Turbo training help - distance or pace?

Ah okay. Running out of energy then.

That's the whole point of the flywheel removal - it makes the effort constant. The resistance control is a variable element. Obree's methodology is have the TT as constant as possible.

The training has had a remarkable effect on my overall stamina when it comes to concentrated sustained effort (such as hills). Indeed, I'm capable of mashing away at the various speeds and times individually - just when strung together I hit keep hitting a wall at around the 15 minute mark on the 100rpm slot. The legs feel like lead, the vision starts to tunnel, and the body screams at me to pack it in.

Thanks for the steer, Alex.

Feels a bit like admitting defeat though

Would you recommend a powermeter to compliment this sort of work I'm doing here?

Edit: scrap that idea... just seen the price of the things. :shock:

twotyred wrote:

Having reading The Graham Obree way

First of all you are not Graham Obree so what works for a somewhat unconventional elite athlete may well not work for you.

Your resistance is obviously too high for you to complete the prescribed time. How did you arrive at the resistance-time combination you have? Do you know what the objective of the workout is? Is it to increase strength? If it is then not completing it is probably not a problem. If its to increase aerobic performance then not completing the time might lose you some benefit.

Also if the resistance is fixed how do you warm up? I wouldn't want to tackle a super intense workout like that without a warm up.

I doubt removing the flywheel is making it any harder. On every turbo I've used the flywheel doesn't allow much spin down.

A fifteen minute balls out workout is probably doing you some good but you'd porobably get more benefit by mixing things up with some longer threshold and shorter sprint sessions.

Thanks for taking the time twotyred. In order;

I know I'm not, and having read the book there's no doubt he's rather unconventional. However, I share his cold engineering logic to things, so the trainer setup bit made sense to me. The resistance was a bit of trial and error - wound it up as far as I dared, backed it off a touch, tried it and left it at that. I've sort of got used to it now.

Intent is threefold - strength and aerobic, with the intention of getting in with the chain gang at the local velodrome. They run 20 minutes at 39/15 @100rpm with a 1.5km sprint at the end. The trainer setup in essence crudely replicates that. This is fairly arbitrary, and not really as intense an exercise as I'd face on the track - but set the goal above the level that I need to be at is the thinking.

I have noticed a marked increase in my strength and aerobic performance since starting this, but I think I might have hit the point of diminishing returns. Oddly, I don't regard it as intense session - more I'm just not fit enough to complete the goal I've set myself.

Warm up is a session of stretching and then either a few laps of the block on another bike or 10-15 minutes on free weights in the garage if the weather sucks.

I found removing the flywheel made a difference - on mine at least - it basically makes everything feel like a climb rather than being on the flat. It is fairly subtle, but there's noticeably less momentum at the top of the stroke to carry the pedal over. My own view is that Obree recommends this in order to encourage power from the 10/11 o'clock position, rather than the 2-3 o'clock you might normally end up with on high cadence with a flywheel. Whilst it doesn't seem to make any difference on the turbo, I've noticed it on the road.