Why We Love Velocity — And Why You Might Too
Thanks @Marjaana! I wanted to add my own recommendation to what you have already said.
At Athletica, we’re huge believers in Velocity as a smart and social way to train. So much so that we’re subsidizing the cost to make it easier for our community to jump in. Normally, a Velocity Premium membership is $39/month—but we’re offering it to you for just $5/month, fully integrated with your Athletica training plan.
Athletica users on a free trial get access to Velocity premium during their free trial. Athletica subscribers can upgrade to Velocity premium under Settings/Subscriptions and Billing and selecting Change Subscription to add the $5/month Velocity plan. Everyone can still access their training plan workouts on Velocity.
What Makes Velocity Different?
If you’ve used Zwift or other virtual training/racing apps, you’re probably used to hard group rides, races, and lots of HIIT and VO2max sessions. While fun, these formats often push you into higher intensity zones that don’t always align with your optimal training goals.
Velocity flips that script. It’s designed to help you train smarter, not just harder. The Premium experience is more like a spin class built around your personalized Athletica plan, so you’re riding at your own FTP or Critical Power, not someone else’s.
- Ride with Purpose: Sessions are aligned with your training targets.
- Live or Replay Options: Join live coached workouts or jump into replay sessions with other riders.
- Stay in the Zone: Some sessions include points for staying in your power or cadence zones for a little friendly competition.
- Community Feel: Chat with other riders during recovery blocks—yes, we see your pain faces too!
- Athletica-exclusive metrics like Workout Reserve help you train with insight, showing how much energy you have left during a workout.
What About the Free Version?
Even the free version of Velocity offers a compelling upgrade over your standard Garmin or Wahoo setup:
- Real-time data: Power, cadence, heart rate, training zones.
- Watch any video while riding: Your data is overlaid so you can ride and stream at the same time.
- Bonus for Athletica users: You’ll still see your Workout Reserve metric.
Weekly Schedule and Social Rides
As we head into outdoor riding season, Velocity still has a role—especially for quick, focused
midweek sessions like HIIT or Strength Endurance. Here’s what makes it even better:
- Live sessions (in green) for real-time coaching and community
- Scheduled replays (in blue) to ride together at a time that works for you—even if the coach isn’t live
- A growing community of Athletica riders to join and chat with during the ride
Personally, I’ve been enjoying the Thursday morning HIIT sessions—even when just spinning easy to socialize while recovering from illness. And just this week, I did a recorded Critical Power Test with @Marjaana and @Prof. They rode it with me and coached me through it—it made a tough test feel a lot more doable.
Give It a Try
This is one of the most useful—and enjoyable—training platforms I’ve used. Whether you’re after better fitness, smarter training, or just some good company while riding, Velocity adds real value to your Athletica experience.
Use this thread to connect with other riders, suggest replay times that suit you, or ask questions.
If you’re interested, join our 6:30 am PST/9:30 am EST - Long HIIT session tomorrow (Thursday). We’d love to see you. Join early so we can help you with any setup.
LIVE coached sessions— Ride alongside others and get the motivation you need from real-time coaching from @Marjaana , @Prof and @SimpleEnduranceCoach
Went well below my workout reserve so I pushed it good. But would have been nice to have encouragement even if it was a replay from Coach Marjaana and Coach Prof!