Love them or hate them turbo trainers definitely serve a purpose for cycle training.  It may be that with recent dire weather it is safer to continue training indoors than risk coming off in the severe wind and rain we have been experiencing in the UK, or you may opt to use a turbo trainer to get in a more structured workout.  I have had this post in my drafts since February but given the current situation with COVID-19 I know I for one have been using mine more then ever and so it seemed timely to post.

I have included detail previously about how I use my turbo trainer to get in more structured workouts that are better completed using a turbo trainer than on the road where there are too many variables.

Depending on the sort of turbo trainer you use you could see a difference in performance compared to on the road.  As noted above this can be down to variables outside of your control.  What do I mean by variables?  I mean stopping at junctions and traffic lights, build up of traffic, weather, diversions, punctures or mechanical’s to name a few.  The other difference (which honestly can be huge) is whether or not you are not using a smart trainer.  One of our first turbo trainers that I used was not a smart trainer and you controlled the resistance yourself and I could do an hour session and my average speed would be 25mph and upwards.  This is not my ability when on the road (I wish)!  It was a massive shock to the system when i got a smart trainer let me tell you!

So what is a smart trainer?  When you use a smart turbo trainer you will connect to some technology to help you get more from your workout.  These turbo trainers will adjust the resistance according to the workout so for example if you are on a hilly course the resistance will increase to simulate the same effort as if you were on the road and riding up a hill.  You will also hear the term ERG mode and this basically means that the trainer adjusts the resistance for you to help you hit a certain target power level without needing to change gear.

Some people opt for standard turbo trainers and use these with power meters though you will not experience the change in resistance as mentioned above and you will need to change gears to replicate this yourself.  With a standard turbo trainer you will not be able to connect to programmes such as Zwift, Sufferfest or Trainer Road (or similar) unless you have additional items like cadence sensor or speed sensor.

Of course smart trainers are more expensive but once you have experienced the difference between the two you will almost certainly be sold on the smart trainer, or at least speaking from personal experience I can say that is true for me.

We have had a number of turbo trainers to date including the following:

• Rollers – Tacx Antares £164.99.  Now rollers require balance and are something of a fine art, in my opinion, which is why I have never used them!  My husband, however, has (albeit also needing some time to master them) and they do not attach to the bike in any way, you simply ride on the rollers.
• Smart rollers – Elite Arion Smart B digital £348 – these are my husbands and no I would not attempt these as I would be on the floor pretty quickly but I am always pretty mesmerised by those who use rollers and appear to do so effortlessly with perfect balance!  Smart rollers like a smart turbo will adjust resistance so balance and power are required at the same time here.
• Turbo Trainer – Tacx Blue Matic magnetic turbo trainer £139.99.  This is a trainer where you leave your rear wheel on the bike and attach to the trainer.  I’d recommend using a turbo tyre for this as the make up on them is slightly different and they are designed to stop overheating.
• Smart fixed wheel turbo trainer – Bkool Smart Go.  Like the above where you leave the rear wheel on but have the additional functionality of resistance from being a smart trainer.
• Smart direct drive turbo trainer – Wahoo Kickr £999 – we have two of these, which sounds like a massive luxury but we first got one 5 years ago and it is still going strong and as we often find we both are training on this equipment we invested in a second so my husband and I have one each.  Direct drive turbos are basically where you mount your bike directly on the turbo by removing the back wheel.  Your chain will then run on the cassette attached to the trainer.

Now some turbo trainers can be loud!  I have friends that were worried to use at home for fear of upsetting the neighbours.  We are lucky ours are in our home gym so won’t offend anyone and to be honest I am so used to it now I couldn’t tell you if they are noisy or not.

I have a mat under mine as I find it is a total sweat fest.  Invest in some good padded bib shorts, always have a hand towel, bottle of water and a fan!

If you have someone who will write you a plan and sessions that are tailored for your training then fabulous!  If not you can do an FTP test and follow one of the many plans from the programme you choose and they are also very effective.  I use Zwift and there are different routes and sessions available to use.  Doing an FTP will ensure you are getting the most from the workout at the levels that are suitable for you.  Handy hint – there is no need to do the long FTP test – it has a longer warm up period and that is it, the short version complete serves the purpose!  I also have friends who do the Ramp Test instead of FTP though I have not yet tried this so cannot comment.

I am on week three of working from home and I have been starting every day with an hour on the turbo trainer, which has started my day nicely though I do need to remind myself to rest also!  My husband and I also thought it was funny to call this our daily commute (the pic was a joke and we do not actually wear our helmets, coats or bags!).

Do you have a turbo trainer? Love it or hate it?

CADENCE! It’s the favourite thing for my husband to say to me when on the bike, mainly because I train to cadence and my sweet spot, that I’m used to, is always a lower than it should be. He says it makes for more efficient riding and to help make me a more consistent cyclist.  I know this and what he is saying,  but as I said it is my sweet spot and where I feel most comfortable when riding but this doesn’t stop him shouting this at me with a smile on his face.

I push a big gear – always have and I know it’s not the most efficient but I find spinning leaves me with lower power and speed. But pushing a tough gear leaves me fatigued quicker.  Think of it as a barbell on your shoulders and you have to hold this and do squats for 10 minutes straight, you wouldn’t go for your max weight, you’d choose a weight which is still a challenge but you can complete for the whole time.  However, I also find on hills (which is the area I struggle most on the bike) that I get up them just slower than others, even on the recent Zwift race series I completed, I found I could hold my own until I hit a hill and at these points I would gradually see people pass me. I should probably concentrate on that cadence a little more and better gear selection as this will enable me to be more consistent on them hills, which I love so much.

So what is cadence?  In the basic form cadence is the number of revolutions (complete turns) of the crank per minute and the rate which you are turning the pedals as you ride (revolutions per minute, RPM).  The theory behind training using cadence is to improve efficiency when cycling.  If you ride a bike you will have cadence and if you have a bike computer you will be able to see what your cadence is as you ride by using a cadence sensor.

Some people train off heart rate, some off power, some off cadence and some off feel.  There are pros and cons to each and my advice would always be for people to do what works for them, but give them all a go and see what works for you and hopefully you’ll see an improvement  We are all different and what works for one may not be right for someone else.  I don’t have a power meter on my road bike though I do use power when using my indoor turbo trainer as it has the ability measure it.

If you find you are bouncing about on your saddle as you cycle then you are probably in a gear with very little resistance and this results in a very high cadence. If you are struggling turning the pedals then you are probably in a gear with a very high resistance resulting in a very low cadence.  The idea of using cadence will see you cycling for optimum efficiency to your own ability.  I choose to cycle off cadence as my main rides for this year, and recent years, are endurance events and I want to ensure that I will complete those in the most efficient way possible.  No one wants to finish an event feeling absolutely ruined and for me I have found cadence really helps me.

When cycling to a higher cadence of between 80-90 its very important to find the gear that you can just keep spinning in.  This gear will be one that you can still feel a resistance in but isn’t high enough that you cant manage for most of your ride and you tire very quickly in.  The theory behind this is that if you can spin at 85 RPM you should be able to do this on any gradient as long as you choose the correct gear selection.  Obviously if you are going up a hill and in your easiest gear, small ring at the front and big at the back, and can’t hit your rate (this is the area I need work in) there’s nothing you can do other than your best.  The only time you can afford to push a big gear and low cadence is going downhill, as you have gravity working for you.  If you are exhausted at the top of the hill its very important to pedal on the way down to aid recovery as well.

That is not to say sessions with low cadence and high cadence do not have their place in a training schedule either as they certainly do.  Some sessions, often referred to as high gear, will see low cadence and  high resistance, and this can help develop both core and leg strength.  Equally a session using lower gears will see high cadence and can help with cardiovascular fitness and smooth pedal stroke.

You may have heard of the saying ‘spin to win’ and this is something I say going up hills!  But this is said with cadence in mind – spin up in a gear that is manageable in order to preserve energy.

Although research into this area will largely see numerous stats that focus on optimal cadence being between 80 to 90 RPM, I have not included a breakdown of figures because this will differ for various reasons but some of which are:

• type of riding
• level of ability
• training or event
• performance
• fatigue

And, of course, as always when riding outside the conditions you ride in dictate performance – there are so many variable factors with weather and traffic to name a couple that will always affect performance results but above all enjoy riding.

Happy spinning!