As
the winter season is in full swing and the rain now upon us, it is time
to start thinking about our off-season training goals. For some this is
simply a way to stay in shape through the winter months, for others it
is a vital aspect of your year round training program to ensure that you
do not lose the significant fitness gains made over the past year, as
well as preparation for those early spring races. There are some people
whom can ride year round in the rain and cold weather, but that can
quickly take its toll on you mentally and physically. So how do you
bring your training indoors? There are a number of options available,
for most cyclists an indoor trainer or set of rollers are the answer.
Spinning classes are another great option, however depending on where
you are in your training program for a given day you typically do not
get to control what kind of ride will be performed in the spin class,
such as are they working intervals or climbing repeats. However, if you
attend the classes you can get to know what kind of programs they are
offering each week and can work those into your training plans as
appropriate.
So
what do you get, rollers or a trainer? It depends on what your trying
to accomplish. Rollers provide the best alternative to giving you the
most realistic feeling of being on the road. On rollers you must be
able to balance and ride smoothly; overall core, accessory muscles, bike
handling and pedal techniques are a must as slight movements are
magnified, which can cause you to fall. While on rollers you need to
always be focused on your complete riding effort. Thus rollers are a
great solution for those individuals that want to focus on skills as
well as fitness, providing a overall more realistic riding experience. A
trainer on the other hand is fixed to the rear axle of the bike,
therefore balancing and handling skills on the bike are no longer an
issue which can enable to focus strictly on the ride and gives you a
little more flexibility while working on greater resistance levels.
One
of the biggest complaints to indoor training of any kind is boredom.
While indoor training is never as fun as riding outdoors, there are ways
to alleviate this. Ride with a purpose. It is critical to set
individual training goals for each session, are you working on
endurance, intervals, power, pedaling techniques, cadence. The key is
focusing on the intensity and purpose of the rides, not only will your
training be much more effective, it will go by faster too. Cyclometers, heart rate monitors
and power meters are vital tools that allow you to keep your daily
training goals in check. There are also numerous DVDs on indoor training
programs can also be a great way to get your mind off riding indoors
and force you to focus on a specific goal.
Be
mindful that bringing your riding indoors will also cause you to sweat
much more than outdoors, therefore it is also critical to make sure you
stay well hydrated as well as run a fan to keep you cool.
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