Turbo training for beginers

Barkiesnake
Barkiesnake Posts: 244
edited May 2009 in Training, fitness and health
Hi all,

from 21st to 30th May, for reasons beyond discussion here, I am going to be confined to a church building from 8pm until 9am every day. During the day I will need to sleep, eat and spend time with my family. This is going to restrict my chances of getting out training at a crucial time just before my first big ride of the season on 7th June. (Highclere Magnificat) :(

I have arranged to borrow my friends turbo trainer for the duration :) but, and here is the $64000 question, never having used one before what is the best type of training to do on it and how long can you spend on one in any single session?
I read somewhere that a max of 1 hr is normal, is this true?

Any advice gladly received. :oops:
thanks
"If you think you can, or if you think you can't, your right" Henry Ford

Comments

  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    Barkiesnake wrote:
    I read somewhere that a max of 1 hr is normal, is this true?
    Depends on your boredom threshold. :)

    I've read posts on here of people using turbos for 3+ hour endurance training (mainly because they live in a very cold climate and unable to train outdoors mid-winter), but my limit is around the 60-90 mins mark.

    If you ride at a high enough intensity, you'll be pretty wasted by the time the hour is up and the time passes a bit quicker than if you are just pootling along. You can always watch TV or use something like the Sufferfest podcasts to make things a bit more interesting.

    As to what training you do, well for a sportive you obviously want plenty of base miles, but adding in some higher intensity threshold training (2x20's and the like) certainly won't do you any harm and will improve your speed.

    Make sure you have a powerful fan handy otherwise you'll be cooked within 10 minutes anyway.
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • Barkiesnake
    Barkiesnake Posts: 244
    Bronzie wrote:
    You can always watch TV or use something like the Sufferfest podcasts to make things a bit more interesting.

    Make sure you have a powerful fan handy otherwise you'll be cooked within 10 minutes anyway.

    Unfortunately not an option, no tv or ariel connections in building, although may be able to take my laptop and watch on that, What's the sufferfest podcast?

    Thanks for the tips, i will make sure a fan is available
    "If you think you can, or if you think you can't, your right" Henry Ford
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    http://www.thesufferfest.com/

    available free on iTunes - great music, great race footage, great workouts

    I watch DVD's of races I've recorded rather than live TV as I've no aerial in the garage either. The Carmichael Training DVD's are supposed to be good as well although I haven't tried myself.
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • stevewj
    stevewj Posts: 227
    if doing steady 'miles' you can comfortably read a book/mag, but try to get out of the saddle every five mins to avoid sores. MUST have a GOOD fan close to you and a towel ready. I watch video i.e. rising damp - something funny and have to 'watch' rather than just something to fill the screen but more than an hour is hard work time drags. I can't do intervals on a turbo (physically or mentally).
  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 26,208
    Sufferfest is very good for giving some structure and making you work a bit harder for up to about 1hr 20. There is also http://www.turbotraining.co.uk/ which you can use on the laptop to tell you when to change effort - I haven't used it myself, as the PC is nowhere near where I put the bike.

    As everyone has said, the problem when using it for longer sessions is the boredom, plus the fact that if you don't have something to occupy you, all you are thinking about is the effort you are putting into the bike, and there's no letup for freewheeling, looking at the scenery etc. If you can play DVDs, it makes it a lot easier to put in long steady rides. I watch whole films while on it (being a fair weather cyclist), so up to about 2h 30, but wouldn't recommend subtitled films!

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