Training for a cycling event is tough. Training indoors for a cycling event is even tougher, but the benefits it affords a rider are indisputable, thanks to the controlled environment and lack of distractions.
Indoor workouts, however, require immense discipline and concentration to complete, and are mentally taxing as well. Among the best indoor training apps, MyWhoosh is revolutionising the training experience with a mix of both static and dynamic workouts – the latter is becoming increasingly popular among riders.
It’s called Live Coaching, and, as the name suggests, it's conducted by a MyWhoosh coach or cycling celebrity in real-time, allowing you and other community riders to complete your workouts together and with greater stimulus than you would on your own. It’s a very clever idea and one of the unique selling points that separates MyWhoosh from its rivals.
MyWhoosh officially unveiled its Live Coaching concept in 2024. With myriad time slots available almost every day of the week, there’s something available for everyone, regardless of your fitness level and training requirements. It’s built around your FTP, and the session is rubber-banded to ensure everyone stays together.
MyWhoosh Live Coaching: The origins
The inspiration for Live Coach stemmed from a simple observation: indoor riding was lacking human connection. After all, that’s why most of us meet up with friends for group rides on weekends, and it’s this idea of interactivity that the company has worked hard on bringing to the platform. The MyWhoosh Live Coaching sessions have redefined the indoor cycling experience, focusing on connection and infusing a sense of renewed energy into indoor coaching and group rides on MyWhoosh.
Simon Bradley, MyWhoosh Ingame, VOD and Live Events Manager, echoes these sentiments, citing human connection and inclusion as the foundations behind launching the Live Coach concept.
“MyWhoosh envisaged a hybrid model where virtual riding meets authentic coaching. The success of Cafe Rides with Tadej Pogačar and the live sessions hosted by Peter Sagan proved it – these sessions were not just text on a screen and a name in a rider list, but when you can see, hear, and chat with those legends live during a ride, it really does change the experience into something special.”
(Image credit: Future)
What are the benefits of MyWhoosh Live Coaching
Live Coaching can transform your workouts by introducing the added stimulus provided by human interaction. It replaces the traditional indoor workout archetype of following text on a screen with the guidance of a live coach to motivate and energise you and the other riders participating in the session.
Interaction and real-time motivation have proven to help athletes push harder, optimising training sessions and assisting in maximising the benefits and training adaptations made in those sessions – especially when you’re deep into a threshold or VO2 Max effort and need all the motivation you can get to complete the workout.
Iker Mourelle, a MyWhoosh coach and elite racer from Spain, is an advocate for the camaraderie that Live Coaching affords. Having recently transitioned from a rival platform, all his racing and training needs are now met by MyWhoosh.
“The added value that workouts on Live Coaching provide allows you to train properly with the help of an expert coach and be surrounded by other riders – this makes the effort much more entertaining.”
“For me, the big attraction is that you have a coach the whole time, giving you encouragement and advice during the workout. You can also interact with the coach and the rest of the riders live in real time, so the suffering time flies!”
(Image credit: MyWhoosh)
What's the difference between Live Coaching and regular workouts?
Unlike traditional static training plans or scripted video workouts, MyWhoosh Live Coaching bridges the gap between virtual fitness and in-person sessions, offering a seamless transition. Coaches can tailor the effort or workout intensity on the move, adapt to the group’s energy, and build a sense of collective momentum.
Bradeley reckons the one-size-fits-all indoor training model used by riders, coaches, and other indoor cycling apps was in need of a complete overhaul, and MyWhoosh has delivered on this for the community.
“The blend of personalisation, spontaneity, and group energy sets the MyWhoosh Live Coaching apart from pre-recorded, training, or competitor apps. There is really nothing like it for cyclists at the moment, and we have found our community members really respond well when working out together in a live session.”
Live Coach workouts for pro athletes and coaches
All levels of riders, from beginners to professionals, can benefit from Live Coaching – not just for performance, but also for progress. Elite athletes respond positively to real-time pacing cues and motivation.
MyWhoosh offers a diverse range of sessions, spanning shorter, less intense workouts to advanced sessions tailored for elite and pro riders looking to find that extra gear and refine their training tools ahead of key events.
Bradeley points out that MyWhoosh also offers Live Coaching facilities for any cycling coach and their athletes.
“If a coach has a group of athletes they want to deliver live sessions to, this is available. I encourage coaches to come and learn how they can utilise MyWhoosh Live to provide their own sessions. This is precisely how some of our current MyWhoosh coaches got started on the platform.”
How to find Live Coaching on MyWhoosh
Before you can start your Live Coaching workout journey, you will need to download and install the MyWhoosh app on your device and then create an account – the process is very intuitive. To access Live Coaching, open MyWhoosh and navigate to the Live Coach tab, located next to the Workout and Live block, above the Garage and Loadout graphic.
All the sessions for that day will appear here, allowing you to select the workout you want to complete and then tap participate. You can adjust the intensity or activate/deactivate ERG mode before entering the workout.
(Image credit: Future / Richard Butcher)
Live Coaching workout themes and schedule
Everyone is on a different level and stage in their training and cycling journey – MyWhoosh knows this and has created themes to cater to the diversity of athletes and training sessions required to improve performance. To make life easier, MyWhoosh has populated the calendar with colour-coded themes.
The themes include Endurance and Base Training (blue), Sprints and VO2 Max Training (red), Tempo (green), Threshold or Anaerobic Capacity Training (orange), Primers and Activation Sessions (yellow), and Race Day Intervals (dark red).
For July, there are Live Coaching sessions every day from Monday to Saturday, with some days offering multiple slots to accommodate busy schedules or family commitments.
The full Live Coaching calendar can be found on MyWhoosh.
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Aaron is a specialist cycling tech journalist. As the former editor of off.roadcc, tech editor of Cyclingnews and Bike Perfect, digital editor of Bicycling magazine and associate editor of TopCar, he's travelled the world writing about bikes and anything with wheels for the past 19 years. As a racer, he enjoys all disciplines and has completed nearly every mountain bike stage race in South Africa, including the Cape Epic. On the road, he’s completed the Haute Route Alps, represented South Africa at the UCI Gran Fondo World Championships Road Race and Time Trial and is an accomplished eSports racer, too - having captained South Africa at the 2022, 2023 and 2024 UCI Cycling eSports World Championships.
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