Turbo training advice

[Andy_G]

Today im going to be a proud owner of my first trainer, and i want to start on in straight away and after searching the web i found this.
http://www.bikeradar.com/fitness/article/fitness-basics-turbo-training-24170/
Being a total newbie i only understand the basics atm and this seems ok to me, but is it. ?

I have seen others but they seem so complicated or im just dense.

 

[Arsen Gere]

Naturally I'd suggest reading my post here before you get started.

http://www.cyclechat.net/threads/turbo-trainers-rejoice.126047/page-3

You are right you don't need anything too complicated, but to sustain motivation you need a way of measuring what you are doing.

 

[Rob3rt]

Much depends on your current fitness, but this article looks to me, another case of magazines/websites telling rotund middle aged sportive riders how to injure themselves by prescribing/suggesting they undertake workouts designed to be utilised by athletes as the cherry on top!

Also it seems to be selling you a VO2 max session as threshold session. It includes 2x VO2 max sessions and an anaerobic session, a drill exercise and a none typical testing procedure.

Where is the threshold training, the tempo training, the sweet spot training?

Quite frankly, it is an awful article.

Happy to assist you if you can provide some information on your current status and your aims, note I am not a coach, just someone who rides on a turbo trainer a lot (and happens to make great gains from doing so) so will only suggest sessions you may want to try, not prescribe some workout routine.

 

[Ningishzidda]

That BikeRadar article is pony. "Warm up for 10 minutes",,, This proves BikeRadar don't want any of their readers to win a race.

 

[Andy_G]

Right ok chaps ill bin that website then lol.
Rob3rt, what fitness info do you need but to start off i ride 50-60 miles a week spread out, i average 17-18mph and my average MHR is 183, the longest ive done is 70miles, hills i dont think im to bad but i could do with improving though.
My plan is to pick up my average speed and definatly pick up on the hills, i might aswell say i want to improve on everything.

Ive tried looking for ideas that i understand but no luck yet, i just need to learn the lingo i guess.

Oh yeah, and in a few months when i have gotten better all round i want to join a club but at 40yrs old i guess im to old to race.

 

[Rob3rt]

I would say, IMO you don't ride that much so increased volume alone would almost certainly provide you with improvements. As for your average speeds, they look okay. Quite good tbh.

If I was to recommend some turbo sessions that you may benefit from I would say, a 1 hour tempo ride at ~80-85% MHR building over a few weeks to 2 hours would give you a good return on the time spent. You can also do this outside, tbh outside is preferable because long durations of 2+ hours on a turbo get uncomfortable in my experience (I rode at tempo for 2.5 hours on my TT bike on the turbo on Sunday, it was unpleasant to say the least).

Additionally, you could look to do some sweet spot training, this is essentially high tempo/low threshold work (so a little above ~85%) MHR and is called sweet spot training because it is of a high enough intensity to increase your FTP, yet a low enough intensity to recover from reasonably quickly, so you can repeat it more than once a week (but don't do it every day) thus getting the best return for the time invested. You can ride these as two intervals of 20 minutes with a 10 minute rolling recovery in the middle, or as one block, I prefer to just ride for 45 mins at this intensity and call it a day. I don't need or appreciate the downtime in the middle running it as a 2x20.

I would not suggest riding full threshold sessions or VO2 max sessions, and definitely not anaerobic sprint efforts.

 

[Andy_G]

Cheers for that Rob ill be giving it ago, to do hill training is it a case of high gear high resistance and grind away. ?
The 50-60 miles a week is only atm due to crap weather but when it clears a little more ill be doing 100+.

Just one other thing, i use a garmin 800 and i use the Cadence the speed thingy, so all i need to do is turn off the GPS.?

 

[Rob3rt]

Yes, turn GPS off on the Garmin unit. If only so it stops bugging you about trying to find a signal.

As for the hill training thing, tbh, at this stage, the sweet spot and tempo training should be doing enough for your climbing ability without worrying about "cherry on the top" training, IMHO. Increasing your FTP will make you faster up hill.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

The article isn't great but the part about pedal efficiency is on the right track. One legged drills can be helpful but not essential. What is essential is good pedalling technique. You want as much power going through the pedals as possible for as little effort as possible. Just mashing the pedals is not overly efficient.

Have a look here to get an idea of some of the variations in pedal technique.

I personally try and keep my stroke as smooth as possible with as much emphasis on the pull as much as the kick. One legged efforts really do help technique but don't expect to get along with them right away.

 

[Andy_G]

Yes, turn GPS off on the Garmin unit. If only so it stops bugging you about trying to find a signal.

As for the hill training thing, tbh, at this stage, the sweet spot and tempo training should be doing enough for your climbing ability without worrying about "cherry on the top" training, IMHO. Increasing your FTP will make you faster up hill.

Cheers for that Rob, ive just set it all up and it all works well so im guessing that its just find what gear and resistance to use.

 

[Ningishzidda]

Turbo trainer Top Tips.

Go on the internet and find out how long it takes the pros to climb Mt Ventoux.

Either get a HRM or a system of indicating power.
Warm up at an intensity where you are breathing through your nose ONLY.
Warm up for at least one hour.
Do some short sprint intervals to take your HR up to near max until you feel lactic in your muscles.

Get off the bike and put a 6” box under the front wheel.
Ride ten minutes at half whacks.
Get back on, adjust the turbo up to max and imagine you are climbing Mt Ventoux.

 

[Andy_G]

Turbo trainer Top Tips.

Go on the internet and find out how long it takes the pros to climb Mt Ventoux.

Either get a HRM or a system of indicating power.
Warm up at an intensity where you are breathing through your nose ONLY.
Warm up for at least one hour.
Do some short sprint intervals to take your HR up to near max until you feel lactic in your muscles.

Get off the bike and put a 6” box under the front wheel.
Ride ten minutes at half whacks.
Get back on, adjust the turbo up to max and imagine you are climbing Mt Ventoux.

Bloody hell harsh lol, worth a go though.

I take it when staying around 80-85% of MHR it does matter what gear or resistance your at as long as im around 90 Cadence.?

 

[Rob3rt]

Cheers for that Rob, ive just set it all up and it all works well so im guessing that its just find what gear and resistance to use.

You should select a gear that puts your HR in the right zone, while pedalling at your natural cadence (unless you are making a concerted effort to work outside of your preferred cadence zone).

Turbo trainer Top Tips.

Go on the internet and find out how long it takes the pros to climb Mt Ventoux.

Either get a HRM or a system of indicating power.
Warm up at an intensity where you are breathing through your nose ONLY.
Warm up for at least one hour.
Do some short sprint intervals to take your HR up to near max until you feel lactic in your muscles.

Get off the bike and put a 6” box under the front wheel.
Ride ten minutes at half whacks.
Get back on, adjust the turbo up to max and imagine you are climbing Mt Ventoux.

WTF!

I started to get a bit when you started talking about pros, by the time you said warm up for at least one hour I had already decided that I disagree with your post. However out of politeness (and curiosity), I read the rest, my opinion did not change!

 

[400bhp]

Turbo trainer Top Tips.

Go on the internet and find out how long it takes the pros to climb Mt Ventoux.

.

why?

 

[400bhp]

Turbo trainer Top Tips.

Go on the internet and find out how long it takes the pros to climb Mt Ventoux.

Either get a HRM or a system of indicating power.
Warm up at an intensity where you are breathing through your nose ONLY.
Warm up for at least one hour.
Do some short sprint intervals to take your HR up to near max until you feel lactic in your muscles.

Get off the bike and put a 6” box under the front wheel.
Ride ten minutes at half whacks.
Get back on, adjust the turbo up to max and imagine you are climbing Mt Ventoux.

man, you're odd.