Winter turbo training

Winter is coming. It’s getting cold, it’s getting dark and it’s getting harder to get outside on the bike. Those living in cities can do a bit of street lit commuting to get some miles in, but most will struggle to do so. For many, it becomes a choice between little or no winter cycling and indoor turbo trainer cycling. Given this choice, and Ireland’s climate, many will turn to turbo trainers. Such trainers make it possible to build cycle skills and power very efficiently and conveniently in a room of your choice.

For those considering embarking on indoor bike training, the good news is you can do it on your own bike (though you might want to put on old, cheap tyre on instead of your expensive ones, as tyres wear quickly on a turbo). All you need is to buy a turbo trainer which will come with equipment for attaching your bike to it. Turbo trainers, like everything in triathlon, come at an entry level price and progress steeply upwards.

When purchasing a turbo trainer, you will also benefit from buying a stand block for your front wheel to sit in during sessions. These are cheap to buy.  You will also need a training mat on which to train, as during indoor training sessions you can expect to sweat more than you would were you in labour. A training mat, if cleaned after every session, helps to avoid, after a few heavy sessions, your house smelling like the inside of a well used jockstrap.

Types of trainers:

There are different types of trainers and this is where you need help choosing the right one. There are three types: wind, magnetic, fluid and rollers. You can also purchase indoor training bikes designed only for indoor use and large biking machines of the type found in gyms which have many features. These are expensive relative to a basic indoor trainer and are not reviewed here.

Wind trainers are the cheapest. When using a wind trainer, your back wheel turns a fan which provides resistance. The harder you work, the harder it is to push the fan any faster. This serves as your resistance. You use your own gears on the bike to decide how hard you want to work. One problem for stronger riders quickly arises as these trainers have a maximum resistance which you may quickly want to exceed. Another problem with wind trainers is the noise they make. If you intend to use it in your house, you might want to think again. Just pedalling indoors is noisy enough! The noise rules out listening to anything (radio, TV, DVD, etc.).

Magnetic trainers use a magnetic flywheel to create resistance (they are called magnetic trainers because they have magnets that resist each other). Most magnetic trainers have handlebar-mounted control boxes to change the level of resistance during a training session, but some have fixed resistance and you need to change gears or change the settings on the trainer to increase resistance.  They are quiet, cheap and a bit crap.

Fluid trainers have goo, normally silicon, within the trainer, which, as you pedal harder, gets more resistant. Fluid trainers are the most popular type of trainer as you feel like you are on the road when riding indoors. Using your own bike’s gears you can simulate all types of sessions – easy flats, hard hills and punishing sprints. These cost a bit more but are worth it.

Many older cyclists swear by rollers. It is a challenge just to ride rollers as you and your bike must balance precariously on 3 cylinders while pedalling at all times. Rollers provide a realistic simulation of road riding. They help to develop your pedal stroke ‘but’ to use them you need to pedal smoothly. Falling off is inevitable until you get used to them.

Recommendation:

Personally, I prefer the fluid trainers. I have an Elite fluid trainer. I find this to be strong enough not to move around when I am pedalling hard. It is easy to set up and to use. All you need to do is replace your bike's rear axle skewer with the provided one. Lift the bike into place, turn the clamp tight against the skewer, then clamp the fly wheel against the tire. Once you’ve done it a few times, it takes no time to set up. It also stores easily as it folds. Personally, I do not think you need to spend all that much. No trainer is going to compensate fully for the road, but most will give you a good work out. The fluid trainers are also much cheaper now than in the past. Models such as the Elite Volare Mag Force Elastogel Turbo Trainer have been selling on Chain reaction (www.chainreactioncycles.com) for around e120.

Recording your indoor training sessions:

For those wishing to use their Garmin or similar devices to record their work out, these, when set up properly, will give you your speed, cadence and distance cycled. Work outs can then be uploaded to Garmin Connect or to Strava. Bear in mind that the speeds and distances achieved on a turbo trainer through heavy work and profuse sweating do not reflect what you could achieve outdoors as the higher the resistance, the faster the turbo will go and the more distance you will record. Whereas, outdoors the higher the resistance, e.g. on the side of a mountain, the slower you will go and the less distance you will travel. The harder the session on a turbo trainer, the more distance you will record.

Passing the time:

When you get on a turbo trainer it can sometimes feel as though time has slowed down. Where ten minutes passes in the blink of an eye outdoors, on a turbo it can feel like hours. Some people like to watch TV / movies, some listen to music and others seem to be able to meditate while on the turbo. Good luck to them. Personally, I need a training plan when I take to the turbo. Luckily there are excellent options available. Here are two:

The Sufferfest (http://www.thesufferfest.com/) – a company which specialises in cycle training videos which include professional cycling footage – maintains a range of different training videos depending on the type of session you are planning, e.g. sprints, hill climbing, flats, etc. These sessions are, as the company’s name suggests, designed to make you suffer. Done properly, these sessions can make an hour pass quickly and painfully. Just don’t expect to enjoy walking up the stairs with screaming leg muscles and in soaking wet gear when you are finished. Sufferfest videos must be purchased but can be viewed for free if you are a Strava Premium member.

 Zwift (www.zwift.com) is a simulated cycling environment which connects to the speed and cadence/power sensors already owned by its users and which enables people to ride together in a virtual world. You see the Zwift world through a computer screen. Users are represented by pedalling figures and it is possible to race alongside others. Zwift includes real courses from the pro cycling world, including the iconic climbs of the Tour de France. To take part you need an ANT+ device transmitting speed, cadence and, if possible, power - e.g. systems such as Stages, Quarq, SRM, Quarq and PowerTap - an ANT+ dongle, a recent model computer and an Internet connection. To use Zwift you need to subscribe.

Finally:

Bring a towel for yourself and wipes for the bike (or else the salt will eat away at it).