Key Training Metrics

Stride uses scientifically-backed metrics to help you train smarter. Here’s what each metric means and how to use it effectively.

Training Score (TS)

Your Training Score is a measure of how much training stress a single workout creates. It’s based on:

  • Workout duration
  • Workout intensity (power or heart rate)
  • Your current fitness level (FTP or threshold heart rate)

Think of it this way: A Training Score of 100 represents roughly 1 hour at your threshold intensity.

Training Score Guidelines

  • Recovery Ride: 20-40 TS
  • Endurance Ride: 50-80 TS
  • Tempo Workout: 80-120 TS
  • Hard Interval Session: 100-150 TS
  • Long Endurance Ride: 150-250 TS
  • Epic/Race Day: 250+ TS

Load (Chronic Training Load)

Load represents your fitness level - it’s your average Training Score over the past 42 days.

Understanding Load

  • Increasing Load = Building fitness
  • Stable Load = Maintaining fitness
  • Decreasing Load = Losing fitness (or tapering)

Load Levels for Cyclists

  • 30-50: Recreational rider, 3-5 hours/week
  • 50-70: Enthusiast, 5-8 hours/week
  • 70-90: Serious amateur, 8-12 hours/week
  • 90-120: Competitive amateur, 12-15 hours/week
  • 120+: Elite/Professional level

Don’t increase Load by more than 5-7 points per week to avoid overtraining.

Fatigue (Acute Training Load)

Fatigue shows how tired you are from recent training - it’s your average Training Score over the past 7 days.

Reading Fatigue

  • Higher than Load: You’re training hard, feeling tired
  • Equal to Load: Steady state training
  • Lower than Load: Well rested, ready for hard efforts

Form (Training Stress Balance)

Form is the difference between your Load and Fatigue (Load - Fatigue). It indicates your readiness to perform.

Form Zones

  • -30 or lower: Very fatigued, high risk of overtraining
  • -20 to -30: Building fitness, feeling tired
  • -10 to -20: Optimal training zone
  • -5 to -10: Fresh, ready to race
  • 0 to +5: Peak form for important events
  • +5 or higher: Losing fitness, need more training

Target a Form of -5 to +5 for important races, but don’t stay there too long or you’ll lose fitness.

FTP (Functional Threshold Power)

Your FTP is the maximum power you can sustain for approximately one hour. It’s the foundation for:

  • Setting training zones
  • Calculating Training Score
  • Tracking fitness improvements

Testing Your FTP

  1. 20-minute test: Ride as hard as possible for 20 minutes, multiply average power by 0.95
  2. Ramp test: Available in the Stride app
  3. From recent efforts: Stride can estimate from your hard rides

When to Update FTP

  • After a test
  • When workouts feel too easy/hard
  • Every 6-8 weeks during build phases
  • After extended time off

Heart Rate Metrics

Threshold Heart Rate

The heart rate you can sustain for approximately one hour, similar to FTP but for heart rate training.

Resting Heart Rate

Your heart rate upon waking, before getting out of bed. Lower generally indicates better fitness.

Max Heart Rate

Your maximum achievable heart rate. Update this if you see higher values during very hard efforts.

Power Curves

Your Power Curve shows your best power output for every duration from 1 second to several hours.

Key Durations

  • 5 seconds: Neuromuscular power (sprinting)
  • 1 minute: Anaerobic capacity
  • 5 minutes: VO2 max efforts
  • 20 minutes: Threshold power indicator
  • 60 minutes: True threshold/FTP

Other Important Metrics

W’ (W-prime)

Your anaerobic battery - how much work you can do above FTP before exhaustion.

HRV (Heart Rate Variability)

Day-to-day variation indicates recovery status (synced from Whoop if connected).

Efficiency Factor

Power divided by heart rate - shows fitness improvements when it increases for same effort.

Using Metrics Together

The real power comes from understanding how metrics relate:

  1. High Training Score + High Fatigue = Take a recovery day
  2. Increasing Load + Stable Fatigue = Good progressive training
  3. Negative Form + Important Event = Start tapering
  4. Power Curve Improvements = Training is working!

Remember: Metrics guide training decisions but always listen to your body. Feeling terrible with “good” numbers? Rest anyway.

Next Steps

Key Training Metrics

Stride uses scientifically-backed metrics to help you train smarter. Here’s what each metric means and how to use it effectively.

Training Score (TS)

Your Training Score is a measure of how much training stress a single workout creates. It’s based on:

  • Workout duration
  • Workout intensity (power or heart rate)
  • Your current fitness level (FTP or threshold heart rate)

Think of it this way: A Training Score of 100 represents roughly 1 hour at your threshold intensity.

Training Score Guidelines

  • Recovery Ride: 20-40 TS
  • Endurance Ride: 50-80 TS
  • Tempo Workout: 80-120 TS
  • Hard Interval Session: 100-150 TS
  • Long Endurance Ride: 150-250 TS
  • Epic/Race Day: 250+ TS

Load (Chronic Training Load)

Load represents your fitness level - it’s your average Training Score over the past 42 days.

Understanding Load

  • Increasing Load = Building fitness
  • Stable Load = Maintaining fitness
  • Decreasing Load = Losing fitness (or tapering)

Load Levels for Cyclists

  • 30-50: Recreational rider, 3-5 hours/week
  • 50-70: Enthusiast, 5-8 hours/week
  • 70-90: Serious amateur, 8-12 hours/week
  • 90-120: Competitive amateur, 12-15 hours/week
  • 120+: Elite/Professional level

Don’t increase Load by more than 5-7 points per week to avoid overtraining.

Fatigue (Acute Training Load)

Fatigue shows how tired you are from recent training - it’s your average Training Score over the past 7 days.

Reading Fatigue

  • Higher than Load: You’re training hard, feeling tired
  • Equal to Load: Steady state training
  • Lower than Load: Well rested, ready for hard efforts

Form (Training Stress Balance)

Form is the difference between your Load and Fatigue (Load - Fatigue). It indicates your readiness to perform.

Form Zones

  • -30 or lower: Very fatigued, high risk of overtraining
  • -20 to -30: Building fitness, feeling tired
  • -10 to -20: Optimal training zone
  • -5 to -10: Fresh, ready to race
  • 0 to +5: Peak form for important events
  • +5 or higher: Losing fitness, need more training

Target a Form of -5 to +5 for important races, but don’t stay there too long or you’ll lose fitness.

FTP (Functional Threshold Power)

Your FTP is the maximum power you can sustain for approximately one hour. It’s the foundation for:

  • Setting training zones
  • Calculating Training Score
  • Tracking fitness improvements

Testing Your FTP

  1. 20-minute test: Ride as hard as possible for 20 minutes, multiply average power by 0.95
  2. Ramp test: Available in the Stride app
  3. From recent efforts: Stride can estimate from your hard rides

When to Update FTP

  • After a test
  • When workouts feel too easy/hard
  • Every 6-8 weeks during build phases
  • After extended time off

Heart Rate Metrics

Threshold Heart Rate

The heart rate you can sustain for approximately one hour, similar to FTP but for heart rate training.

Resting Heart Rate

Your heart rate upon waking, before getting out of bed. Lower generally indicates better fitness.

Max Heart Rate

Your maximum achievable heart rate. Update this if you see higher values during very hard efforts.

Power Curves

Your Power Curve shows your best power output for every duration from 1 second to several hours.

Key Durations

  • 5 seconds: Neuromuscular power (sprinting)
  • 1 minute: Anaerobic capacity
  • 5 minutes: VO2 max efforts
  • 20 minutes: Threshold power indicator
  • 60 minutes: True threshold/FTP

Other Important Metrics

W’ (W-prime)

Your anaerobic battery - how much work you can do above FTP before exhaustion.

HRV (Heart Rate Variability)

Day-to-day variation indicates recovery status (synced from Whoop if connected).

Efficiency Factor

Power divided by heart rate - shows fitness improvements when it increases for same effort.

Using Metrics Together

The real power comes from understanding how metrics relate:

  1. High Training Score + High Fatigue = Take a recovery day
  2. Increasing Load + Stable Fatigue = Good progressive training
  3. Negative Form + Important Event = Start tapering
  4. Power Curve Improvements = Training is working!

Remember: Metrics guide training decisions but always listen to your body. Feeling terrible with “good” numbers? Rest anyway.

Next Steps