Table of contents
🤖
AI-generated summary
I’ve had a Zwift Ride with a KICKR CORE home trainer for a while now, and I’m pretty happy with it overall. I mainly use Zwift (when I’m motivated enough to pay €20/month) or MyWhoosh on days when I want to save money. The system is truly plug and play, which is a real strength… but that’s not what I’m here to talk about today.
Until recently, I’d only start an activity on my Apple Watch or Garmin to record heart rate and calories. But I discovered you can go much further. You can connect your Garmin watch (or bike computer) to pull in power, cadence, and speed data, while still benefiting from advanced Garmin features like Training Effect or Garmin Coach. And that changes everything.
Pairing Your Devices with Garmin 🚴
Nothing simpler. Just go to the Sensor menu on your watch (just like you’ve done for your heart rate strap). If you’re close to your home trainer, all the sensors should appear automatically. In my case, I can see:
• the home trainer (as a power sensor),
• cadence,
• and sometimes even speed.
How to Sync a Zwift Session with Garmin? 🫨
To enjoy both Zwift’s immersive experience and Garmin’s precise data, here’s how:
1. Start your activity on Zwift as usual.
2. On your Garmin watch or bike computer, start an "Indoor Cycling" activity.
3. Choose Freeride as the workout type (or equivalent).
4. And off you go!
At the end, stop the activity on Garmin, and you get all the metrics: average power, training effect, VO2Max estimate, and so on.
Garmin + Zwift: Watch Out for Double Syncing 👀
In my case, my Zwift account isn’t connected to Garmin Connect, so everything works fine. But if you’ve enabled automatic sync between Zwift and Garmin, you might end up with duplicates: one activity from Zwift, and another from your watch. Worth testing… or avoiding.
What If You Skipped Zwift Altogether? 🤑
Even better: you can train without Zwift. Thanks to Garmin Coach, your watch offers tailored training plans with power, cadence, or duration targets. You can also do a completely free Freeride and adjust the intensity zones yourself.
And all of it, no screen, no subscription. Just queue up a podcast, a series, or your favorite playlist, and you’re ready for an effective, distraction-free session.
Summary 😎
Zwift, MyWhoosh, Garmin… there are so many ways to train at home these days. The key is finding the right balance between enjoyment, cost, and effectiveness. And if you’re already kitted out with Garmin, you might already have everything you need to improve without spending another cent.
