I’ve never been much of a fan of indoor workout machines, preferring to be outside if I’m going to run or bike. I can’t stand treadmills and avoid them at pretty much all cost. They actually tend to make me a bit dizzy with the running motion, but not really going anywhere.

I’m less opposed to indoor bikes, but often found them to be a bit boring. Plus, I have a hard time motivating myself to work really hard on a bike. Enter Zwift, the virtual video-game-ified bike trainer that has taken the world by storm. My wife is a huge Zwift fan and last year we invested in the Zwift Frame stationary bike to hook up to the Wahoo trainer so that we didn’t need to bring her bike inside all the time when she wanted to do trainer rides. The advantage of the Frame is that it’s highly adjustable and it’s super easy to make it work for multiple people in a household.

So, I decided to give it a try a couple weeks ago and I’ve logged a few rides in it now, and have a few observations.

First, the gamification of riding is super fun. Being in a virtual world surrounded by other bikers and runners, handing out kudos as you pass people, and collecting power ups makes everything feel less like a workout. There’s collectibles you can get, and different worlds you can ride in, giving endless possibilities for how to have fun while spinning your legs.

Second… holy crap I’m getting good workouts out of this. Normally I don’t bike to “work out”, and tend to see biking as a utility to explore. I certainly push myself from time to time and try to up my performance, but I never really do a structured workout on a bike like I might do on a run (like intervals and such). But with Zwift it’s super easy to just tap on a route that is hilly or click on a structured workout course, and you’re off to the races. I’ve been able to keep my heart rate in the 140-150 range which is usually unheard of for me and biking. I’m normally sitting in the 120s, maybe an occasional ride in the 130s, but when I’m on the Zwift trainer I get pushed just enough to get me really working. I’ve finished my rides a sweaty mess.

Finally, I can totally see how people can go all in on this and love it. Between the solid workout possibilities and the ability to ride anytime in your own house, it lives up to the hype. I do feel like the price is the one thing that will keep me from a year-long membership. At $20/month it feels just a bit too steep for someone like myself who might average 1-2 rides per week. Once it’s a bit nicer outside I’m more likely to still hit dirt or pavement than sit inside in front of a screen. I wish they had something a little more reasonable that perhaps limited the number of rides per week you could do, or something like that. But for now I’ll most likely cancel at the end of February and consider re-upping next winter.

Until then though I’m going to enjoy myself and do some exploration in the game worlds and try some different workouts and routes that intrigue me. Despite the price I think for a lot of people this is an incredible technology that is brilliantly put together. Kudos Zwift!