10 TOP TIPS… TO MASTER INDOOR TRAINING
Let’s face it, no-one really likes training indoors! But with the advice below, you can learn how to improve technique, performance and, ultimately, your enjoyment…
01 JUST ADD ACCESSORIES
Indoor trainers come in many forms, from rather loud £100 turbo trainers to the high-tech, twogrand, silent WattBike Atom. Whatever suits your budget and home set-up is absolutely fine. But beyond your bike and trainer, remember a few more essentials to keep things clean, efficient and cool. These include: a front-wheel block to level out your bike; a fan to keep you cool; towels to wipe your face and to catch your sweat; a water bottle; and some form of visual and/or audio stimulation.
02 GET GAMIFICATED
Talking indoor stimulation, you’d have to live in a cave to be unaware of Zwift. It’s the market-leading gamification of cycling and has taken such a foothold that there’s even a governingbody recognised UCI Esports World Championship (held next year on 26 February). Covid saw a dramatic increase in Zwift numbers, but they’re not the only ones. Virtual cycling app RGT Cycling is popular and thousands head to the likes of TrainerRoad, Sufferfest and Rouvy. Check out each for their payment plan but, as an example, Zwift is around £12 per month.
03 TREAD CAREFULLY
Treadmill running comes into its own during the off-season. But not solely down to defying the climatic odds – it’s down to beating injury, too. You see, the softer surface dampens forces driving through the lower limbs and joints, and so reduces the chances of overuse injuries. That’s even more important during the autumn/winter months as many of you will crank up the run mileage. If you’re looking for consistency across treadmills for data analysis, it’s advised to increase speed rather than incline due to inconsistencies between the ways treadmills are jacked.
04 TRAIN YOUR GUT
Few Ironman athletes are going to spend upwards of 6hrs indoor riding, which makes it a hard place to practise your nutritional strategy. But with a degree of flexibility, you can challenge your gut in different ways. Crank up the intensity during shorter rides and continue feeding as normal to see how your guts responds. And increase how much you consume by around 10% to again test your stomach’s ability to absorb and assimilate sugars. As nutrition’s so important to finishing an Ironman, this is a good way to train your gut.
05 BEAT THE HEAT
Looking to race in the heat? Indoor training will prove far more beneficial than autumn riding in the UK. But drop the fan. The lack of airflow and raised temperature will pay dividends. You see, by cranking up the thermostat in your pain cave, you’ll see a significant rise in core and skin temperature, which is key to physically and mentally prepping to compete in the heat. Around 10 sessions of 1-1.5hrs will give you most of the adaptations you need to compete in the most extreme conditions.
06 PERFECT POSITION
Once you’ve bought your trainer, there are a number of benefits beyond increasing strength and stamina, including honing your position. The lack of traffic means the turbo’s an ideal tool to play around with your bike set-up. It’s simple to adjust things like seat height and fore-and-aft position to achieve your perfect A, B, C and D – namely aerodynamics, bike handling, comfort and delivery of power. Once you’ve proved its worth out on the ride, take the measurements of this set-up so you have the dimensions if – we mean when! – you buy another bike.
07 GO OLD-SCHOOL
If you’re happy to bypass computer simulations for traditional efforts, high-intensity interval training is a good place to start, as it’s been shown to boost speed and strengthen the cardiovascular system in record time. It’s also more ‘entertaining’ than easy tempo for 2hrs. One method is to warm up for 10mins followed by max efforts of 30secs. Recover for 1-2mins and go again. Do this as many times as you see fit before warming down for 10mins.
08 ROLL OUT THE ROLLERS
Looking for a real indoor test? It’s time to roll out the rollers. As the name suggests, this advanced training tool is essentially a set of three rollers where you balance your bike and pedal. It’s more technically taxing than turbos and takes time getting used to, so ensure you have something either side of you to lean on while you learn. Stick with it, though, as mastering rollers will improve your pedal technique and efficiency, work your core harder and deliver a more realistic ride. Planet-X’s Jetblack R1 rollers are currently a walletfriendly £119.99.
09 DON’T IGNORE YOUR THIRST
Even with a fan, indoor cycling can leave you a sweaty mess. That’s fine, of course, especially for heat acclimation, but it does mean you mustn’t neglect hydration. An hourly 500ml bottle swimming with water and an electrolyte tablet is a good benchmark to start from.
10 REACH FOR THE BARS
If you’ve never ridden with aerobars before, the safety of the indoors is a great place to start. Once you’ve clamped them onto your bars, spend around 5mins stretched out riding at a moderate pace. Ease up onto the tops for 3-4mins and then repeat four times. Focus on keeping a stable head and shoulder position. Increase time spent down on your tri-bars and decrease recovery time as you grow stronger in that position.