Zwift Racing League is back. More than 30,000 riders of all abilities have raced each of the past two seasons, and the 2026/27 season runs four 6 week rounds from September to April, with racing every Tuesday.
Here is the problem. Most riders train for ZRL by riding ZRL. They show up Tuesday, get dropped in the first 3 minutes, and spend the next 40 minutes in no man's land wondering what happened.
What happened is that ZRL asks for very specific fitness, and steady Zone 2 and Sweet Spot alone will not give it to you. So we built 5 workouts that train exactly what a ZRL race demands, and turned them into a challenge.
The challenge
Complete all 5 workouts in 2 to 3 weeks.
- Every workout is 1 hour.
- 2 weeks if you are not racing right now.
- 3 weeks if you are racing ZRL on Tuesday nights.
- Start any time. Your clock starts with your first workout.
- Do it solo or, better, do it with your team.
The 5 workouts
ZRL Ready #1: Zwift Durability Test
2 minute MAX effort fresh, 30 minutes of Tempo Bursts, 2 minute MAX effort fatigued
Durability is your ability to put out power after fatiguing efforts, and it is what decides the final lap. This test gives you a number: compare your two 2 minute efforts. If your fatigued effort is more than 3 to 5% lower than your fresh one, your durability needs work. Do this one first so you have a baseline, then retest at the end of the round and see how far you have come.
ZRL Ready #2: Zwift Race Starts
4 x [30 second sprint, 2 minutes at VO2 Max, 3 minutes at Threshold]
Zwift races are won and lost in the first 5 minutes. The banner drops, the pace is full gas, and if you miss the front group your race is over before it starts. This workout teaches you to go very hard and then keep riding hard while you recover. If you only do one workout on this list, do this one.
ZRL Ready #3: ZRL Points Race Simulation
2 laps of: 3 minute KOM, tempo, 20 second sprint, tempo, 2 minute climb
Points races reward riders who can go hard for the KOM, recover in the bunch, sprint for the intermediate points, and do it all again next lap. It is repeatability, not one big effort. And with the new Race of Truth format this season, a mass start points race with no draft, that "recovery" at tempo matters more than ever.
ZRL Ready #4: ZRL Team Time Trial Pulls
3 x 12 minutes of: 1 minute pull on the front, 3 minutes in the draft
The TTT is the purest test of teamwork on Zwift. Your job is a strong, smooth pull, then recovery on the wheel while still riding hard enough to stay there. The number one mistake is surging when you hit the front, which drops your own teammates. This workout trains the rhythm.
ZRL Ready #5: Zwift Race Finale
3 x [6 minutes at Threshold, 1 minute attack, 20 second sprint]
The last 8 minutes of a Zwift race are always the same. The pace ramps up, someone attacks, and it ends in a sprint. The winner is the rider who can still produce a big attack and a big sprint after riding at Threshold. There is no rest before the sprint in a race, so there is none here.
These are key workouts. Treat them that way.
Every workout in this challenge is a key workout. A key workout is one of the 2 or 3 sessions each week that actually move your fitness forward. They are hard, they are specific, and the whole point is the quality of the power you produce.
That is why a key workout should follow a rest day.
You can't hit 150% of FTP off the line, or hold Threshold after a 1 minute attack, on tired legs. If you do Race Starts the day after a long ride, you will finish the workout, but your sprint will come up short and your VO2 Max efforts will sag. You did the work and missed the benefit. Show up fresh and you hit the numbers, and hitting the numbers is what makes you faster.
Here is the rule we use with every FasCat athlete: rest the day before, then go get your best power. A rest day means a full day off or 30 to 45 minutes of very easy spinning. Nothing more.
And remember, your Tuesday night ZRL race is a key workout too. It may be the hardest hour of your week. Rest on Monday, race on Tuesday, and you will be amazed how much better you ride when you arrive fresh instead of cooked from a big weekend.
Your schedule
This is why the challenge takes 2 to 3 weeks and not 5 days. Every key workout, and every race, gets a rest day in front of it.
The 2 week track: not racing right now
Perfect for the break between rounds. Round 1 ends October 27 and Round 2 starts November 17.
| Day | Week 1 | Week 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Rest day | Rest day |
| Tuesday | Zwift Durability Test | ZRL Team Time Trial Pulls |
| Wednesday | Rest day | Rest day |
| Thursday | Zwift Race Starts | Zwift Race Finale |
| Friday | Rest day | Zone 2 |
| Saturday | ZRL Points Race Simulation | Long Zone 2 ride |
| Sunday | Long Zone 2 ride | Rest day. You are ZRL Ready. |
The 3 week track: racing ZRL on Tuesdays
Your race is key workout number one each week. The challenge adds two more.
| Day | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Rest day | Rest day | Rest day |
| Tuesday | ZRL RACE | ZRL RACE | ZRL RACE |
| Wednesday | Rest day | Rest day | Rest day |
| Thursday | Zwift Durability Test | ZRL Points Race Simulation | Zwift Race Finale |
| Friday | Rest day | Rest day | Zone 2 |
| Saturday | Zwift Race Starts | ZRL Team Time Trial Pulls | Long Zone 2 ride |
| Sunday | Zone 2 | Zone 2 | Zone 2. You are ZRL Ready. |
If you feel flat on a key workout day, take another rest day and push the workout back. A great workout a day late beats a bad workout on schedule. You have the full 3 weeks.
One more thing: three key workouts a week is a lot. This is a 2 to 3 week sharpening block, not a way to train all season. When the challenge is done, go back to your regular plan and keep the Tuesday race as your weekly key workout.
Do it as a team
ZRL teams roster up to 10 racers, with 5 racing in each event. The teams that win are the ones where everyone knows their job. Take the challenge together:
- Do the TTT Pulls workout as a group ride on Zwift and practice your actual rotation.
- Compare Durability Test results to decide who does what. Your most durable rider is your finisher. Your best 2 minute power is your KOM hunter.
- Hold each other accountable. Nobody skips Race Starts.
When you finish the challenge, let us know and we will give you and your team a shout out on the FasCat Podcast. It is also a good way to recruit riders for your roster.
Four tips for every workout
- Rest the day before. These are key workouts. Fresh legs mean your best power, and your best power is what makes you faster.
- Turn ERG mode off for the sprints and attacks. ERG can't respond fast enough for race efforts, and you need to practice producing the power yourself.
- Put a big fan on you. Heat kills power indoors.
- Warm up before your races the way you warm up here. Your first race start effort should never be the first hard effort of your day.
Let CoachCat be your team director
All 5 workouts are in CoachCat and send straight to Zwift. After each one, ask CoachCat what it saw: how your fresh and fatigued efforts compare, whether your Threshold held after the attack, and how to fit the next workout around your Tuesday race. It will also help you build a race plan for your team's next course.
