Beginner questions

Support
1

Hi!

Im really sorry if there is another threads Like this but this is the Main Problem with this Program!
Its way too complicated for beginner!
You can get a bit of Information here and a bit there.
I would really Like something Like a complete manual or something that guides you through the process.
AT the moment im overwhelmed with all the adjustments, key words and so on.
May i wont have training success because i Do something wrong and that wasted (training) time.
Beware, some of your Users, Like me, May be non native speakers and then its really difficult.

Have a nice day!

9 Likes
2

Hopefully this is at least a decent start! Beginner’s Guide to Xert

It seems overwhelming, but “mastering” Xert actually comes down to understanding a few key concepts including, but not limited to:

  1. Fitness Signature & Breakthroughs - does your current signature accurately represent your fitness? And how do you update your signature as fitness improves?

  2. Training Load (e.g. where are you now?)

  3. Progression towards Target Event (e.g. where are you going?) - this includes improvement rate & periodization, based on your athlete type.

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Thanks for joining! Let your adventure begin. :smiley:
[For anyone just joining or running the trial.]
Give us some background info and we’ll help steer you in the right direction.

  1. Are you running the 30 day trial or are you a subscriber?
  2. What equipment do you have for training indoors and outdoors? Include meter type, trainer type, bike type, bike computer (if you have one), and phone (Android or iOS).
  3. Are you young (20-30s), older (60+), or in the middle? :slight_smile: (no need for exact age)
  4. How experienced are you with training by power? (newbie or X years using another platform)
  5. Are you a recreational rider or competitive racer?
  6. What are your goals? (example, special event in 3 months or best fitness for riding this summer)
  7. How many weeks or months of recent power data have you loaded into Xert?
  8. What is your current star status? (example, 2 stars)
  9. What Athlete type did you select? (determines focus duration target)
  10. Which Improvement Rate (IR) did you select? (hours/week training load & ramp rate)
  11. What TED (target event date) did you enter? (determines what phase are you in)

If any other newbies need some guidance feel free to use this list as your bio intro along with your question.

Don’t worry about language. We’ll figure it out. :thinking:

2 Likes
4

The free trail at the Moment.
At the Moment im feeding xert with my daily trainerroad data and see what is changing inside xert Charts and so on

Im 43 years old and started with structured training in october.
I have a kickr, favero assioma Pedals and a garmin 830.
Living in Europe, in the alps, at the Moment you can only train indoor.
I am a recreational rider and at the end of the trainerroad Plan to Start in to the spring season next month,
Xert rlated me with 3 Stars, i connect d it to my strava Account

Nice Greets!

1 Like
5

Additional
i Set xert to th date 15th of march (same Like trainerroad)
So xert knows im in the Peak Phase.
My indoor ftp is 236 Watt and weight is about 61 kg.

6

Hi Scott,

Have you considered adding a link to all of the articles on a user’s home fitness page? It would make them much easier to find, and perhaps reduce the amount of time you guys have to pass along links on the forum.

1 Like
7

There are question Marks everywhere.if you Klick them you get to the help page.
On the help page you will find more keywords, you Klick on them and so on and so


8

I forgot to ask what you selected for Athlete type and IR (improvement rate)?

With a 3 star status (competitive) you have gotten fit from your TL (training load) hours accumulated since October. In Peak phase Xert will be throwing some higher intensity workouts your way.

Make sure to take rest days as XATA (Xert adaptive training advisor) doesn’t do that automatically. It’s up to you to decide when to rest based on how you feel the next day. If very tired day after day it’s time to take a recovery week. You can lower IR when you need to do that and manually select recovery rides.

If Xert’s predicted freshness doesn’t match how you feel (better or worse) before starting workouts, click Goals and adjust the feedback slider, then Update Advice. The recommendations will change. Change the slider back towards center when the prediction is feeling about right.

I suggest you play with TED (target event date) and watch what happens to the recommended workout list during different phases. For example, set to 120 days from now to see Base training recommendations. Move the date closer to see Build phase changes then back to where you want it.

Also notice how focus duration changes as you move through phases towards your TED – http://baronbiosys.com/glossary/program-phases/
Final focus duration is dependent on your athlete type setting. GC Specialist is a good type to select for all-round fitness with a mix of workouts.
Another feature of Xert is how workouts are tailored to focus duration by athlete type. A Climber and Time Trialist may both be in Base phase with endurance workouts recommended, but the time trialist workouts will have much longer intervals than the climber. In either case there are variations to chose from within the recommended list.

Click Load More to see all twenty recommended workouts. The top four are the closest match based on XATA recommendations at this moment. That advice will be different tomorrow morning. If you leave your PC running with XO (Xert Online) in a browser it’s a good idea to refresh the page before considering today’s advice. Otherwise XATA updates automatically after receiving each new activity.

Click Filter to the right of Recommended Workouts and watch what happens when you select a different athlete type (focus duration).
When you select an Athlete type you are setting your goal focus duration, but you can change this at any time if you’d like to work on a weakness versus a strength.
You can see what Xert considers your strengths and weaknesses by viewing the spider chart under Ranking. This is based upon what other Xert users have achieved – for all users or by age/gender group. Hover over each point on the chart and you’ll see some stats.
My spider chart is a lopsided star since I am terrible at time trialing or breakaway efforts but better at a few things like climbing and road sprints. Others may have a more rounded pattern. Good at everything. :slight_smile:

Athlete types are roughly grouped into quadrants – Athlete Type – Xert (baronbiosys.com)
If you want to try something different select an Athlete type in another quadrant than your current setting.
Simply put athlete type is a point along your power curve that you are good at or want to be good at. You don’t really need to know a Rouleur from a Pursuiter but for detailed descriptions go to Account Settings, Athlete Type and hover over each dot on the curve.

Your goal is to keep the Training Pacer needle pointing up between 11am and 1pm by riding within range of suggested XXS points. But that goal is flexible so you may decide to ride easier one day and harder or longer the next. There is no need to try and exceed the XXS target and it is normal to carry a small deficit.
If you do establish a weekly pattern XATA will recognize that in the daily advice. For example, if you want to ride hard on Thursdays with a high intensity workout then next week the advisor will show that – “Advice is based on activities on Thursdays”.
Or you can ride steadily day by day or change things up as your schedule allows.
I always take Mondays off and Sunday is usually my longest workout or ride.

If you are not confident your FS (fitness signature) is correct compare you current HIE (high intensity energy) to PP (Peak Power) in this chart – Are there errors in my Fitness Signature? – Xert (baronbiosys.com)
If out of range and you aren’t sure why you can file a support request at support@xertonline.com and they’ll review your data and settings and adjust if necessary.

The Planner is for playing what-if scenarios. There is no need to populate the planner and if you do the recommendation is only one week in advance. That is because XATA is constantly evaluating your activities and fitness signature changes as they occur. Planning too far ahead is actually counter-productive to Xert’s model. On the other hand a coach or experienced athlete may want to plan activities with specific goals in mind. The Planner can predict the results of doing that.
I never populate the planner off-season when riding indoors. I prefer wide open choices day by day. During season I may add rides from the past to next week. There is a drag and drop feature to do that. For example, select Activities, search for name of your favorite loop, drag and drop that activity onto the day you plan to ride it


Hope that’s not too much information to absorb from a fellow Xerter with too much time on their hands. :slight_smile:
I am older than you and don’t race but like to get fit for summers and ride long whenever I can. I’m also at 3 stars. 4 may be out of reach for me but I may try later this year by raising IR and see how well I handle the increase in TL and intensity. Started at Slow back in November; now at Moderate-2.

Xert is a big jump from following a rigid pre-populated plan but well worth the changes in my experience.
I am currently at a higher TP than I ever achieved on any other platform or canned plan and it’s only February! :slight_smile: Of course TP isn’t the only number you can improve on. Changes in HIE and LTP make a big difference too.
Stats wise most of my rides have been base hours indoors, 85% below tempo and rest at tempo or above with 5% sweet spot. Xert’s hybrid polarized approach is working well for me. I had no idea it could be this easy to get this fit. By “easy” I mean compared to the hammering and sweat struggling with too much sweet spot/tempo/threshold on another platform. :wink: It gets plenty hard enough during build/peak but without defeating your spirit.

I didn’t get to mention the Garmin options with Xert but that’s for another day or for a fellow Xerter to explain.

Have fun! Ask as many questions as you like. :smiley:

7 Likes
9

Thanks for your answers!
I live in the alps, so, every ride is about climbing
trainerroad throws vo2 intervals at me(Peak Phase)
While xert(Also Peak Phase) suggests only endurance (im tired according to xert).
And i dont know, and would Like to see, what xert would recommend for a week or so.
Just to be Sure there will be some progression.

Maybe thats limited using the free trial?

In the settings i Set it to moderate ( i think moderate 2).
Thats also some Point that is not easy to Discover, how often Do i have to Change my progression?
How often Do i have to adjust the fitness Signatur and how?
And Do i have to care about the Focus duration or is it developing Over the time while following the workouts.

Thanks for your patience!

10

Hi!
I followed your advice and played with several dates for the target Event

The workouts Do not Change that much
maybe the trial Version is a bit reduced

They all have very Short intervals ( about 1 Minute or so) is that common?
I dont know very much about training science, im happy with trainerroad. My only Problem is im working as a nurse and need more flexibility in the Plans. For example, every month i get a New working Plan with night shift and i dont Like to train Hard between the night shift


11

The reason you are likely showing as tired is because the TR plans contain a lot of intensity. Also as you have imported your data from your TR activities it’s likely you set your TR FTP based on their ramp test which isn’t the best way to get a good fitness signature for Xert.

I can’t remember exactly what workouts are available for the trial phase, but there are a few workouts in the library designed to help you get a breakthrough for a more accurate signature. If you can’t access these but have Zwift, try a race on there and as we say in the UK give it some beans until you have nothing left, this will also often get you a breakthrough and a better signature.

If you don’t feel tired like the advisor says, if you click on the ‘Goals’ tab you can use the freshness slider to manually adjust how you feel and the workouts will change based on the information you input.

For what it’s worth, I’d just sign up for a month if you have the funds and give yourself a full month of full access to learn how it all works. It can seem a bit daunting at first, as it is different from what traditional plans offer, but it is super flexible as you can adapt it to your personal situation rather than you having to adapt to a set plan. My wife is a nurse in the UK and is currently training for a triathlon, I fully understand how hard this is when you do such a demanding job as that. Xert will allow you to schedule your rest weeks when you want/need them rather than having them set at a constant rate such as once every four weeks. You will probably also find that once you get your signature set up correctly and get used to how it works, you won’t really need to take full weeks of rest, usually a few days of easier workouts is all you need.

3 Likes
12

Thanks for your answer!
The money is not a Problem. The only Thing is i dont want to waste (training)time.
I am going to Finish my trainerroad Plan and then i make the transition.

Nice Greets from Austria!

13

I think the most important thing to do when starting with Xert is a good Breakthrough. All the data and advice will be incorrect if the system does not know what you are capable of at the moment. It’s kinda the basis and just an ftp from another system and old riding data that might not include all out efforts because it is training data and not racing might give Xata a wrong basis and then everything goes wrong.
Once you have a correct Xert fitness signature you can feel free to just ignore the advice and do what you like or what another plan tells you to and just see what Xert would do differently.
Just a suggestion. And greetings from Germany, if ever the language is a problem just say so. I think Xert users are from all over everywhere.

1 Like
14

Deutsch ist immer gut, bin ja Österreicher😁
Ich fahre ja nie Rennen, aber ich nehme an, man soll zb in zwift eine bergstrecke mit Vollgas fahren oder Àhnliches

Das ist dann halt auch nicht mehr weit von einem ftp test entfernt, der ja nicht mehr notwendig sein soll?

LG Wolfgang

15

If so, please make sure you get a good signature when you start!. I did not and it cost me several weeks in which training was too easy probably . After a BT (in outside ride) trainings seem to make more sense.

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Answer in German (if someone wants to know I can translate)

Was Xert nicht braucht ist ein bestimmter strukturierter Test. Was es trotzdem braucht sind maximal Anstrengungen. Kurze Sprints von ein paar Sekunden (15s) um PP festzulegen und etwas lĂ€ngere Anstrengungen von mehreren Minuten um TP und HIE dazu passend festzulegen. Sowas will Xert alle 4 Wochen oder so um zu sehen wo du stehst und die Trainings dran anzupassen. Aber es muß eben kein bestimmter Test sein, sondern irgendwas, wobei man sich mal bis man nicht mehr kann anstrengt. Irgendwo mitten in einem lĂ€ngeren Training oder ner Spazierfahrt mal wenn man grad Lust hat Gas geben bis platt funktioniert, oder eher absichtlich kurz aufwĂ€rmen, paar Sprints und dann StĂŒck nen Berg rauf bis platt. Gibt ein paar “Breakthrough” Trainings die kann man als Beispiele anschaun. Wichtig ist meiner Erfahrung nach daß man bei ‘platt’ nicht vonn 100% auf 0% aufhört, sondern langsam scheitert, das wertet das System aus, wie die Watt Zahl runter rutscht. Ist auch besser nicht immer das selbe zu machen, weil verschiedene Anstrengungen die drei Werte aus denen die dynamische Kurve berechnet wird anders beeinflussen.
Wenn man ne gute Fitness Signatur hat und vor hat ne Weile eher nur Endurance zu machen oder keine Lust hat auf so Tests kann man auf ‘no decay’ stellen, dann geht er davon aus, daß dein Training genau das macht was es soll ohne Tests. Ab und an sollte man aber auch dann mal wieder checken ob dem so ist, mindestens wenn die Trainings sich zu einfach oder zu schwer anfĂŒhlen.
Ich finde die Trainings hier extrem super, fĂŒhlt sich toll an, wenn die Power Anforderung genau dann nachlĂ€ĂŸt, wenn man am ĂŒberlegen ist, ob das noch lange geht. Man kann sie einfach auch selber verĂ€ndern oder auch welche selber bauen mit viel mehr Möglichkeiten als in anderen Systemen. Einfach mal die vorgeschlagenen Trainings im Editor aufmachen und die ‘Regeln’ aus denen sie zusammengesetzt sind anschaun. Er zeigt immer direkt deine Daten an und wenn man die Beschreibung liest sieht man was es erreichen soll und lernt dabei viel ĂŒber die Ideen hinter strukturiertem Training mit wissenschaftlichen Methoden. Aber vielleicht finde das nur ich so cool :wink:

17

Du meinst den workout Designer? Wo sind da regeln?
Oder meinst du die filtermöglichkeiten?
Ich hab ein paar workouts angeschaut ( vlt sehe ich nicht alle in der gratis Version) aber die intervalle schauen alle so kurz aus? (Ca 1 Minute)
Und as mit de ay
Jetzt im Sommer sollte xert eher unterstĂŒtzend sein, ich will ja viel draußen fahren.
Im Winter wenn ich aufbauen will, starte ich mit Base dann bild und so weiter, lasse dann decay immer auf optimal (oder wie das heißt).
Und bei progression seedIng bin ich auch noch nicht schlau geworden.

Danke fĂŒr deine Hilfe!

18

Ja ist alles etwas arg komplex, aber dafĂŒr auch sehr flexibel.
Wenn du ganz links auf den 6. Button von oben gehst, der wie ein Balkendiagramm aussieht mĂŒĂŸtest du alle Workouts in einer sortierbaren Tabelle anschauen können. Die mit gebogenen Blöcken finde ich ziemlich cool, wie SMART - Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me oder so gemischte wie SMART - The Dog Days Are Over
Man sieht an den Bildchen schön, was man bekommt. Wenn die lila Linie oben (MPA vielleicht das wichtigste im Xert System) sich nicht (viel) bewegt ist es Ausdauertraining, wenn die lila Linie sich mit den Blöcken unten ĂŒberkreuzt ist es ein Breakthrough, also etwas, was nach der Theorie mit der aktuellen Signatur nicht möglich ist und folglich eine Verbesserung der Signatur erfordert und auslöst.
Xert beachtet momentan nur die Kurzzeiterschöpfung, daß man Stunden spĂ€ter nicht mehr so frisch ist wie ausgeruht ist noch nicht so richtig drin, aber das macht fĂŒr 1h Trainings auch nicht viel Unterschied. Das kurzzeitige funktioniert dagegen sehr gut, wenn die Signatur mal paßt. MPA ist dabei das was den aktuellen Zustand widergibt, also ob du grad wĂ€hrend eines Trainings deine maximale 1s Wattzahl produzieren könntest oder was bei schon vorhandener Erschöpfung nach einem harten Intervall jetzt grad in dem Moment noch fĂŒr 1s gehen mĂŒĂŸte (die lila Linie oben). Und dadurch gibt es eben die Möglichkeit, daß ein Intervall nicht ne bestimmte LĂ€nge hat sondern so lang ist, bis MPA auf 80% von PP runter ist, oder ein Erholungsblock so lang ist, bis MPA wieder bei 99% PP ist.
Der hellgraue ‘Berg’ im Hintergrund ist die Schwierigkeit zum gegebenen Zeitpunkt, also die Belastung die da schon aufgebaut ist.
Die Farben zeigen die Wattzahlen relativ zu TP blau ist easy, grĂŒn ist unter TP, gelb ist TP, orange drĂŒber, rot weit drĂŒber. Breite rote Blöcke sind kein Spaß, außer man leidet gern. Die kurzen können ganz nett sein, ich mag den hier auch ganz gern SMART - I Won’t Back Down
Mit Editor meinte ich den Workout Designer wenn man in der Workout Tabelle auf den Namen eines Workout klickt. Da sind unten die Regeln aus denen dieser Workout aufgebaut ist, die Tabelle mit zeitlich aufeinander folgenden Regel-Zeilen ganz unten. Wenn man bei einem Workout unten rechts auf Copy klickt kriegt man ne eigene (fĂŒr andere nicht sichtbare) Kopie davon, die man editieren kann. Refresh malt das Bild neu, wenn man an den Regeln was verĂ€ndert hat und man sieht, wie sich das auswirkt. Man kann das dann speichern und natĂŒrlich auch wieder wegwerfen. Da kann man sehen, was es alles fĂŒr Möglichkeiten gibt. Oder einfach mal den Warmup lĂ€nger oder kĂŒrzer machen, wie man es lieber mag zum Beispiel.
Die Einstellungen in dem Goals Popup kann man beliebig rumstellen um zu sehen wie das jweils die VorschlĂ€ge verĂ€ndert, ich spiele da ziemlich oft dran rum, je nachdem, ob ich grad mehr oder weniger Zeit und Lust zum trainieren hab. Xert schlĂ€gt immer was vor, wenn man grad trainieren will, aber man kann das ziemlich beeinflussen, wenn man will. Aber man sieht an den VorschlĂ€gen und dem was man eingestellt hat um an die VorschlĂ€ge zu kommen, wo es hin fĂŒhren wĂŒrde. Wenn man kein spezifisches Rennen hat, das man gewinnen will, dann gibt es ja kein festes Ziel und das macht Xert so cool, man kann sein Ziel oder woran man arbeiten will beliebig anpassen und er hĂ€lt einen trotzdem davon ab sich tot zu trainieren (status dauernd rot oder status gelb und man macht weiter mit HIIT) und motiviert einen nicht zum Couchpotato zu werden (status braun oder riesiges Defizit, Nadel im roten Bereich und die Sternchen werden blass -> TL fĂ€llt).

19

Was die Signatur und Dinge wie ‘progression seeding’ angeht wĂŒrde ich vorschlagen, mach mal einen schönen goldenen Breakthrough und dann schreibst du eine mail an den support oder fragst Scott der dir hier oben als erster geantwortet hat, ob er deine Daten mal anschaun kann. Wenn er gute Daten (aktuellen Breakthrough mit Sprint und paar Minuten Dauerbelastung bis platt) hat kann er ganz gut entscheiden, ob alles paßt und was fixen, wenn nötig. Kann sein, daß grad viel los ist, aber ĂŒblicherweise macht er das gern.
Und dann kannst du ja deine zukĂŒnftigen Daten reinlaufen lassen und schaun, was Xert macht, und vielleicht mal das eine oder andere Xert Training ausprobieren.

und fragen, wenn was unklar ist.

20

Danke, ich glaube, ich habe jetzt schon viel gelernt. Jetzt mach ivh trainerroad noch fertig bis Mitte MĂ€rz. Plan ist Plan.
Danach werd ich mich rein stĂŒrzen


LG Wolfgang