How to train indoors
As the UK remains under restrictions we look at how to keep riding
Circumstances beyond just bad weather can force your training off of the road, into the spare room or garage and on to the indoor trainer. Of course, most recently the coronavirus pandemic has caused us all to reconsider long rides outside and look to the turbo instead. Luckily for us mere mortals, the advances in design and function of indoor trainers –coupled with the interactive technology available – has made indoor cycling a key weapon in the armoury of most modern pros.
Whether it’s as part of the WorldTour caravan of equipment or the homecycling setup they use to recover from injury or train in the off-season, accessories like turbo trainers are part and parcel of the elite cyclist’s life. As such, there are some lessons to be 01 PERMANENT FIXTURES
“The gold standard for your ‘pain cave’ would be to have your home trainer permanently setup. Whenever your motivation is lacking, then something as trivial as having to set the trainer up before your workout could be all it takes to skip that session. If you can’t have a permanent setup, get everything ready the night before, so when you wake up, it’s all good to go.” 02 OPEN UP
“Ensure any indoor training area is wellventilated. A small desk fan isn’t really enough once you work up a head of steam. If you can, situate your trainer in a spot where you can open windows or doors and have at least one fan on hand to circulate the air around you. Heat learned by riders of all standards taking to indoor training in order to get the biggest benefit from it. Of course, you can use any confinement – enforced or otherwise – to work on your general fitness and conditioning with home exercise drills that don’t involve pedalling at all. It’s also a useful time for planning new routes and carrying out long-overdue bike maintenance. But for those who want to recreate as much of the road work as possible from their front room, then a few indoor insights include the following tips... stress is one of the reasons why you can’t replicate the power you do on the road, indoors. If you can reduce heat, the quality of your workouts will improve.” 03 TAKE ON FLUIDS
“Hydration is also very important when working out indoors. Have a couple of bottles made up with a solution containing both electrolytes and carbohydrate. The addition of carbohydrate to your electrolyte solution will improve not only hydration, but also the quality of your workout. Just a small, two per cent loss of sweat can lead to a noticeable decrease in performance.” 04 PICK A PROGRAM
“Remember that you don’t need a smart trainer to use programs like Zwift, you could use rollers and your bike’s power meter. Having something to follow on screen will certainly make the time pass faster. Just make sure you charge all your gadgets the night before.” 05 OPEN TO OPTIONS
“HEAT STRESS IS ONE REASON WHY YOU CAN’T REPLICA TE THE POWER YOU DO ON THE ROAD”
“Zwift is a great platform for keeping things social. I would recommend you use this if you want to go on a group ride, or dip your toe into online racing. You’ll