Watopia and Running in Zwift
Back in 2020, I wrote the article Journey to Watopia [1] about getting into using the Zwift online training platform for biking.
While I am mostly a cyclist, I also run and compete in running races. Mostly 5Ks these days, but I have completed four 25Ks and two half-marathons. During the winter months, in order to run and avoid the cold and bad weather, my wife and I would get memberships at the local Y. The downtown Y in Grand Rapids had a great large oval track that was 7 laps per mile.
The downside of the membership was making the time to get there, changing clothes, needing (usually) to shower before departing. Then there was the issue of kids on the track you had to dodge, walkers who seemed NOT to understand “slow people to the inside tracks.” Finally, the cost. It was about $90 per month which isn’t bad, but unless you waited until January for membership fee to be waived, we paid $120 in November for the membership, which we typically cancelled in March or April as outdoor season approached. If we canceled even as early as the beginning of March it was still almost $500 for four months.
At the end of September 2022, on a whim, I did a search on Craigslist for “treadmill.” Up popped an ad selling a used one for $100. The seller was 50 minutes away in a small town and just wanted to get rid of it. So I drove there on a Saturday and confirmed it was operational. We stuffed it into the back of my Subaru Forester of which I had to tie down the rear liftgate and I drove back roads home. My wife and I wrestled the 240 pound machine into the back shed and my sons helped move it into the basement the next day.
I did a run on it at first using the Garmin Food Pod [2] which I used when running in the gym. The foot pod syncs to my Garmin running watch and I used it to track mileage when not using GPS.
I next bought a Zwift RunPod [3] which syncs to the Zwift program [4].
Opening the program on the small TV screen, I navigate to the run option versus the cycling option I had been using. Once you choose a route and start running or walking, the footpod connects to the program and your avatar guy on the screen begins running or walking and the meters at the top of the screen begin recording your mileage.
The routes you run do have some elevation changes, but you will not experience this unless you manually adjust the elevation on your treadmill. There may be “smart treadmills” on the market which go up and down automatically similar to how my bike smart trainer gets harder to pedal if the route goes uphill, but I have to imagine those treadmills are quite pricey.
The main advantage for me using the program is you get something to focus on the running (as opposed to a movie or TV show). The program also automatically uploads to my Strava [5]. The program also has automated running pacers you can join for a run. There are also group runs in which your onscreen avatar is running with other runners who may be in Japan, Europe or across the country. Unlike the cycling version, there are no online running races.
One negative aspect is the construction of the Runpod. The first one I got fell apart and the circuitboard fell out. I was able to return for refund and buy another. It fastens to your shoe by putting one portion underneath the shoe laces and the main pod part is snapped into that. But it can become detached. So I used black electrical tape to ensure it stays attached. I had to do the same with my Garmin foodpod too, so it’s not much of an issue to deal with in that manner.
My first couple runs were on routes that I normally biked and there were very few runners on the route but hundreds of cyclist avatars speeding past me. Yesterday I specifically chose the Watopia 5K loop and there were NO cyclist avatars. Just other runners and the numerous pace-bot avatars. It was pretty cool, actually.
Runners World Magazine has a review of the program online [6].
#Zwift
[1] https://medium.com/@dennisbmurphy/journey-to-watopia-72b9d3c7fc08
[2] https://www.garmin.com/en-ER/p/15516
[3] https://us.zwift.com/products/zwift-runpod?variant=42524430532864
[5]
[6] https://www.runnersworld.com/uk/a776027/tried-and-tested-a-review-of-zwift-running/
