Originally Posted by atwl77

Reading your post reminds me of why I use both The Sufferfest and Zwift, but for different purposes.

Structured training isn't just hard, it's boring. It's why people try to entertain themselves with other means while training, like watching a show on tv or Netflix. The Sufferfest manages to deliver structured training in a way that's entertaining and engaging, though these days they also offer "no video" workouts for the tv/Netflix crowd.

I don't think I would be able to do structured training on Zwift. As pretty as the graphics and scenery is, it's still a computer telling you to do X watts now, Y watts later, Z watts after that... and despite the pretty graphics, there's no engagement. To me, it's still boring. I'd rather be watching a show or movie while training.

But what Zwift does for me that structured training hasn't, is the motivation to push to my limits. Structured training comes in many forms and shapes, from sub-threshold intervals to tough VO2max efforts to even all-out sprint intervals. When it gets too hard, I find that I am more likely to crap out and DNF a really tough interval. But with Zwift racing, however, it brings out the competitive nature in me to keep pushing, because me knowing the riders in front of me are real people, instead of just a computer telling me to hold a certain wattage, is pretty strong motivation to push hard. So maybe once a week, when I really want to go hard, I pick a race on Zwift instead of a workout with high IF.