Trainer Road for the "Time Crunched" Cyclist

shockedsoshocked

Been looking into subscribing to TR, looks like an excellent training tool and in my current situation seems like an excellent motivator to train.

However I can't seem to access the training plan part of the site to see what's on offer. I was wondering if you input the amount of training hours you can dedicate a week? Or pick a pre-made one? Between now and Christmas I can't see having a chance to dedicate much more than an hour a day of training Talking maybe 6-8 hours a week tops.

Any help appreciated.

gllewellyn

In short yes...

There is a flowchart to help you decide which training plan you want to use: http://www.trainerroad.com/assets/image ... -chart.png

That gives you options for hrs/week, 3-5 hrs/week or 5+ hrs/wk. And of course, you could just use their plans as a basis for doing your own thing anyway.

cougie

I did the mid level 40k TT plan - I think it was 12 or 13 weeks. Pretty much all the rides were an hour long - there might have been the odd 80 min ride or so - but the average was about an hour. It was a very effective plan for me anyway.

shockedsoshocked

gllewellyn wrote:

In short yes...

There is a flowchart to help you decide which training plan you want to use: http://www.trainerroad.com/assets/image ... -chart.png


That gives you options for hrs/week, 3-5 hrs/week or 5+ hrs/wk. And of course, you could just use their plans as a basis for doing your own thing anyway.

Exactly the sort of thing I was after! I take it the programs are adjustable according to your ftp test results too?

gllewellyn

ShockedSoShocked wrote:

I take it the programs are adjustable according to your ftp test results too?

Yes, in TrainerRoad each session adjusts automatically based on your personal FTP setting. Also you can adjust them up or down before or even during the session based on how good (or bad) you're feeling.

If you're trying to decide whether or not to take the plunge on TrainerRoad, just do it! It was awesome before they added the training plans - now it's even better and they keep making improvements. You won't regret it.

You can also design your own sessions very easily if you want to do something thats a bit different - however they already have sessions that cover pretty much every type of training I've ever seen.

tazmon

Another recent user of Trainerroad here. I think I would struggle on the turbo without it - it's harder to bail if you are halfway through a planned workout rather than just hopping on the turbo for a session.

MattC59

I've been time crunched of late. At the beginning of April we had a baby, so in the weeks running up to that, and over the past 10 weeks I've had little or no chance to get out for more than 2 hours at a time on the road. I used Trainer Road about 3 times a week with various Sufferfest videos and found it very good. There have been noticeable improvements in my fitness and despite the longest ride I've managed in the road this year being 54 miles (back in January) I coped with the 95 mile Medio Dragon Ride without any problems at all (ok, so the Devils Elbow beat me ).

It's definitely worth the money, but in this weather, get a BIG fan !

jgsi

Training for ...?
As a long term user, I can fairly have an opinion, I think:
Winter fitness - excellent 5/5 ( you carry into early season loads of oomph)
Pre season sharpening - excellent 4/5
Shaping up for Sportives - excellent .. 5/5 even
For A type road races (in season) - not so good 2.5/5 max (every other git is getting fitter as well)

TrainerRoad will get you to a level but without road work and sharp end work in racing/chain gangs throughout the year - unless you are specifically gifted - it probably will not pay back in results hoped for.

Time crunched can work for a couple of times per year but again it is not a long term strategy. If it is the only form of training you rely on, performance will slowly but surely dissipate.

Having said this, I will continue to use it until I can actually afford to retire and devote those required hours per day in search of a race win.... which I know is a vain hope.. but hey that's amateur sport for you.

shockedsoshocked

JGSI wrote:

Training for ...?
As a long term user, I can fairly have an opinion, I think:
Winter fitness - excellent 5/5 ( you carry into early season loads of oomph)
Pre season sharpening - excellent 4/5
Shaping up for Sportives - excellent .. 5/5 even
For A type road races (in season) - not so good 2.5/5 max (every other git is getting fitter as well)

TrainerRoad will get you to a level but without road work and sharp end work in racing/chain gangs throughout the year - unless you are specifically gifted - it probably will not pay back in results hoped for.

Time crunched can work for a couple of times per year but again it is not a long term strategy. If it is the only form of training you rely on, performance will slowly but surely dissipate.

Having said this, I will continue to use it until I can actually afford to retire and devote those required hours per day in search of a race win.... which I know is a vain hope.. but hey that's amateur sport for you.

At the moment, just getting some fitness back and dropping some weight. I'm not interested in racing till next season, but I have successfully raced on both road and in crits with the majority of my training coming from the turbo trainer, with Indoor Rowing thrown in as well, again due to time constraints. If the facility is there to enter your own training sessions in I can just replicate sessions that have worked for me previously.

The main reason for it is that I'm incredibly slack, and having a program that says I must do this particular work out this day will motivate me. Left to my own devices I'll sit and eat biscuits like I have for the past 2 years!