email, you can also respond directly from the email by clicking the option that matches how the workout felt. Post-Workout Survey FAQs How should I respond to the survey if my effort varied over the course of the workout? Rate the ride as a whole. Even the hardest TrainerRoad workouts include rest intervals, and the end of an interval set will usually feel harder than the beginning of the set. This is all normal. The same workout might also feel different on different days depending on how you fueled or how stressful your day was. More important than what's typical or expected is how the ride actually felt to you. How do surveys help me get faster? Your responses give TrainerRoad AI context that ride data alone can't. If you're under or overshooting power targets, we look at the objective power data when analyzing your ride, but your survey tells us how that effort felt, which helps us tell the difference between a bad day, a hard-but-productive day, and a fitness change. That context feeds your upcoming workout recommendations and AI FTP Detection, and it helps keep your training appropriate for your abilities when fatigue starts to build. How important are surveys for my training? The more surveys you complete, the better TrainerRoad AI understands you as an individual, and the more personalized your recommendations become. Completing them consistently and honestly is important. You'll also build a subjective record of your training you can learn from later. Why do I occasionally see different questions on my surveys? Surveys adapt to how the workout went. If everything went to plan, you'll just get the rating question. If you lowered the intensity enough, skipped intervals, ended the workout early, or rated the effort as a maximum effort, you'll get a follow-up asking why. You may also see a follow-up when a ride was expected to be easy but you rated it hard. TrainerRoad AI just wants to know why a ride of that type was difficult. Either way, rate it how it felt. What do I do if my survey says I struggled with the workout, even though I wasn't really struggling? Select "I didn't struggle with this workout." Sometimes life happens, a phone call, a stretch break, a dropped sensor, and it can make a workout look harder than it really felt. The survey exists to clear that up. If you really did struggle, it's important to be honest about that, too. No judgment here, our only goal is to help you get faster. Will the system get confused if I take a break to stretch, fill bottles, or answer the phone? TrainerRoad AI makes allowances for short breaks between sets. If you pause during work intervals, it may read the workout as more of a challenge than you meant it to be and if it concludes you struggled when you didn't, you can override that on the survey by selecting "I didn't struggle with this workout." What if I don't have time to complete the survey? The surveys are designed to take no more than a few seconds, but if you miss one, don't worry, you can go back and complete it up to 7 days after the workout (see "How to Add or Change an RPE Response" above). What if I don't want to complete a survey? We highly recommend completing surveys so TrainerRoad AI can tailor your training. I tried to complete a missed survey but can't. What happened? You have up to 7 days after completing a workout to complete or edit its survey. We limit this window so your recollection of the effort is still fresh. That helps keep the data associated with your training trustworthy. If it's been less than 7 days and you still can't respond, shoot us an email at [email protected] and we'll investigate ASAP. When do I select "Other" as a reason? Select "Other" when you struggled or ended a workout early for a reason that isn't in the list. You can type a short note describing what happened, and it's saved with your workout. Why did I get a survey for an unstructured, outside ride? Every ride counts. Your RPE responses on unstructured outside rides are an important part of how TrainerRoad AI analyzes your fitness. Especially if outside rides make up a big share of your riding. If I complete an Outside Workout, where do I complete the survey? Sync the ride from your head unit. Then open the activity on the TrainerRoad website or in the app and add your response from the workout details (see "How to Add or Change an RPE Response" above). Should I get a Post-Workout Survey for my Ramp Test? No. This is because the Ramp Test is an all-out effort.

TrainerRoad AI • Last updated on Jul 23, 2026