Winter Turbo Trainer Training

[gibgrth]

Is there any good TT training plans to replicate a summer evening ride, for a cold wet winter evening in my garage
Many Thanks

 

[G3CWI]

Is there any good TT training plans to replicate a summer evening ride, for a cold wet winter evening in my garage
Many Thanks

Only if the trainer is set up in a country pub.

 

[fossyant]

@Rob3rt is your man for turbos.

It won't exactly replicate a road ride, but they can be effectively used for a good work out (suffer fest).

 

[Rob3rt]

If I can't go out on the road when I have intended too, to replicate a general road ride, I just spin away fairly easy (L1/L2 heart rate or power zone, variable, not worrying too much about exact power) and then to replicate riding outside (and it not being totally flat etc outside) I just push the effort up to L3 (as in tempo zone) for random periods of time as determined on a whim (maybe half an episode of a 30 min TV show? Maybe the duration of a the adverts, doesn't matter, it is random!), then follow this period with a period half the length spent in L1 to simulate the loss in elevation followed by the gain in elevation (the L3 bit). Then back to just L1/L2 riding until the next time I feel like pushing on a bit. As I know the average and normalised power for my typical road rides, I will try to make the turbo session come out about the same or slightly above (because there will be no free wheeling).

Quite frankly, none of this really simulates riding on the road, but it makes riding aimlessly on the turbo for 2 hours more bearable. Not that I generally find 2 hour sessions unbearable, I have ridden for 4 hours before, but if the effort is low, and there is nothing to focus on and I am not feeling much physical or mental demand, I do get bored.

Another option, ride for 2/3 the amount of time you would have spent on the road, at a constant effort on the turbo. Maybe even with a little bit higher power, e.g. if I was going to do a 3 hour general road ride, this would normally be at L2 with short forrays into L3 and some time spent freewheeling and in L1 (hence the original suggestion above being a turbo replica of a road ride), normalised power would firmly end up in L2. On the turbo I would replace this with 2 hours, at lower L3.

 

[gibgrth]

If I can't go out on the road when I have intended too, to replicate a general road ride, I just spin away fairly easy (L1/L2 heart rate or power zone, variable, not worrying too much about exact power) and then to replicate riding outside (and it not being totally flat etc outside) I just push the effort up to L3 (as in tempo zone) for random periods of time as determined on a whim (maybe half an episode of a 30 min TV show? Maybe the duration of a the adverts, doesn't matter, it is random!), then follow this period with a period half the length spent in L1 to simulate the loss in elevation followed by the gain in elevation (the L3 bit). Then back to just L1/L2 riding until the next time I feel like pushing on a bit. As I know the average and normalised power for my typical road rides, I will try to make the turbo session come out about the same or slightly above (because there will be no free wheeling).

Quite frankly, none of this really simulates riding on the road, but it makes riding aimlessly on the turbo for 2 hours more bearable. Not that I generally find 2 hour sessions unbearable, I have ridden for 4 hours before, but if the effort is low, and there is nothing to focus on and I am not feeling much physical or mental demand, I do get bored.

Another option, ride for 2/3 the amount of time you would have spent on the road, at a constant effort on the turbo. Maybe even with a little bit higher power, e.g. if I was going to do a 3 hour general road ride, this would normally be at L2 with short forrays into L3 and some time spent freewheeling and in L1 (hence the original suggestion above being a turbo replica of a road ride), normalised power would firmly end up in L2. On the turbo I would replace this with 2 hours, at lower L3.

Thanks Rob3rt !!