I would like to use my Garmin watch for my indoor bike workouts.
I use a smart home trainer for indoor cycling so I want my Garmin watch to control the trainer in ERG mode as the prescribed workout dictates.
When sending the workout to Garmin there are three possibilities to choose from 1. Prescribe workout by pace 2. Prescribe workout by heart rate 3. Let our Smart Coach choose the best option.
If I “download” the prescribed workout by pace to Garmin will my watch control the home trainer in ERG mode? (changing the desired output (watts) automatically)
Or I should train in the prescribed heart rate zone(s) during the cycling training? What is the best method for smart trainers?
ERG mode will only work when the workout is prescribed by “power”. I’m not sure why you see like that but for cycling workouts, you should see the first option not as “pace” but “power” instead:
Hey there @Creative32 ! I was also using my Fenix 6 to control my smart trainer (Elite) for power based workouts. I ended up switching to zwift and using my phone to connect my BT sensors.
The process of managing the trainer and controlling the resistance was cumbersome on the watch. I asked Athletica to use smart coach, so for z2 sessions the trainer was in resistance mode (changing gears to get my hr into the right zone) and the hiit sessions in ERG since its power based.
Keep in mind that when prescribed by power and set in erg mode, it’ll aim for the middle of the power zone. Adjusting the power is a pain in the butt.
Thank you very much Paul, for your answer. It is completely clear what the smart coach does, but my question was not primarily about that. One of the advantages of smart trainers is the ERG mode, which many training platforms utilize. Jesse answered my question below. Another external platform is needed to execute the prescribed workout in ERG mode. Like Zwift. As I see I can export the session in . ZWO format then copy to Zwift folder to have it as a custom workout. All platforms missing one thing what the other has. Example: In Trainerroad you have AI driven, adaptive training plans and your home trainer is controlled by the program itself. You train your bike sessions in ERG mode but Trainerroad does not have structured training plan for triathletes (no running, no swimming evaluation). As the first impression I like Athletica but it would be great if Athletica could control home trainers what many ppl use during wintertime as a main cycling tool. But I love as it is now I’ll finish TR subscription and I’ll it give a try to Athletica.
We’re building our product roadmap @Creative32 and I’ve just added your suggestion there. Agree entirely with you that we should try to do that for Athletica users. Thank you for your voice and support.
I have some first timer Smart Trainer questions here, I was hoping that those with more experience are able to answer.
To begin, I have used a fluid trainer for decades for my indoor cycling. Two years ago I added Power meter pedals to my bike (Favero Assioma DUO). This week I purchased my first smart trainer (Saris M2). I use a Garmin Edge 530 computer to follow along with for my Athletica programing. For those who are familiar, do I need to do any calibrations with the Garmin Edge? I did the calibrations for the M2 through the Saris app.
My first workout with the smart trainer was a Short HIIT 40”/20” interval ride as it shows up on my Garmin Edge. The warm-up was straight forward (planned power range 94-181w) while maintaining cadence within the 85-90 rpm range. When the first 40” interval came (planned power range 278-589w), the M2 changed the resistance as expected. However it was such a significant increase to where I was producing power in the 420+ wattage range and my cadence dropped into the 50’s. When the 20” easy pedal came about, the resistance dropped automatically. I continued like this for the first of two sets. I also noticed my Workout Reserve was not changing and stayed at 99.9% the entire time.
Seeing this, and wondering if I needed to recalibrate, I stopped the workout. I switched back to my fluid trainer and restarted the workout from the beginning.
Is this what I should expect when using the smart trainer? Should I also be changing gears?
you answered my question. So you use Zwift custom workout with the exported . ZWO file from Athletica … good. I will do that too