WHEN YOU CAN’T RIDE OUTSIDE
In some places, riding inside on a trainer is the only riding there is in the winter. Athletes who live in these cold, snowy regions soon learn that the trainer is their best friend when it comes to developing the fitness necessary for spring races. Skiing, snowshoeing, and other cross-training activities done outside are great for developing cardiovascular fitness, but they are not the same as cycling. In order to prepare the muscular and nervous systems to race on a bike, at least some time must be spent riding.
Efficient and Effective
Even for those who don’t live in the frozen northland the trainer can be a great way to train. Bike trainers can make your tight daily schedule somewhat easier. When there is little time to ride, you can get a quick workout on a trainer in far less time than on the road with its stoplights, traffic, flats, and dogs. This is especially beneficial in the winter when days are short.
For far less money than joining a health club, a trainer allows you to get in a great workout. There is also no waiting for equipment and the bike will always fit you just right.
Trainers also make for precise workouts. On the road there are always confounding circumstances such as a hill that isn’t quite long enough, a “flat” course that has rolling hills in it, or an intersection to slow down for when doing intervals. None of this is a concern on the trainer. You can do the workout just as it was intended. For this reason alone, there are riders who even do some of their summer training indoors.
Guidelines
There is considerable difference in how much indoor trainer work individual athletes can handle. Some ride inside day after day in the winter and even include weekly three- and four-hour rides on a trainer with no problems. Others dread getting on a trainer and have a hard time making it through an hour. It’s best to pay attention to these signs of your tolerance for monotony and train accordingly.
To be on the safe side, I generally advise riders to train inside no more than three workouts in a row. If kept from riding outside on the fourth day, select an outdoor alternative. Also, I limit indoor workouts to 90 minutes regardless of what the on-road schedule called for. I make slight exceptions to these rules for riders who have a great tolerance for training, but this is rare.
Types of Trainers
There are four general types of indoor trainers to choose from. The one that has been around the longest, and still is one of the most effective, has small fans that produce the resistance. These “wind” trainers are good in that the resistance increases exponentially as speed increases linearly just as it does on the road. These are not as sophisticated as the other options, but are also among the least expensive trainers available. One disadvantage, however, is noise. If you live in an apartment, a wind trainer will definitely disturb your neighbors. But if you can use it in a garage or basement, the noise will bother no one but you—and maybe your spouse and dog.
Magnetic trainers are quiet, compared with wind trainers, but the resistance increase with a linear rise in speed is also linear. On the road the load goes up at a higher rate of change than does the speed. This means the workouts don’t have as realistic a feeling on a “mag” trainer as on a wind trainer.
Another option is “rollers.” These are excellent for developing a fluid pedal stroke, but are not as good as wind or mag trainers when it comes to developing other fitness abilities such as muscular endurance or force. If you use rollers also purchase a wind or mag trainer.
The top end of indoor training devices is clearly the CompuTrainerâ. If you find indoor trainers boring, this will help. You may even find yourself looking forward to riding indoors. Besides making training into an interactive experience, the CompuTrainerâ also allows you to complete self-tests, determine lactate threshold heart rates, and train indoors with power. The cost of a CompuTrainerâ is about the same as for a good bike frame. But if indoor riding is a big part of your winter, or you simply want more accurate training data, this is the way to go.
If you like the idea of training with power, a power meter, such as the Power-TapÒ, can be used whether you train indoors on a wind or mag trainer or outside on the road.
Indoor Training Set-Up
Some riders leave an old bike set-up on an indoor trainer all winter. That way, if forced inside by bad weather or working late, they can start the workout quickly—before they get out of the mood. That’s easy to do when it’s cold, snow is falling, and you’ve had a long day at work or it’s early in the morning.
When setting up a near-permanent indoor workout spot, include one or more fans. Without some way to cool off, heat build-up will increase the perceived effort of any workout and heart rate will be higher than normal.
Since sweat production is prodigious with indoor training, fluids and a towel are also necessary. Be sure to protect your bike from sweat damage, especially the headset.
Going No Where Fast
Indoor training sessions should be organized just as on the road. This means a warm-up, the workout, and a cool down. The warm-up should be at least 10 minutes of slowly increasing effort. Don’t leave this out in an attempt to get the session over with quickly.
More than likely, your indoor training sessions will seem harder than they do when outside. Almost everyone reports this. That may result from heat build-up or the greater psychological stress of going no where fast. Because of this I’d recommend doing more intervals and less steady state workouts when indoors.
Nearly any workout you do on the road can be done on an indoor trainer. Sometimes it’s just a matter of applying a little ingenuity. For example, raising the front wheel five to six inches will simulate hill-climbing position. While watching a videotape of the Tour de France, you can cruise along when the peloton is on the screen and work hard when the breakaway group is shown. The accompanying sidebar lists a few basic trainer workouts.
Going Slow
Indoor trainers are also effective for recovery workouts any time of year. Easy, spinning sessions done on a trainer are especially important if you live in a hilly or mountainous area where flat courses are not available.
Indoor trainers are available through bike shops or catalogs. The prices range from about $100 for a basic wind trainer or rollers and up to about $1500 for a top-of-the-line CompuTrainerâ model.
