FAQ

Zihi can generate a personalized training plan, but only if you specify how much time you have for training and what facilities are available to you each day (skiing, running or cycling, gym, etc.). The best training plan is the one you can do. Therefore, Zihi cannot schedule a strength workout for you if you do not have access to a gym. Similarly with skiing. If you don't have snow and you're still rollerskating, then please let ZIhi know that by specifying rollerskiing as a workout type you can do in your “Time Available” Calendar. The same is true for training time. Zihi will not schedule a 2-hour long session if you have indicated that you have a maximum of 60 minutes for a workout on a particular day. Filling in “Time Available” you guarantee that Zihi will create an individualized plan that fits your schedule and available facilities.

- Login on http://zihipro.com, go to the Time Available tab and click Erase period in the top menu. You can select the number of days you want to erase by selecting specific dates. - It's even easier in the App. Go to the Time Available tab and delete all workouts on the current day and then repeat this empty day for weeks. REPEAT button in the upper right corner. Now you can refill the Time Available Calendar.

Please fill out “Time Available” with a realistic sports schedule. Keep in mind that your workouts will be less effective if your plan doesn't include strength, overdistance and high-intensity workouts. Zihi will be able to put add strength training only if you include “Gym” as a facility to which you have access. And keep in mind: a long workout requires at least an hour and a half, and high-intensity should be at least one hour long. But even if you have only an hour to train, it’s better to enter a little more, for example 1 hour 20 minutes, so that the program can recommend a wider range of workouts.

Strength workouts may not appear in your plan for several reasons even if they are in the “Time Available” Calendar. For example, there will be no strength training during a taper period one or two weeks before your goal race. The minimum time required for strength training is 60 minutes for skiers and 45 minutes for runners – thiscan also affect the appearance of strength workouts in the plan. If you can only train four times a week or less then strength will also not appear in the plan due to the priority of endurance development workouts.

TRIMP – training impulse – is a numerical indicator of training load. One hour of jogging and one hour of intense cross-country running are the same training volume in terms of duration, but provided completely different training loads! Training load reflects the internal level of physical and psychological stress and is derived from a combination of volume, training frequency, and training intensity. For endurance sports, Eric Banister and colleagues proposed calculating TRIMP, according to the following formula: TRIMP (training load) = Duration x HR Reserve e^(HR Reserve x b) where HR Reserve is calculated as (training HR - resting HR)/(max HR - resting HR), e - is the base of the natural logarithm, b - is a coefficient that takes the value of 1.67 for women and 1.92 for men. The main idea of the TRIMP calculation is that we multiply the duration (in minutes) by the intensity factor. Zihi automatically calculates the TRIMP parameter, provided that the athlete is training with a heart rate monitor or simply knows his or her heart rate during training.

A smooth increase in load is the basis of safe training. Zihi algorithms will increase training time not more than 9% from one week to another. In addition, the load that you will receive next week is directly dependent on the workouts completed over the past month. The more you train, the more training Zihi plans for you.

Zihi develops a training plan with various amounts of high-intensity training per week. Thisdepends onfactors, including: how many training days you have until your goal race; your fitness level, which can vary from beginner to elite and can be changed in settings; and your training schedule which can be edited in the “Time Available” Calendar. One of the most important rules Zihi uses to plan high-intensity training is the presence of sufficient recovery workouts between intense sessions.

Yes., In this case, Zihi develops the training load based on the performance level you specify (selected in the profile settings). You can choose from four levels, from beginner to pro. As soon as you start to train your completed workouts are uploaded to Zihi, the algorithms analyze them and your plan for the coming days will be more individualized.

Zihi develops a plan based on the athlete’s schedule, but also the athlete’s fitness level (which can be changed in the settings) and the volume and intensity of completed workouts. If your fitness level is “Beginner”, then Zihi limits the maximum number of workouts per week and duration. The higher level of fitness, the more challenging the training plan you get. Another example is related to completed workouts. If over the past few weeks you have not trained too much by intensity and duration, then Zihi analyzes this and increases the weekly training load, taking into account your completed workouts and historical training load. In other words, the more you train, the higher the training load you get in your plan and vice versa.

When developing a training plan, Zihi relies on your Time Available schedule to apply our coaching rules. For example, if you can only train for 60 minutes a day, then there will be no workouts longer than this in the plan. Also, the structure of training from week to week may differ, due to the switching of periodization blocks, the alternation of high load and recovery weeks, and the intensity and volume of athlete's completed workouts.

Performance is determined by the dynamics of training load, the TRIMPS parameter. The “shape” graph up to the current date shows an analysis of your training history. Zihi calculates completed workouts and, based on the TRIMPS of each workout in the past, calculates fatigue and performance per day, as well as their derivative, the “fitness” parameter. The future “form” graph reflects how your form – or ability to perform – will change if the training plan is followed.

There may be several reasons for this: Zihi creates a plan by alternating loadingand recovery weeks. In the recovery weeks, the load is reduced, and therefore, your form may also decrease. Also, the load in the plan can be significantly limited by your schedule. To make your Performance graph increase, it’s necessary to increase training volume and intensity from week to week. Try to increase your time for training in “Time Available” Calendar and update your training plan.

Two independent algorithms work to develop performance prediction and training plan, respectively. Developing a plan, Zihi analyzes completed workouts and “Time available” data. In this process, Zihi does not adjust the plan according to a rule that performance must grow permanently. A decline in predicted performance decline on race day may be due to the impossibility of planning the training load required for continued performance increase. For example, you trained last month on average five days a week and 90 min per workout. And a month before the race day, your “Time available” data allows Zihi to develop a plan with only three training days per week. This will lead to a decrease in performance. Play a little bit with your “Time Available” data. For instance, extend your schedule so that you can train 30 minutes longer each day. Update the plan and see how it would adjust your performance in the future.

Each time you click “Generate your training plan” the system does not slightly update it -- Zihi develops a new one. The new plan takes into account all the new information that you uploaded to the system: updated schedule, new self-estimation data and completed training files. You might also change a racing goal or your level of experience. Please update your plan if: - Your Time Available schedule has changed significantly - You seriously deviated from the plan (for example, missed a high-intensity workout or did something completely different from what was planned). - Your well-being, life stress, muscle pain or sleep quality cause anxiety – in other words, listen to your body!

If you are unable to complete a planned workout f due to weather reasons, we recommend that you change your Time Available schedule for today and click “Generate your training plan”. In this case, you will receive a new plan based on your current training facilities.

For the moment, you may connect devices from Garmin, Polar, Suunto, Wahoo, and Coros. It is also possible to to upload *.fit training files into Zihi. Or you can manually enter training duration and distance, and average and maximum heart rate.

Each athlete’s self-estimation allows Zihi's algorithms to take into account uploaded information and make adjustments to a previously planned program – for example, to decrease training intensity, replace individual workouts, or even give a full day-off. Each day, Zihi asks athletes to report on subjective factors. Sleep quality in the morning (upon awakening, sleep is assessed last night), and remaining indicators (muscle soreness, perceived recovery and stress) are assessed in the evening, with data entered for the past day.

Each training plan is created for one main race (indicated in your profile). You can also add intermediate races in the Time Available Calendar. Zihi will take into account these races, but in general, the plan is built to produce maximum performance in the race entered in the profile. If in a season you have two or more important race with a long period of time between them, then we recommend that you first indicate one race in your profile, get a training plan for it, and when this race is over, add the next important race to your profile. You can add as many intermediate races as you want to the Time Available Calendar, just be sure toindicate their priority.