Entry level turbo-trainer

Spanky
Spanky Posts: 165
edited March 2012 in Training, fitness and health
Hi,

Just got my first road bike but due to my job it's very hard to get out during the week. So I was looking to buy a turbo trainer to get some training time in during the week to help improve my overall fitness.

I'm not looking for anything fancy. Just a decent quality stable platform that ideally has several different level settings that I can make use of as I get fitter. Power meters, etc etc are not needed. I can just stick a post-it note on the handle bars saying "not a lot" and it'll be close enough!

Thanks for any help you guys can give.

Comments

  • napoleond
    napoleond Posts: 5,992
    Hi mate, problem with a cheap turbo trainer is that they are horrible and you won't use it. It really is false economy. Either get a decent one such as a Cycleops Jet Fluid 2 or Pro, or don't get one at all.

    My opinion of course, having owned cheaper Tacx ones (Sirius then Satori, the Satori was good but no where near as good as the Cycleops Fluid Pro I have now) and then upgrading...
    Insta: ATEnduranceCoaching
    ABCC Cycling Coach
  • Padgie
    Padgie Posts: 20
    or maybe the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine...... not enrty level though but a nice bit of kit..very similar to the Cycleops I'd imagine?
  • napoleond
    napoleond Posts: 5,992
    Very similar but a fair bit more expensive.
    Insta: ATEnduranceCoaching
    ABCC Cycling Coach
  • amaferanga
    amaferanga Posts: 6,789
    I agree with NapD. Also, if you're cycling to get fit without a specific goal you'll probably find it hard to keep motivated to ride the turbo. With spring just around the corner, the days are already long enough to get a decent ride in in the morning or evening in daylight (assuming you work fairly normal hours). Your money may be better spent on some decent lights than a turbo trainer;.
    More problems but still living....
  • ajmitchell
    ajmitchell Posts: 203
    I have 3x turbos right now, don't ask why, just seem to collect them! Anyway I notice Evans have a sale on for turbos right now and I can recommend the magnetic Minoura v150 at £150 minus 10% (10offbase code), 135 with free delivery I think. Its quite robust, has variable resistance. I've done about 1,500km on an earlier version of this with no problems. ps. yes fluid trainers are great, but quite a bit more I think.
  • heathy_76
    heathy_76 Posts: 213
    I was in the same position as you and I opted for the Elite Crono Mag Gel (I think that is correct, off the top of my head). I've been using it for 3 weeks along with a heart rate monitor and noticed a noticeable difference each weekend when I hit the open road. Really happy with my progress.
    I've been doing zone 2 for an hour or so each time with the occasional 30 min interval session.
    Please note, my knowledge of this is extremely limited but in short buying the turbo (and HRM) is the best thing I could've done.
    Pitch Pro - http://heathy.pinkbike.com/album/My-Bike
    Bianchi (Gone but not forgotten) - viewtopic.php?t=12704175
    Pinarello - viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12844010
  • sheffsimon
    sheffsimon Posts: 1,282
    heathy_76 wrote:
    I was in the same position as you and I opted for the Elite Crono Mag Gel (I think that is correct, off the top of my head). I've been using it for 3 weeks along with a heart rate monitor and noticed a noticeable difference each weekend when I hit the open road. Really happy with my progress.
    I've been doing zone 2 for an hour or so each time with the occasional 30 min interval session.
    Please note, my knowledge of this is extremely limited but in short buying the turbo (and HRM) is the best thing I could've done.

    Decathlon have had some Elite ones for £90, been using one all winter. Not sure I would be doing an hour zone 2 on the turbo....turbo is for hard efforts, intervals and the like IMHO. Zone 2 is for long steady rides.

    Thank christ, the turbo is now packed away, and all my training is outdoors :)
  • heathy_76
    heathy_76 Posts: 213
    SheffSimon wrote:
    Not sure I would be doing an hour zone 2 on the turbo....turbo is for hard efforts, intervals and the like IMHO. Zone 2 is for long steady rides.

    Have been doing some intervals too. Is there a reason why you can't or shouldn't do 'long and steady' on the turbo?
    Pitch Pro - http://heathy.pinkbike.com/album/My-Bike
    Bianchi (Gone but not forgotten) - viewtopic.php?t=12704175
    Pinarello - viewtopic.php?f=40044&t=12844010
  • phreak
    phreak Posts: 2,953
    No reason except the boredom of being on them for a couple of hours I suspect. Re the OP, I have a Tacx Flow and it's worked like a charm so far.
  • doyler78
    doyler78 Posts: 1,951
    heathy_76 wrote:
    SheffSimon wrote:
    Not sure I would be doing an hour zone 2 on the turbo....turbo is for hard efforts, intervals and the like IMHO. Zone 2 is for long steady rides.

    Have been doing some intervals too. Is there a reason why you can't or shouldn't do 'long and steady' on the turbo?

    I think the issue is that 1 hour @ zone 2 isn't going to do anything useful for you so why bother? Just ask yourself what you are trying to achieve from each ride.

    As you have now expanded his advice and asked about long and steady on the turbo then it matters not where you do it so long as you do it however long and steady for zone 2 would be several hours not one or two :wink:

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