Indoor Training Tips for Cycling
Written by Russell
Monday, 29 December 2008 20:41
It would be hard to miss the outrageous weather we have experienced in Oregon in recent weeks. This is the most snow I have seen in a very long time in the Northwest. While there is enjoyment and novelty to riding outdoors in the snow, a lot of us will resort to indoor training to maintain and build fitness during poor weather. Most of us mere mortals can only maintain so much "trainer time" due to the boredom associated with indoor training. Therefore, some are left wondering, "how can I get the most out of my limited training time?" and "how can I make this more enjoyable?" Here are some solutions to ease the suffering of boredom and enhance your training benefit.
- Add rollers to your routine. Trainers are great for nailing the prescribed workload, but they do little to develop bike handling skills. Roller will address your bike handling skills and are just plain more fun. I recommend the eMotion rollers from InsideRide. These are the easiest to learn and offer a varied intensity level. You can even sprint on these rollers and they feel like riding outdoors.
- Make it a "Group Ride." Riding the trainer alone in your basement can be boring. Riding your trainer with your friends and teammates in a large space with music playing can be fun. Get on the bus, and join a crew for indoor training. We offer group indoor sessions at Upper Echelon Fitness whenever the weather gets ugly in Portland. Check our class calendar for dates and times. Most metro areas now have some form of training facility with group cycling. FYI, these are not Spin classes but actual training classes with your own bike and structured work-outs for cyclists.
- Add structure to your work-out and increase the intensity. To maintain training stress, you must balance volume and intensity. Training indoors will decrease volume for most people. Riding in active recovery and endurance zones for 60 minutes or less doesn't require enough physical stress for large gains in fitness. This intensity is used for longer training. Consider adding tempo, SubLT, Threshold, and maybe VO2 efforts to your program. An indoor work-out might look something like this:
- 10 min minute warm-up
- 10 min endurance
- 10 min subLT
- 5 min threshold
- 5 min rest
- 3 x 3 min VO2 with 2 min recovery
- 10 min Cool down
Another Example: - 10 min warm-up
- 20 min endurance
- 10 min SubLT
- 10 min Threshold
- 10 min Cool down
- Have the proper equipment. Good trainers have come down in price. Now you can find a CycleOps fluid trainer for a couple hundred dollars. This is the gold standard. It has a great feel, is quiet, and stable. There are other good options from Kurt Kinetic, Blackburn and 1UpUSA, among others. The high end choices being Computrainer, Tacx, or InsideRide options. Having the right tools for the job makes everything easier.
- Ventilation! Have a fan ready or have access to moving cool air. Maybe open the garage or put the trainer on a covered patio.
- Stay Hydrated. You will quickly find out that perspiration happens indoors! You will sweat. Sometimes you will sweat a lot. Make sure to replace that fluid so your body can keep functioning optimally and recover post work-out.
- Dedicated Space. If you find yourself doing a lot of riding at home or work, try to dedicate a space for your training. Set up all your equipment and leave it there. When motivation is low, the last thing you want to do is set up the equipment and rearrange. Make it convenient for yourself.
If you are able to utilize these tips, you might find indoor training more tolerable and effective. Indoor training has its positive side, too. It is very precise training. Your intensity is not dictated by terrain or course. You do not have to ride in the dark, rain, or snow. You don't wear out your equipment or need to buy expensive clothing for cold and wet weather. Don't overlook indoor training in your preparation for next season.