UKH

Zwift seems to be the most popular smart trainer app among most people I know, but have been reading good things about sufferfest from reviews this morning.

Currently just using wattbike hub on a wattbike pro which has a limited amount of training sessions but is free so great, but if I am going to start spending money, which one would you choose?

The chap next to me today was using Sufferfest on his phone with the wattbike pro which got me thinking.

From my bit of research so far, Zwift for fun with your mates, Sufferfest for some serious training, a bit more science and (sounds like) more improvement.

Interested in others thoughts?

Zwift has a free 25km every month, and if you sign up for the first time you get a full week free. Give it a go! Also works on your phone (well, my phone at least - iPhone 8), although I have no first-hand experience of how it behaves with a Wattbike (I've actually been meaning to test this out).

Zwift has plenty of structured training sessions and even training plans, or the ability to import/create your own; and you can do group training sessions with your mates. Has w/kg category based racing too, which is absolutely brutal at times and often provides me with the additional motivation to actually do a turbo session.

Not tried sufferfest, but have not been disappointed with Zwift at all.

I can only speak for Zwift, I too have a Wattbike and a Zwift set up. I like the social side of it, I can jump on and think ill just have a nice easy 15min spin before you know it you're racing against others pushing yourself and dripping wet. There are multiple training plans with more being added on a regular basis. You can unlock stuff as you go but thats mainly bikes and tops etc but don't read too deeply into that. Also it counts towards your strava challenges (not the actual strava ones the specialist ones like ride for 6hrs stuff). They are constantly building new locations and adding to the older ones, looking at the scenery is something that lets the time pass as well and if you want if you get a footpod you can run on it as well...

Loads of the pro's use Zwift...

Trainerroad for me. Stick it on while watching a film/listening to a podcast.

Zwift didn't do much for me.

It seems a bit of a minefield these days with an expanding universe of apps, someone else just told me Fulgaz is the one to go for...hhmm

You can pay attention to a film or podcast when doing over/under's at 120% ftp?

This is what I never got with TR. Nearly every serious cyclist I know who uses it tries to convert the sessions (albeit good sessions and plans) onto another system to keep themselves entertained. I tried it myself, but if I'm doing 3 hours low intensity it's outdoors for me.

I've done a lot on the sufferfest. It sort of depends what you want to get out of your training. If you want to use your indoor sessions as compressed 45-90min HIT training, and be entertained and kept going through the pain then the sufferfest has it nailed.

If you want to substitute the indoor trainer for all of your riding - low intensity, steady state and maybe even racing - then Zwift is a lot better. As you go further on in the Sufferfest lengths the sessions just get stupid (great, thanks, 300tss of hit intervals for 3 hrs, kill me).

Also it depends on how you structure your training plan and where it's coming from. The plans on SF are more rudimentary, whereas the TR and Zwift are generally better thought out and more progressive. For me - I write my own ATP on Trainingpeaks in conjunction with my coach and so the SF just slots into the "indoor HIT" bracket. The rest is done in group sessions, on the road, or at this time of year - mainly - in the gym.

I've gone zwift, so I can race... Any my son can just pootle around.

I've written my own training sessions... As most of the inbuilt ones  were too long..

Probably race once a week, steady ride once a week, do a structured training session once a week. All under an hour. Couldn't imagine doing much  more than an hour with other commitments