Good start
Nothing like the start of the year to motivate getting fit. After a dismal 2024, 2025 has started well. Probably better than any of my previous years. I am keeping to my goal of 3 workout sessions a week. In fact, I have been able to work out everyday since 2 Jan. It’s been two weeks. Hopefully this streak continues. What helped:
- Sleep. I tried doing the same early last year but crashed (flu) due to a lack of sleep. This time, I’m ensuring 7+ hours per day and plenty of fluids. Seems to be working out so far.
- Load. 3km runs and/or 15-20 min spins are manageable on a daily basis. My family commitments have stabilised. Work is ok for now. Long may this continue.
It is not only about being active. I am also trying to get closer to fitness levels of 2016-2017. I am a long way off. To reach such levels, I have to put in longer hours and harder efforts. It is within reach especially on weekends. 7-10km runs are doable. And so are 60 minute spins. This is on a weekly basis. As for each month, I am hoping to squeeze a 2-4 hour ride once or hopefully twice.
I find it easier to push myself when running. It is much harder when cycling. Maybe because cycling provides me the option to coast and still move. Can’t really do that when running. And this segues to the Zwift vs MyWhoosh comparison.
Zwift vs MyWhoosh
Zwift is now US$199 a year. (Yikes!) I stopped my subscription in December because of the high price and also because I had a back injury (fully recovered now, thankfully!) The only proper free alternative was MyWhoosh. It has dubious sports washing origins but it also has very close to Zwift’s feature set (and for free). I gave it a go.
This is not a proper review; just a quick comparison from the perspective of my needs. I thought MyWhoosh met my needs well. It paired quickly and reliably with my devices. (Kickr Core and Epix 2 via Bluetooth.) Gameplay was smooth, Graphics looked a tad better than Zwift. Infographics for workouts were pretty close to Zwift’s.
But my needs changed. In the past, I used Zwift (and then MyWhoosh) to do solo rides and workouts. All the software did was to provide some fancy graphical overlay of raw numbers. But as I alluded to above, it was hard to push myself during solo rides. Every time I got on the bike, it was counting down to the end of an interval or the end of the ride. I realised I made the most gains on the bike in the past when I was riding with friends, especially friends that were stronger than me because they pushed me and I had to often chase them down. I needed to replicate that indoors.
This is where Zwift shone. I last tried a Zwift group ride in 2022. Back then, there were not many events. Fast forward to 2025, the scene has exploded. There is a group ride, group workout and/or race every 10-15 minutes 24/7. It’s ridiculous. Events are also all pretty well attended. I also like that you can sign up for events in advance and it will integrate with your calendar to prompt you to prep for the group ride – very much like my real life group rides in the past. (Can’t find a real life ride now that fits my family’s schedule.)
And the experience is pretty close. I’ve gone for a few group rides and workouts, and found myself pushing hard. I am going to try races next. With this, I decided to return to Zwift.
TL:DR – If you need social/group motivation to step up your indoor cycling, get Zwift. If you are a pure soloist, MyWhoosh has you covered. (To clarify, MyWhoosh has similar group activities but there are just significantly fewer events and people in its ecosystem.)
