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IndieVelo was an app launched by Dr. George Gilbert, the former chairman of the Zwift Esports Commission. However, it was acquired by TrainingPeaks and rebranded to TrainingPeaks Virtual on October 29, 2024. I updated my original IndieVelo review to reflect these changes.
I’ve already tested most of its alternatives, both free and paid. So, how does TrainingPeaks Virtual compare to Zwift or ROUVY? Does it have a chance to succeed in this competitive market?
KEY TAKEAWAY
TrainingPeaks Virtual offers the most realistic ride feel of all indoor cycling apps I’ve tested. Except for drafting, it also slows you down before corners and counts with wind. So, strategy is more important when racing than just raw power. On the other hand, the number of routes is limited, the graphics are outdated, and the app is not as intuitive as competing apps. However, when writing this review, it was free, in beta, and developed by one person. After the acquisition by TrainingPeaks, I expect the resources will increase. Also, since the 1st of April, 2025, the app is no longer free and is a part of the TrainingPeaks subscription.
My TrainingPeaks Virtual rating at a glance:
Ease of Setup 5/5 | Engagement 3/5 | Community 3/5 | Routes 2/5 | Training 4/5 | UX 2/5 | Platforms Availability 5/5 | Price 3/5 | OVERALL 3.4/5
More about this indoor cycling apps scoring.
NOTE: I tested indieVelo 0.3.11 on a MacBook Pro with macOS Sonoma 14.5.
TrainingPeaks Virtual Summary
TrainingPeaks Virtual Pros
- Realistic ride feel (counts with drafting, cornering, wind…)
- Tons of settings ranging from avatar, graphics, HUD
- Includes structured workouts and allows importing custom ones
- Allows in-app communication
- Allows customizing your “avatar”
- Dual power recording
TrainingPeaks Virtual Cons
- A limited number of routes
- Outdated graphics
- No sophisticated motivational system
- Hard to navigate user interface
What is TrainingPeaks Virtual?
TrainingPeaks Virtual is an indoor cycling app that features a virtual world with more realistic graphics than Zwift. It allows you to communicate with others, race, ride in groups, or do structured training.
Who is TrainingPeaks Virtual for?
TrainingPeaks Virtual is ideal for people who want more realistic avatar behavior and the possibility to tweak the app settings. It’s also ideal for racing because realistic physics demands creating a racing strategy.
Who is TrainingPeaks Virtual not for?
TrainingPeaks Virtual is not for people looking for an easy-to-use and simple app. Due to its low popularity, it offers fewer opportunities to socialize. It’s also unavailable for iOS and Android, and you probably won’t like it if you prefer real-world footage.
My Experience with TrainingPeaks Virtual
Here is my experience with the initial setup, routes, user experience, and more in TrainingPeaks Virtual.
Initial Setup: Kinda Frustrating
Pairing devices before the first ride went smoothly:
However, my initial experience with the setup was not good. I understand the app is still in development, but customizing the avatar was tedious and unintuitive. I’m referring, for example, to the fact that you can’t rotate the avatar by dragging the mouse, so you can’t see what changes you’ve made until the avatar rotates by itself.
The color selection is also odd. I wanted to set the colors I use here on Cyclists Hub. However, the editor only allows RGB code (not HEX), allowing you to type 3 digits. It would be nice if the app saved the custom colors directly so the user doesn’t have to type them repeatedly.
In-App Experience: Focus on Realism
Before my first ride, I explored all the possible settings. There are plenty of them, and this is an area where TrainingPeaks Virtual excels. For example, you can also adjust the graphical elements (HUD). Then, I browsed the other options, like the events, workouts, plans, etc., but more about them later.
The graphics are frankly outdated. You can set a higher resolution, but it will become choppy unless you have a powerful computer. I have a MacBook Pro M1 Max with 64GB RAM, which can handle 4K, but my older (Intel MBP 2020) couldn’t. Overall, TrainingPeaks Virtual feels like a slightly worse version of Wahoo RGT. The graphics remind me of games from 10-15 years ago.
However, it deserves credit for its focus on realism. It can simulate weather (e.g., wind), drafting, braking, and cornering. I haven’t encountered anything like this in other apps yet. Wahoo RGT probably had the most realistic physics to date, but that was a shutdown a few weeks ago.
TrainingPeaks Virtual takes the physics to a new level. You can actually feel that you’re riding into the headwind, which can significantly affect your strategy in a race. It’s a shame it can’t adjust rolling resistance based on whether it’s raining or snowing. These only have an aesthetic effect.
Another unique feature is cornering. If you take a corner too fast, the app penalizes you. Riders behind you who adjust their speed in advance will gain an advantage. By default, the app will also slow you down before corners, so it won’t help if you are pushing high watts. This feature requires you to pay more attention and think more about how you approach pedaling.
Lastly, I want to mention the pacebots. As in Zwift, you can join them and ride at a given power range.
Racing: Meet ELO Rating System
Many people like TrainingPeaks Virtual because of its racing. It uses an ELO-like rating system, which ensures you will compete against people of similar level. It works as follows:
- If you beat riders who are rated higher than you, you move up in rating.
- If you lose to riders rated lower than you, you move down in rating.
Thanks to this system, it should not happen, for example, that you ride against riders who are orders of magnitude stronger.
As described earlier, you also have to be much more focused and think about your strategy. Riding into a breakaway may not pay off when there is a strong headwind. The opposite can happen if nobody in the bunch decides to ride; it can be your advantage. So it always depends.
Additionally, various formats of races are available in TrainingPeaks Virtual, so you can ride time trials, points races, elimination races, etc. You will also encounter AI-driven bots, who serve as filler but also as motivation. Unlike regular bots that always ride the same watts, these change their performance and even experience fatigue.
Routes: Diverse but Limited
The number of routes and worlds is quite limited. TrainingPeaks Virtual starts with something that could be called Watopia. Since 2023, when I first used TrainingPeaks Virtual, they have expanded the world, and I am sure they will do their best to expand it even further.
However, the number of routes is still pretty low, and they will get repetitive. This has its advantages, though. Users are not so fragmented, and the routes will feel more alive (unlike in ROUVY).
Training: Could Be Better
The database of structured workouts is limited. However, you can upload your own workouts or synchronize them via apps like TrainingPeaks.
It’s a shame TrainingPeaks Virtual doesn’t offer structured training plans. However, it seems they target advanced riders, not beginners, so this is not such a big deal.
User Friendliness and Connectivity
The most annoying thing about TrainingPeaks Virtual for me is its user interface. It’s hard to read and sluggish. It would deserve a redesign or a touch from a UX designer. On the other hand, it allows you to adjust many settings, providing flexibility like no other app.
Luckily, I didn’t experience any app crashes or dropouts, so I rate it positively in terms of reliability.
Platforms Availability
TrainingPeaks Virtual is available on all major platforms, including Windows, macOS, iOS, Android, and Apple TV. However, the Apple TV is available to members of the indieVelo Founders Club.
TrainingPeaks Virtual Alternatives
There are plenty of indoor cycling apps out there. The closest TrainingPeaks Virtual alternatives are MyWhoosh and Zwift.
| App | Price | Free Trial | World | Multiplayer | Virtual Shifting | Connectivity / Direct Connect⁴ | Platform Availability | Ease of Setup | Engagement | Community | Range of Routes | Training | UX | Platform Availability | Price | Overall Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zwift | 19.99 USD / month 199.99 USD / year | 14 days | Virtual | Yes | Yes | ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth, BLE FTMS / Yes | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Apple TV | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4.1 |
| ROUVY | 14.99 USD / month 144 USD / year | 7 days | Real² | Yes | Yes³ | ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth / No | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Apple TV | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4.1 |
| TrainerRoad | 21.99 USD / month 209.99 USD / year | n/a¹ | n/a | No | No | ANT+ FE-C, Bluetooth, BLE FTMS / No | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3.7 | |
| Wahoo SYSTM (formerly The Sufferfest) | 14.99 USD / month 149 USD / year | 14 days | Real | No | No | ANT+ FE-C, BLE FTMS / Yes | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4.0 |
| MyWhoosh | Free | n/a | Virtual | Yes | Yes | ANT+ FE-C, BLE FTMS / Yes | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Apple TV | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4.0 |
| Kinomap | 11.99 EUR / month 89.99 EUR / year 429 EUR / lifetime | 14 days | Real | No | No | ANT+ FE-C, BLE FTMS / No | Android, iOS (screen mirroring available) | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 3.6 |
| FulGaz | 12.99 USD / month 108.99 USD / year | 14 days | Real | Yes | No | ANT+ FE-C, BLE FTMS / Yes | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Apple TV | 5 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 3.5 |
| TrainingPeaks Virtual | 19.95 USD / month 124.99 USD / year | 14 days | Virtual | Yes | No | ANT+ FE-C, BLE FTMS / Yes | Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, Apple TV | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3.4 |
¹30-day money-back guarantee
²Real world with virtual objects (avatars, gates, etc.)
³Supports Zwift Click only (learn more)
⁴Direct connect via WiFi or Ethernet.
Updated on May 13, 2025.
The following table shows my ratings of specific areas on a scale of 1–5 (5 is the best).
| App | Ease of Setup | Engage- ment | Community | Routes | Training | UX | Platforms Availability | Price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zwift | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 33 |
| ROUVY | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 32 |
| TrainerRoad | 5 | 2 | 3 | n/a¹ | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 26 |
| Wahoo SYSTM | 5 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 32 |
| MyWhoosh | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 32 |
| Kinomap | 4 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 29 |
| FulGaz | 5 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 28 |
| BKOOL | 5 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 27 |
| Tacx Training App | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 29 |
| CycleGo App | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 2 | 5 | 24 |
| Wahoo RGT (RGT Cycling)² | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 24 |
| indieVelo | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 5 | 29 |
¹TrainerRoad is different from other apps and doesn’t offer any routes.
²Shut down in 2023
Updated on September 11, 2024.
My Verdict
Do I recommend TrainingPeaks Virtual?
I recommend TrainingPeaks Virtual to those who appreciate realistic physics and like to race, strategize, or train.
Do I recommend it to everybody?
I don’t because TrainingPeaks Virtua is not very entertaining for casual riding due to its lack of a user base and sophisticated motivation system. You also won’t like it if you want to visit beautiful places worldwide.
TrainingPeaks Virtual (IndieVelo) FAQ
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