The Best Training Logs for Cyclists, Depending on Your Goals and Preferences
If you recently started cycling, or you recently decided you want to take your training more seriously, you might consider the best ways to view a workout schedule, capture data from your rides, and assess your progress over time. Fortunately, there are a plethora of apps and training logs available for cyclists, but it can be hard to figure out exactly which one will work for you.
Here, we offer a review of a few of our favorite common training log options that are readily available and have free versions for cyclists. Some of these logging options will allow you to use the app to check your upcoming training, record your workout and upload your data all in one place. Others are better at analyzing workout data, but won’t record your workout for you. And others—like a basic spreadsheet or a notebook and pen—require you to do all the work, but are ideal for cyclists who find technology to be a nuisance, not a benefit.
Fortunately, even for technophobes, apps like Strava and TrainingPeaks have come a long way in recent years, and cyclists can breathe easier knowing that auto-upload wifi-based and bluetooth-based tech has made getting your data from your cycling computer into the cloud and onto your training log almost foolproof.
The most important part of finding the right training log for you is finding the one that you’ll actually use. It may take testing a few apps before you find one that suits you and lets you happily reflect on your progress, rather than getting frustrated.
A quick note: The logs you won’t see on this list are the brand-specific ones. For instance, Garmin has their own app/training log, Garmin Connect, where Garmin users can see their data from their cycling computers. These logs are great for riders with the specific brand’s hardware, but the options listed here work regardless of the tool you’re using to log your miles.
TrainingPeaks
Best for: Any rider looking to get serious about their training and cyclists who want to work with a coach
Other similar apps come and go, but TrainingPeaks has outlasted all of them. The gold standard for logging training metrics and looking at long-term progression, TrainingPeaks is the app that most cycling coaches will use to program your training. The platform also offers plenty of pre-made training plans.
Most cycling computers and apps will auto-upload the ride data you collect directly into TrainingPeaks, and you can view it there.
Compared to apps like Strava, TrainingPeaks has a very Web 1.0 vibe—it’s all business, no kudos. But it’s the most “hard data” of the options, easily bringing together all of your outdoor and indoor training, even allowing you to log other workouts like strength or yoga.
It also has a premium version that offers plenty of analysis options, including the oft-cited TSS (training stress score) that takes both your training duration and intensity into account. But even the free version allows you to zoom in on any workout and look at your power and heart rate throughout the session, and gives you a place to log how the workout felt and any other notes.
Training Peaks is often used by athletes who are on a pre-made training plan or working with a coach, since its most useful feature is that it can pre-load your workouts into the app based on your training plan. You can add a coach to your account and your coach can also go in and program your training directly into your TrainingPeaks calendar.
So, if you’re using any kind of cycling computer, even if you don’t currently use a training plan or coach when you ride, we recommend setting up a free TrainingPeaks account and starting to auto-sync your data to it if your device or app has the ability to do so. If you do eventually get a coach or want to take your training more seriously, it’s great to have that data already available so you’re not starting from zero. That way, TrainingPeaks and/or a coach can use your past data to help you set power and heart rate zones and better show long term progress.
Pros: Compatible with most tracking software or hardware, so it’s easy to set up auto-uploads; most coaches use it and there are thousands of training plans you can use for upcoming races or events
Cons: The website works great but the app is pretty clunky; can be overkill for new cyclists trying to keep track of rides; doesn’t have a recording app
Strava
Best for: Riders who like the social comparison and new riders who want simple data explanations
If you prefer to not just keep your metrics to yourself, Strava is the app to use to track your training, as it keeps a running log of all of your activity. Whether you actually track power with a power meter or are just seeing how fast you get up that local hill climb, you’ll be able to see progress in Strava thanks to the user-friendly map and elevation views of your workout.
Strava offers more in-depth data analysis for premium users, including things like measuring how relatively hard a workout is and analyzing your power over time, but free users can still see things like average power and if they’re improving on local segments (shorter parts of a ride that you’ve completed multiple times). Premium also allows you to see your training in a more traditional training log format if you find the Strava feed less useful.
While you can set your Strava to private and keep your data to yourself, most cyclists use it as a public training log and social platform, as it allows you to share rides with the world—and to see how they stack up against other riders.
You can record your ride right in the Strava app on your phone if you don’t have a cycling computer. If you do have one, Strava syncs to pretty much every device’s app (for instance, your Garmin computer doesn’t upload directly to Strava, but it does auto-upload to Garmin Connect, which can be synced to Strava).
The primary limitation is that you can’t store your training plan in Strava—it just shows the work you’ve done, not what you have on tap. You’ll need another app, spreadsheet, or notebook to keep track of any training plan you’re following.
Pros: Great for tracking progress on local routes to see how fast you’re getting; arguably the most “fun” of the platforms
Cons: A lot of the deeper analysis features are hidden behind a paywall, and there’s no way to log your training plan
Wahoo Fitness
Best for: Those who just want to record and look back at their training, but don’t want to share with anyone
Surprisingly not just for indoor training: Wahoo might be best known for their smart trainers, but their app allows you to turn your phone into a cycling computer for outdoor rides (and runs!). Beyond that, it also keeps track of your workouts, providing a service similar to Strava in that it can record and analyze—but it doesn’t have the social function of sharing workouts to your fan and friend base.
Click on any ride, and you can see your TSS score, as well as time spent in different training zones. However, it doesn’t have any long-term analytics or metrics, so you won’t necessarily know when you’re making progress.
Pros: Simple all-in-one free app that lets you record and track your training in one spot
Cons: No training plan sync; no in-depth data analysis
MapMyRide
Best for: Newer cyclists who want to combine recording, tracking, and a training plan in one app
Another app that’s similar to Strava, but with a few added bells and whistles. Like Strava, you can check out local popular riding routes on the map, then use the app to record your ride. When you’re done riding, you’ll see your stats from the ride as well as the ride route. There’s a community, but we’ll be honest, Strava definitely is more dominant in the cycling scene.
Unlike Strava, MapMyRide does offer training plans if you shell out for the Premium version, but for a more experienced cyclist, these options may not be as useful as the more in-depth plans offered on a platform like TrainingPeaks.
MapMyRide is the sister app to UnderArmour’s popular MapMyRun app, and it’s not quite as sophisticated or popular as the running version. Plus, there’s not any data analysis, only data collection. You can see things like average power, but you won’t get any intel on TSS or if you’re improving.
There’s also no way to import your own plan or to use MapMyRide to communicate back and forth with a coach, it’s strictly about picking the plan and following it—which works for some cyclists who thrive on their own. Still, the tech behind it and its recording ability are strong enough to put it in contention as a great option to track your training.
Pros: Ease of use; beginner-friendly training plans
Cons: Can’t use it to communicate with a coach; no data analysis
Google Spreadsheet
Best for: Newer riders who don’t care about uploading data
While apps like Strava and Wahoo have allowed riders to turn their smartphones into cycling computers, even capable of syncing to bluetooth-enabled power meters and heart rate monitors in addition to collecting GPS data, not everyone wants to record their every pedal stroke, despite wanting to get stronger on the bike.
There are a few coaches in the running world who’ve really re-popularized the idea of using a simple spreadsheet to keep track of client’s progress. This isn’t as easy in cycling since cyclists tend to be more data-driven and rides are a bit more nuanced with power numbers. But for a beginner cyclist, a simple spreadsheet listing out your planned workouts for the week (based on, say, a great plan you found on Bicycling.com!), then a column for how the workout went and what you actually did might be ideal for you.
The more tech-y types may even be able to get truly customized in a spreadsheet by importing ride data like heart rate or power via CSV files, or tracking things like sprint power or weight in a graph over time. (FWIW, that kind of analysis is easy to do in TrainingPeaks.)
If you do work with a coach or have a friend who helps you optimize your training, you can use a free software like Google Sheets and share a training spreadsheet with your coach. It should contain at least four columns: Date, planned workout, notes from the workout, and feedback from the coach. This way, your coach can list the workouts that you’re doing in the planned workout column, and then provide feedback based on your notes that you add after each ride.
Pros: Simple, easy to use
Cons: No data sync possible and you have to do your own spotting of trends or progress
Notebook and Pen
Best for: Riders who don’t care about uploading data, but want to reflect on their rides
It’s okay to be a Luddite. In fact, for some, a notebook and pen may be the best training tool for truly getting honest about how you’re feeling about your training. With the more tech-y tools, it can be easy to skip the subjective “how did that workout make me feel?” in favor of scrolling to see how you did on a certain segment or how your power is trending. But the subjective data is arguably even more important than the objective numbers—and journaling can help hone that skill.
Pros: Allows more room for nuance and subjective information; easy to use
Cons: Harder to track progress in the long term
The Bottom Line on Choosing the Best Training Log for You
In general, the best way to record your training is the way that you find easiest and most effective, and that lets you look back and reflect on your training in whatever way you prefer. However, if you’re opting for one of the simpler options like a spreadsheet or going fully analog with a notebook and pen, but you do use a cycling computer that can auto-sync to the free version of TrainingPeaks or Strava, take the time to set up the auto-sync.
You may never look at the data, but if you do decide to eventually seek a coach’s help or you want to learn more about your rides, it’s nice to know it’s there!
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