Is anybody else disappointed with Group Workouts?

I’m fine with them making it and it looks like another quality TR application…so from that end it’s great. I have no plans on using it, but that’s on me.

My real question is that this seems to be at complete odds with TR’s ethos of Structured Training Structured Training Structured Training. Unless someone out there is on the same day of the same plan as me, doing random group rides won’t mesh with my plan.

I’m currently embroiled in the Build phase of the HV Oly Tri plan, and I have very little wiggle room to do ad hoc workouts. So, am I missing something when I say that this new feature looks to be at odds w the entire TR philosophy of structured training?

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Doubt I will ever use it personally but not disappointed with it…however would have preferred time and effort put towards syncing runs and swims which has been promised ‘in the pipeline’ for a long time and seems a basic but important thing for triatheletes

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  • The current situation is that everyone in the room is on the same workout.
  • They stated that they will add the ability for each person to be doing a different workout. When that happens, the only real restriction is timing. It may be a bit odd to have one person on a hard VO2 workout vs one on Endurance, but there will be connection possible, that can serve as motivation and general chat.
  • As above, the long term tool will be flexible in what you can do at the same time. It will not require changes to your plan or training, like we are doing now.
  • What we have now is merely a foundation (a rather good one), but it will be improved over time, and should be closer to meeting a wider range of needs as a result.
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The social aspect is great.

Commitment - I’m not getting up at 5am to hit the trainer, I’ll snooze that alarm every time. If I’ve agreed to meet someone though, I’ll be there.

Competition - I’ve pushed myself to the absolute limit on zwift to beat complete strangers in a race I don’t care about. I’d like to ramp test as a group for motivation to not give up until physical failure.

Motivation - I struggle and bail out of low zone rides when I get bored, I’m not going to bail out and leave people I’d agreed to ride with.

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Well, for starters, many of us can’t swim right now, so there aren’t any swims to sync ;p But on a more serious note, you have to remember that not every platform makes all their features for you. They release features for multiple users, who use the platform in different ways. While this update may not impact you - it’s certainly something I have no interest in and will never use - it is absolutely a smart pivot considering what’s happening in the world right now. There are some folks in my tri club who are doing regular group rides on TR now, they love it.

Just because I don’t understand the value of a feature doesn’t mean I can’t use my eyes to see other people find it valuable and enjoyable. I will keep looking forward to additional enhancements from TR that will more directly impact me.

Happy riding!

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I certainly think that if I did ever use this feature (I doubt I will…but if I did), then totally for a ramp test!

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I think this looks promising and can add a social aspect in this time of quarantine. My local bike club is setting up Zwift meetups and I tried it but I’m not a fan of the video game style format. No real structure to the workouts either. I’ve been a trainerroad member since 2013 so I like the solitary nature of this format but the group workouts can bring some social aspect to it as well.

Looking forward to trying it. Cancelling my Zwift trial.

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Ok. Given your points about future development, this makes a lot more sense. Thanks for clearing that up!

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As was already mentioned, it’s entirely possible that this GW feature came to fruition without impact on the multi-sport issue. They are large enough (80 employees?) that they are likely working on 2 or more concurrent projects. So this may not have hurt features that are already in development. Sure, something likely got shelved a bit, but we have no idea what or how long.

In its current iteration its probably not something I will use.
However if they added something like like a schedule of workouts that you could drop into that would be awesome, I dont have anyone that I know doing the same plan as me and scheduling things is a hassle.

I would totally drop into a room of scheduled workouts, say every 30 minutes or so with anyone around the world that would be quite motivating to me since we would both be suffering through the same workout.

Also once they add the ability to do different workouts at the same time I will probably use it with a couple of friends that also use TrainerRoad.

Just my thoughts, I see it as super useful for motivation and pushing that extra bit when you have someone there with you, I know I sometimes can talk myself out of a hard workout or interval, with someone else there you kinda just have to push through it, dont want to be the guy that quites.

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Not disappointed at all. Glad TR is continuing to add to the platform. Is this something I will use daily? Probably not, but with friends around the world I can see a few group rides on the horizon with my kids and others. It may become a steady occurrence in fact and riding consistently will make me a faster cyclist. I can just see the competitive juices flowing among my friends to see who can increase their FTP

This feature got released different than typical TR fashion. They normally only push out stuff that is well tested and polished.

This was different and pushed to get the minimum viable product out the door, so we could benefit from the core function in these tough times. I think it was the right call, and we can hopefully deal with the shortcomings as we move forward, and they add functions as well.

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I should note it’s personally funny to me how the multisport folks keep pushing for a feature a lot of us don’t care about lol I will be the first to start a topic on that day flaming the multisport feature!

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In light of my work I am stuck doing my workouts @ 4:00 a.m. for most of the spring and summer. Last night I saw on the group google calendar that someone was doing the same workout I had on my plan at the same time I needed to do it.
This morning I drug my butt out of bed at 3:45 and got on the bike to try my first group workout. Upon joining the workout I was greeted by a fellow halfway around the world sitting on his trainer ready to roll. We chatted during our warmup and the rest intervals. He was kind enough to give me some pointers for the group workouts and recommend a product or two. We talked about the virus, racing and other things.
I had a great experience and had a chance to meet someone I would never have met otherwise.

I won’t use the group function all of the time, but for recovery weeks or aerobic workouts it would be a great distraction. With TR’s track record I have no doubt that it will become more polished and the feature list will grow.

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Doubt I will ever use it, too much work to sync up with my friends just to see them suffering on camera. I love the simplicity of TR. Schedule workout, hop on, and go. Syncing up with other people just adds another step in the process that I don’t have time for.

That said it’s a cool feature and I love that TR is innovating. Can’t wait to see what they come up with next.

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One thing that I have been considering is the option for people to drop into the middle of a workout. For example, I think the Tri plans have a long endurance ride on one of the weekend days. If you are doing a 3 hour ride and another person is doing a shorter aerobic ride that day then they can come into your session for the middle hour to just change things up and give you a chance to catch up while you would normally be watching tv or something else.

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Sounds like a cool feature that I might try some day, but I do want to make sure I understand the TR group ride etiquette…

Which half should I have naked for these sessions? :see_no_evil:

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I’d like the ability to drop in on any group workouts at any time mainly just to heckle people, mock their bike position, their drapes, love handles, haircut, etc.

Of course, I would do this while having a beer and consider it CX training. :beer:

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  • That is very possible, and a great use of the option.

Not something I see myself ever using. The only thing I’m bummed about is that I thought the “Big announcement” was going to be getting the multisport / calendar finally worked out. That issue has LOTS of people raising their hand saying it’s something they want. I haven’t read a single thread on here were people were asking for this, although I could have missed it? I’ve been looking at trainingpeaks to track my Tri stuff because it doesn’t seem like it’s something that’s likely ever going to happen here.

For the biking aspect, TR is great!

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