Indoor Trainers (Windtraining)
There’s no better time to haul out your indoor trainer than when its dark outside and the weather is wet and cold. “There are some great benefits of wind trainer riding” says 8 time Ironman competitor Gavin Nugent. “But keeping it interesting can be a real challenge.” So here’s a couple of Gavin’s great wind trainer programmes that should spice up your home training sessions.
Benefits of wind trainer riding (especially in winter) -
1. It always warm, never rains and never gets windy.
2. You don’t need to wear all those layers of gear - and it’s OK to go without a helmet.
3. Your bike won’t need cleaning anywhere near as often.
4. You avoid the ever present road riding hazards – glass, bad roads, dogs and yes, cars! So you’re much less likely to get punctured or injured.
5. If you’re into triathlons or duathlons it’s ideal for transition training. You do your bike session, leap off your wind-trainer, put on your running shoes and you’re out the door and running 30 seconds later.
6. Ideal for interval training. You can gauge each interval exactly without all the usual variations provided by the riding hazards in point 4, uneven terrain and foul wind or weather.
7. You can do as many hill sessions as you like by doing low rpm's in a big gear.
8. If you get a puncture there’s very little chance of coming off and its easy to find a comfy spot to change it close by.
9. You get to watch lots of movies. No extra time wasted.
Spin Sets:
B = Big ring
S = Small ring
Rear gears are:
1 – closest to your spokes (usually 23 or 25)
2 – next cog down ( 21 or 23)
and so on down to cog 10 (12 or 11)
40 off is still turning pedals over at a good tempo
20 on is flat out (Think FAST LEGS)
Be sure to complete a warm up and warm down even if you cut it short.
If you feel unwell then stop the effort and gently roll the legs over.
Don’t forget to drink and typically one bottle per 60mins as a guide.
Wind Trainer Programmes - see Bob at Bob's Bikes for advice on training sessions you can do
Benefits of wind trainer riding (especially in winter) -
1. It always warm, never rains and never gets windy.
2. You don’t need to wear all those layers of gear - and it’s OK to go without a helmet.
3. Your bike won’t need cleaning anywhere near as often.
4. You avoid the ever present road riding hazards – glass, bad roads, dogs and yes, cars! So you’re much less likely to get punctured or injured.
5. If you’re into triathlons or duathlons it’s ideal for transition training. You do your bike session, leap off your wind-trainer, put on your running shoes and you’re out the door and running 30 seconds later.
6. Ideal for interval training. You can gauge each interval exactly without all the usual variations provided by the riding hazards in point 4, uneven terrain and foul wind or weather.
7. You can do as many hill sessions as you like by doing low rpm's in a big gear.
8. If you get a puncture there’s very little chance of coming off and its easy to find a comfy spot to change it close by.
9. You get to watch lots of movies. No extra time wasted.
Spin Sets:
B = Big ring
S = Small ring
Rear gears are:
1 – closest to your spokes (usually 23 or 25)
2 – next cog down ( 21 or 23)
and so on down to cog 10 (12 or 11)
40 off is still turning pedals over at a good tempo
20 on is flat out (Think FAST LEGS)
Be sure to complete a warm up and warm down even if you cut it short.
If you feel unwell then stop the effort and gently roll the legs over.
Don’t forget to drink and typically one bottle per 60mins as a guide.
Wind Trainer Programmes - see Bob at Bob's Bikes for advice on training sessions you can do
