Once you have a plan and you are familiar with the basic tools in TrainingPeaks, there are a few things you can do to make sure that you are getting the most out of TrainingPeaks.
- Customize your layout. As you learn what information is most important for you to see, you can customize your layout to only display the information you need where you want to see it. Click on your name in the upper right corner of your TrainingPeaks account and scroll to “Layout”. From here, you can choose what you see on the calendar, in the workout, and in the weekly summary.
- Record every workout. Most devices will upload to TrainingPeaks automatically, but if your battery dies or you forget your computer you can still manually add an activity with some basic information.
- Leave feedback for your coach and yourself. Tell your coach how your training is going. Most coaches like data, but they all need feedback. You can leave a comment about your workout or just some basic feedback. Even if you are self-coached, leaving comments will help you in the future when you are reviewing your season.
- Use the workout and performance management metrics. Training is more than just hours on the bike. You need to make sure that your workouts are hard enough (and sometimes easy enough), that they are the right duration, and that you are training the right amount. The metrics in TrainingPeaks in the individual workouts and in the Performance Management Chart can help you make sure that you are actually training and not just riding. Make sure every workout in TrainingPeaks includes a TSS, even if it’s an estimate.
Pay attention to the metrics and your sensations for individual workouts and throughout the season, and soon you will start to see how those values relate to your best and worst workouts and races. You can start to use them to plan for your best season yet.
