Yes, you read that title right: TrainingPeaks, arguably a competitor platform to Strava, is now supporting Strava’s most import feature: Segments.
Though, not entirely in the way you might expect.
Yesterday evening TrainingPeaks rolled out the ability for you to see and analyze segments that you’ve completed using certain Strava-capable devices. These segments would then appear within your completed workouts on TrainingPeaks, allowing you to dig into them in the same way you might currently deep-dive into your manual or automated laps/splits. For example, see below:
These show up in the laps pane, alongside your existing laps. They can then be selected in the list to highlight that section of the graph, like below:
When you select a segment, it’ll also update the metrics up above in the details pane, giving you averages and stats for just that Strava Segment:
Finally, you’ll also see it highlighted on the map as well. Oh – and as you probably noticed, the name of the Strava Segment is also shown, in this case I rode The Vibrator.
Any other dashboard views that show laps/splits will also now show the Strava Segments as well. So if you have more Segments that you’ve triggered, you’ll see those too:
So you may be asking yourself: Why on earth did TrainingPeaks hook-up with Strava? Just a lonely call in the night to a friend with benefits?
Well, actually…no.
There was no Strava booty call.
Instead, they turned to the devices themselves. See when devices capable of Strava Live Segments are out doing their thing, they actually record the names of the segments that you complete within the .FIT file. The .FIT file is your activity file from that ride. One ride = One .FIT file. It’s the near-universal standard for how most sports technology companies are trading detailed endurance sports data these days (some other platforms/devices will tend to use .GPX/.TCX for simpler data types).
So which devices support this? TrainingPeaks has tested Garmin live-segment capable devices (Edge 510/520/810/820/1000) and the Wahoo ELEMNT (which just got Strava Segment support last week). They have not tested the Cyclo 505, which does have support for Strava Live Segments. But in theory it’ll work on that.
All three of those device platforms do automatic sync direct to TrainingPeaks upon completing your ride. So if you’ve got one of those devices, it’ll now automatically appear on your activities (even all your old activities).
Now, a couple of things to note:
- A Strava Segment is only going to show up on TrainingPeaks if your device showed you the Segment mid-ride. If it didn’t, it won’t show up on TrainingPeaks.
- You *must* complete the segment for it to show-up. No failed segments will appear.
- It won’t display any other KOM/friends/etc information about the Segment. It’s just showing what you’ve completed, that’s it!
- It won’t taunt your friends via their TrainingPeaks accounts…
- …but now your coach will be aware as to why you randomly sprinted for 45 seconds in the middle of an otherwise Z2 ride. Busted!
- It only works on devices that support Strava Live Segments. So at present something like the Garmin Fenix3 won’t enumerate segments here. Nor would any Polar or Suunto gear.
- TrainingPeaks and Strava did not have a one-night stand via Tinder. Or so they say.
- All your past TrainingPeaks activities will now show segments, if they were recorded on a Strava Live capable device per above.
- Runs don’t show up, because Garmin (nor Wahoo or Mio) haven’t released any running-capable Live Segments devices yet.
So there ya have it.
Personally I think this is a cool thing, as it may provide some additional context in a ride file longer term. It also gives you a bit more detailed dive into data than you’d have on Strava’s platform, which has always lacked deep analytics.
It would be interesting to see if WKO4 gets this support, given the close ties/ownership to the TrainingPeaks platform. That’s an area where I think the company really needs to tighten up how and what they offer between the two platforms, as it seems different products get different features without a lot of clarity as to which one would ultimately be considered the ‘top dog’ (they say buy both). I’d still love to see some sort of slightly more expensive third tier that gives me the additional WKO4 features…but online in TrainingPeaks without having to have a desktop app. But that’s a topic for another day.
Oh, and finally, note that this is actually part of a much wider update for TrainingPeaks. You can find all the rest of the non-Strava new features rolled out listed here.
With that – thanks for reading!
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Would be great, if you would create a new article comparing the different platforms:
– Garmin Connect
– Polar Flow
– Strava
– Training Peaks
I guess Garmin Connect supports a lot of features of the platforms you need to pay extra for.
I 2nd DerLord’s motion. In your spare time, when you have nothing else to do, if it’s even possible to compare/contrast the web platforms- it would be a useful metric of choice for many. including Movescount in the list- which now that I’ve gotten used to, I like better than Garmin Connect. Never used Polar flow.
Yeah would love a platform comparison as well. Personally, I’m under the impression Training Peaks is really for the more professional runner, not for fun runners like myself, but I haven’t tried out TP yet. I’m a stats geek, so who knows? But I don’t have a trainer and I run just for fun; right now Strava (premium) is my platform, even though the Garmin pages have improved a lot.
“The Vibrator” – Do we even wanna know why?
Guessing it’s pave (cobblestones).
So I suppose that means keeping up premium Strava on top of a TP account to get these segments?
In effect, as Live Segments on a device requires a premium subscription.
My question as well, so it’s premium Strava and TrainingPeaks and I’d guess soon enough SportsTracks honestly it’s all a joke especially at a 30% premium to pay them all in AUD
They want all your moneys.
Ray
I assume you could default to Garmin Segments (vs Strava) which is free and similar in concept to Strava segments and get the same analysis and automatic load in training peaks?
Thanks.
I hadn’t thought of it, but probably could.
Haha hard earned at that
It does? I don’t have a premium starva account and live segments work on my 520 edge. Or am I totally misunderstanding your comment?
That, or use link to gniza.org
Looks like you can only analyse segments if you have a subscription. I can see a couple of marked segments on my last ride, but I can’t go into the analysis as I only have a free account.
Fantastic. I’ve really enjoyed some of the new features that TrainingPeaks have added over the past few months, especially the “Home” page summary thing that they added a little while back.
I have a few quick questions:
(1) Given that you have to be a Strava Premium member in order to setup live segments on your device, I presume that means non-premium users won’t be having these Strava Segment entries written into the Fit files?
(2) Do you think Strava and/or Garmin/Wahoo will see this as encroaching on their territory and move to block this by removing/altering the Strava Segment entries that are written into the fit files? You’d have thought that they would have all spent considerable time and resources setting up these collaborations and now TP swoop in and bag some new features by piggy-backing off all their hard work!
(3) Will TP and Garmin ever support auto-syncing of weight data from the Garmin Index -> Garmin Connect -> TrainingPeaks?! Come on guys, it’s been a year now, DO IT ALREADY!
In my opinion, Strava would welcome others using their hard work, since it requires a subscription to Strava to use these features. If there are more devices / websites that can have Live Segments, there are more undoubtedly going to be more subscriptions, just to use the feature on their device / website.
Apart from the delivery system and payment methodology of the two products what is the difference between Training Peaks and WKO4? I thought they were the same product but differed only with respect to delivery and payment.
I had contemplated buying WKO4 but not sure now if it is dissimilar to Training Peaks and considered a poor sister in not getting updates/feature parity, which is the better choice for features?
Guess I will wait for your full review coming up.
Quite a bit different actually. Their semi-older blog post covers the technical differences, though both products have had feature updates since then (also one reason I generally don’t like doing software platform comparisons – they quickly fall out of date): link to home.trainingpeaks.com
Thanks, that link is very helpful indeed.
Trying not to think about where on your bike you attach “the Vibrator”.
Crap…I can no longer hide my Strava obsession from my coach!
None of my TP activities have live segment laps showing. Any idea if the live segment laps only appear in TP if the actual FIT file itself is loaded into TP, presumably via Garmin Connect auto-sync or manually uploading the FIT file? I tend to bulk-upload several activities at a time to my own and to my wife’s TP accounts using Device Agent, which converts FIT files to PWX files along the way, so maybe that conversion strips out the live segment data.
Yeah you will have to load the raw fit for now. The parser in device agent does not currently support the segment parsing.
> Runs don’t show up, because Garmin (nor Wahoo or Mio) haven’t released any running-capable Live Segments devices yet.
Right on cue the 4.20 release today for the Forerunner 735 has enabled this! The challenge though is that the supporting software to get segments onto the device does not appear to have been released yet. But you can “side load” at least cycling ones either from your Edge or using gniza.org/segments – copy the FIT files into NEWFILES on your 735.
Am I the only on noticing that Training Peaks doesn’t mention the word “Strava” anywhere on their article? They just say “segments”. Those could be even “Training Peaks segments”
Likely just flying under the radar a bit for whatever reason.
But they are Strava Segments.
I know they are, but that they don’t name it as such reaffirms the botty call theory.
This is nice and cool, but TP still misses the point of the segment, which is to compare it with your past performances.
It would be great if we could use the analysis tools of TP to look at a specific segment and compare our performance in different conditions.
Right now I need to go fetch manually all the times I have ridden the segment and compare manually.
If anything TP should have their own version of segments, private and all, not for comparing with your buddies, but to compare your own performance.
I am new to TP and would appreciate segment integration. Unfortunately this does not work anymore. TP help desk confirmed that this feature was ultimately removed after short period of time.