roller training

eyebee

I am considering buying the cyclops resistance rollers. I ride on the road as much as I can but feel I could get more training in with rollers for when I can't get out. I don't race but like to get as much training in as possible and through the winter am unable to commute as much as I would like. I don't want to go for a turbo trainer, haven't ever used rollers, so was wondering if I will be able to get an efficient workout on the rollers and if they are worth the money?

hopper1

I have the CycleOps Rollers with resistance. They're well made and enough for me to get a good session out of.

eyebee

How long can you stay on before boredom sets in? This is one of my main concerns

Airbornerodent

I'm also looking at rollers but don't quite have the same budget.
Has anyone got the Tacx antares ones? Do they give enough resistance for a decent workout?

JohnnyAllez

I`ve got the Tacx Antares, they feel like there`s not much resistance, but you certainly get a sweat on so it`s doing something ! I don`t mind riding on either those or the turbo, switch on some modern drivel on the radio, can do an hour in the garage without dying of boredom

softlad

rollers will give you as much of a work out as you can cope with. They are every bit as good as a turbo. Just different...

Roadcrawler

I've got the Elite Parabolic and have recently been using CTS' "Cyling for Cadence" to get a good sweaty hour completed. Boredom ain't in when you're trying to stay upright!!

Bhima

Rollers are more "fun". A lot less boring in my opinion, because you actually have to think about bike handling, giving a more realistic experience. On a standard static turbo, your mind can wander at times. You're using less of the core muscles involved with balancing the bike, especially during all-out efforts.

Even with no resistance, you can get a great workout on them by using higher cadences. It takes practice to get the bike steady but the good news is that, during intervals, the wheels are moving faster, making the bike more stable and the steering less sensitive.

Brixtonfixed

I have the Cycleops alu rollers with resistance. They seem well made and work well - and they're very easy to set up and stash away.

As to whether they'll give you an efficient workout, I'd say so. I'm using mine for one hour 'tempo' sessions (staying at 75-85% of max HR) and for strength training, which culminates in pushing 53x12 with the resistance on full. That's a little bit of a technical challenge on rollers, but it's doable!

I chose rollers over a turbo because I wanted that more 'realistic' riding experience. You do need to concentrate more than on a static trainer or turbo -- but indoor training is pretty boring however you do it, IMO. A decent bangin' playlist is what I use to fight the tedium.

If you're new to rollers, start in a doorway. It takes a little while to get the knack. But you could end up like guy in the celebrated 'rollers - no hands, one leg' clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wME5NTriTco

eyebee

Thanks for all the feedback. Now I just need to know if rollers without the resistance would be sufficient or if it's worth paying the extra for resistance...and variety?
....There's also the £100 saving to think about!

softlad

no need for resistance - if you want to work harder, just change gear....

robrauy

softlad wrote:

no need for resistance - if you want to work harder, just change gear....

Agreed - Just done a 50min interval session on my Antares rollers. Still had a couple of gears left during the intervals and it felt like a pretty hard session to me..

I was tempted by a turbo, but the rollers are very quick to set up, and for strength training I have my fixie and some good hills nearby..

Eddy S

robrauy wrote:

softlad wrote:

no need for resistance - if you want to work harder, just change gear....

Agreed - Just done a 50min interval session on my Antares rollers. Still had a couple of gears left during the intervals and it felt like a pretty hard session to me..

This is not good advice for people following or wanting to follow a structured training programme - you will need resistance. I do all of my indoor training on rollers with resistance. I've said this before and I'll say it again, just pedalling harder and faster is not structured training. It does not give you the variety you need, especially at this time of year,

robrauy

Eddy S wrote:

robrauy wrote:

softlad wrote:

no need for resistance - if you want to work harder, just change gear....

Agreed - Just done a 50min interval session on my Antares rollers. Still had a couple of gears left during the intervals and it felt like a pretty hard session to me..

This is not good advice for people following or wanting to follow a structured training programme - you will need resistance. I do all of my indoor training on rollers with resistance. I've said this before and I'll say it again, just pedalling harder and faster is not structured training. It does not give you the variety you need, especially at this time of year,

Fair point - I usually do just 1 roller session per week. Everything else is done on the road.

Bhima

Eddy S wrote:

I've said this before and I'll say it again, just pedalling harder and faster is not structured training.

Yeah, sure it's not if you're just blindly doing it, but if you're following a structured plan, you'll know that what matters is the power at which you ride. The cadence you achieve that power at is totally irrelevant. With little resistance, you can still get up to very high power levels if you spin faster.

Eddy S

Bhima wrote:

The cadence you achieve that power at is totally irrelevant. With little resistance, you can still get up to very high power levels if you spin faster.

You're just promoting a different version of harder/faster. That's not variety. Where does lower cadence strength work come in to that theory? You can't do that without resistance.

Oh, and I do a lot of high cadence work and sprint intervals for my track sprinting just in case you think I'm just being difficult.

softlad

Eddy S wrote:

This is not good advice for people following or wanting to follow a structured training programme - you will need resistance. I do all of my indoor training on rollers with resistance. I've said this before and I'll say it again, just pedalling harder and faster is not structured training. It does not give you the variety you need, especially at this time of year,

sorry, I don't agree - its perfectly reasonable advice for 99% of people reading this forum (assuming the other 1% are being coached professionally anyway). A standard pair of rollers and a heart rate monitor will give most 'normal' riders as much structure as they want or need.

Once_In_A_Blue_Moon

Just attempted my first ever session on a set of rollers (Tacx Antares). Well, it was more of a practice run. Having spent a short while using a door frame for support and concentrating on a fluid, smooth pedaling, it's made me realise how much my balance and core stability are lacking.

Too early to say if it's worth the money, but I'm looking forward to another spin tomorrow. It certainly looks a damn side easier than it is!

Bhima

Eddy S wrote:

Where does lower cadence strength work come in to that theory? You can't do that without resistance.

OK, fair enough - if you're on the track or whatever, high resistance will help, but I ride on the road only and never use low cadences, even on steep gradients. Long rides, sprints, accelerations, climbs, intervals etc - I always am at 90RPM minimum. I don't see the need to do low cadence intervals when I never use a low cadence, if you get my drift. I'm sure this is the same for a lot of people.

Power is power, no matter what cadence you use. What i'm saying is that you can still get improvements on rollers, unless you're in the top 5% of athletes who will need more resistance or bigger gears.

Once_In_A_Blue_Moon

90rpm on climbs? Another bhima classic :roll:

Pokerface

Once_In_A_Blue_Moon wrote:

90rpm on climbs? Another bhima classic :roll:

Don't doubt it until you've seen it.


I've seen it.


But it was more like 85 RPM.

Brixtonfixed

Is it worth paying extra for the resistance? (It seems to be 50 quid more according to Wiggle for the Cycleops unit) I think it depends on what sort of training you want to do. If you do any indoor training to build power (low cadence, high resistance) then you may struggle to get the necessary resistance on standard rollers, even in the very highest gear. However if it's just aerobic work then there's no need for the extra gadget.

I think the resistance unit increases the range of what rollers can be used for - that was what made me shell out the extra. For tempo sessions I use no resistance; for strength training, high gears and max resistance.

Bhima

Brixtonfixed wrote:

training to build power (low cadence, high resistance)

Again, this is the misconception that most people believe - you can actually build power at any cadence. In fact, at higher cadences, your legs can go for longer before you're cooked!

disgruntledgoat

Bhima wrote:

Brixtonfixed wrote:

training to build power (low cadence, high resistance)

Again, this is the misconception that most people believe - you can actually build power at any cadence. In fact, at higher cadences, your legs can go for longer before you're cooked!

Surely lower cadence in a bigger gear= more watts per revolution ergo greater resistance. I think they're taling about building greater short-burst power (brute strength) rather than greater sustainable power over a long period (higher RPM, less watts per revolution)

eyebee

Thanks again, I guess now it's just a question of aluminium or plastic rollers, as far as noise is concerned is there any real difference. Also, are the parabolic type necessary once the rollers are mastered?...decisions..decisions!

DaSy

I have the Cyclops Alu rollers which I initially bought without the resistance unit, and can wholly recommend them. The parabolic rollers may be useful to start off with, but once you are proficient it is unnecessary.

I would add that I subsequently bought the resistance unit for my rollers, and for me it was a very worthwhile upgrade.

One of the benefits is that for instance, on a tempo session I can be at a more realistic wheel speed to that which I would be on the road, and as the speed is reduced, the vibration is too.
At high wheel speed for a prolonged period you can start to get a fair bit of buzz through the saddle, so reaching the required HR zone at 20mph compared to say 30mph is more comfortable after an hour or two.

jrduquemin

I've just bought the Antares rollers from CRC, just awaiting delivery now and I bought a training mat also as I don't want to mess up the living room carpet :-)

I've bought the rollers primarily to keep up a reasonable level of fitness over the winter though I will be trying to ride to work at least a couple of times a week.

eyebee

Just received the Tacx Antares.Figured I can always add the reistance at a later date if need be but will still be getting out on the bike, weather permitting.Look forward to getting them set up later. At least I should be safe from white van man.A few too many close encounters in the last few days,all in good weather/daylight!

hopper1

jrduquemin wrote:

I've just bought the Antares rollers from CRC, just awaiting delivery now and I bought a training mat also as I don't want to mess up the living room carpet :-)

I've bought the rollers primarily to keep up a reasonable level of fitness over the winter though I will be trying to ride to work at least a couple of times a week.

You want to use some waterproof sheets on your furniture, too... For when you lose concentration! It will be messy

gobi

I have Tacx Rollers which I use for High Cadence work.

I use a turbo for Low Cadence work.

Seems to work.