Indoor Trainer Advice

[ripvanrando]

I never liked rollers or trainers but I can handle a Zwift race and they are always very hard workouts, at least for me. Riding in Zwift? Just shoot me.

[pdonk]

I used to hate riding my mag trainer ( a 20 year old mag turbo). With not being able to go to the track I bought a single crank arm power meter to see if zwift was for me.

I really enjoyed a few of the work outs last winter and could see the fitness it brought me this summer.

I rode up the alp du zwift - it was no fun, but the 50 minute and 35 minute workouts, plus the ftp test have been useful and fun.

I think it really depends on your personality and what you hope to get out of it.

[Hellgate]

I have Keiser indoor bike. I train Z 1-2 and watch movies. It’s off season so racing Zwift doesn’t appeal to me.

As others have said, buy a good fan!


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[redir]

If it was not for smart trainers, or in my case rollers, I would probably not do any indoor training. Zwift racing is about as hard as it gets and is a truly good and competitive workout. So IMHO yes the smart tech made a huge difference for me in tolerating indoor boring training.

[trener1]

I have not read through all of the replies, so perhaps mine will be redundant.
But to answer your question (and of course it's very subjective) but I picked up a Direct Drive smart trainer in the fall of 2019 (right before covid hit), it's has been an absolute game changer for me and worth every penny and then some.
I love doing the Zwift group rides, got into a weekly TTT series which was awesome fun, and also do some structured workouts that I can import from Training peaks or create right within Zwift.
You can also check out Rouvy if you want to ride some real courses with real video.
So bottom line, yes! do it.

[reuben]

Originally Posted by rccardr

Big Neo 2T fan here, I use a vintage steel bike all winter long on it, running the TACX Trainer software. So nice to ride in European venues with which I’m familiar. Challenging, too- my fitness went way up after using it for 25-35 miles per day over five months. Helps to chase after lots of climbing.

I've thought about a Neo for reasons I can't recall, but never pulled the trigger. What's the software like?

[rccardr]

I found the software easy to set up and use. LOVE the TACX training programs, you can ergo all day long if you want and the live screen graph helps you work on even power from both pedals, smooth stroke, etc. But the big hit for me are the riding videos- actual footage of actual (mostly road) rides in England, Ireland, France, Italy, etc. that increase/decrease resistance based on elevation change. All feels very realistic, very entertaining, and when you do a 35 mile ride, you know you’ve ridden 35 miles. I’m sold.

[alexihnen]

Just to pile on for emphasis...

My Wahoo Kickr is the only reason I still ride a bike, indoors or outdoors. With kids, work, etc. etc. etc. I'm often on the bike at 11pm, and the 6am group rides around here are a bit early for me. 90%+ of all my riding is indoors, even throughout the summer. I've done training plans, races, group rides, the TTT series. I definitely have to drag myself onto the bike at times, but it's really been huge for me. When I do get outside I'm ready to go. In fact, I've done much more intensity than I have in 20yrs. I started collecting bikes a couple of years ago and figured I should be able to ride reasonably well if I'm going to have a stable of bikes.

My setup:
Wahoo Kickr (wheel off)
Two Vornado fans (front/back)
Cheap ($300?) 40in TV right in front of my nose
AppleTV 4K running Zwift
Zwift Companion App on phone
Cheap laptop table to hold fan/water/phone/etc.
Oh, and a sweat catcher on the bike - a must have

[reuben]

Originally Posted by rccardr

I found the software easy to set up and use. LOVE the TACX training programs, you can ergo all day long if you want and the live screen graph helps you work on even power from both pedals, smooth stroke, etc. But the big hit for me are the riding videos- actual footage of actual (mostly road) rides in England, Ireland, France, Italy, etc. that increase/decrease resistance based on elevation change. All feels very realistic, very entertaining, and when you do a 35 mile ride, you know you’ve ridden 35 miles. I’m sold.

Yeah, one thing that interested me was the real videos as opposed to cartoon characters.

Do you watch on your tiny phone? Tablet? Real computer monitor? TV? I don't want to buy another TV, but I can't see myself staring at my phone - I'm not much of a cell phone fan to begin with.

I'm not a fan of the fact that it's a monthly subscription service, either, but I'd try it. And it looks like I'd need to buy the most expensive package to get higher resolution video for larger screens. I think I'd be fine with the lower resolution, but I dunno.

[Ewiser]

Originally Posted by reuben

Yeah, one thing that interested me was the real videos as opposed to cartoon characters.

Do you watch on your tiny phone? Tablet? Real computer monitor? TV? I don't want to buy another TV, but I can't see myself staring at my phone - I'm not much of a cell phone fan to begin with.

I'm not a fan of the fact that it's a monthly subscription service, either, but I'd try it. And it looks like I'd need to buy the most expensive package to get higher resolution video for larger screens. I think I'd be fine with the lower resolution, but I dunno.

Try out Rouvy tons of video routes with new ones added daily by users of the program.

https://rouvy.com/?_ga=2.226607771.7...878.1601913847

You can buy a years sub if you want or monthly. Group rides and races on the actual pro race routes. If you are up to the challenge of riding the real roads.

[bigbill]

I'm dusting off the KICKR this week. It's summer in AZ and I had been riding my mountain bike in the predawn hours, but three consecutive monsoons have trashed my routes, for now. Once the four-wheelers and dirt bikes "groom" it back out, the KICKR will go dormant.

I have an older Ti bike clamped into my KICKR and a 32" monitor that I plug into my laptop. Zwift is sufficiently entertaining. Those guys who do 100+ mile rides on a trainer, I just can't imagine...

[rccardr]

Originally Posted by reuben

Yeah, one thing that interested me was the real videos as opposed to cartoon characters.

Do you watch on your tiny phone? Tablet? Real computer monitor? TV? I don't want to buy another TV, but I can't see myself staring at my phone - I'm not much of a cell phone fan to begin with.

I'm not a fan of the fact that it's a monthly subscription service, either, but I'd try it. And it looks like I'd need to buy the most expensive package to get higher resolution video for larger screens. I think I'd be fine with the lower resolution, but I dunno.

Software runs off my older iPhone, HDMI’d into a 32” flat screen right in front of me, music collection off my PC bluetoothed to a soundbar under the TV & two 22” fans (big fan at low speed was quieter than smaller fans at higher speed).

I use the $9.99 per month service, video quality is very good but other arrangements might be required for a larger screen.

So cool to ride past/thru places in the video where we have vacationed, expecially since our overseas travel has been curtailed by the pando.

[trener1]

Originally Posted by bigbill

Those guys who do 100+ mile rides on a trainer, I just can't imagine...

While I have never down 100 I have done close to 75 "miles" on zwift a couple of times, it helps allot doing it in a group ride, there is a weekly 100k group ride, so I'd do that (62 miles) then ride a bit on my own after to get to 70+

[gibbo]

I really enjoy my Kickr and Zwift. I have logged over 12k miles on my kickr and it still works great. My longest ride is 187 miles, I just wanted to see how far I could ride in a single session. I have also everested on Zwift, that was my hardest day ever on the bike!
My advice is go for it, get a decent wheel off trainer, a massive fan, and mirror your device to a decent size older cheap TV. Have a crack at some racing, try some workouts, find what you like. Oh ya, some good loud music is a must while sweating your guts out!!!!


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[metalheart]

A number of years ago I bought a first generation Kickr to use while recovering from knee replacements. It was very helpful. I used Zwift and it was fine, but once recovered I almost never used the Kickr, preferring to ride outdoors, which I could do year round in Northern California.

Last Sumer we moved to Wisconsin and about October when riding outside did not work for me anymore I set up the Kickr and used different software, Zwift, Rouvy, and FulGaz during the winter.. I prefer the ones that show actual roads rather than Zwift. Other times I would watch YouTube videos and just do intervals, manually changing the watts in erg mode. But, riding the trainer is a necessity and not a preference for me. I tolerate it knowing it helps to keep me in somewhat riding shape for the Spring (April here).

I'm thinking of getting a frame or a complete used bike for use on the trainer since I don't like using my road bike on the trainer. Any suggestions about a dedicated trainer bike? My bike mechanic skills are non-existent, but I am willing to learn.