Hello, trainer
Greatest Girlfriend Ever and I bought each other bicycle trainers for Christmas. Same trainer. Same store. Same gift-giving thinking. Coincidence? I prefer to think that great minds think alike.
Tonight was my formal introduction to my trainer. I had been on a trainer only once before -- in December, when I tested the trainer I bought for her. My initial trainer session in December was rather brutal and then I was worried only about the unit's function and what accessories I might need to purchase so that she could get the most of it.
This time is was all about a workout. I figure that whatever I can do on my bike now, in the comfort of my basement weightroom, will help me stay fit now and better prepare me for springtime cycling.
I planned on a half-hour ride. I didn't plan on it be so grueling.
When I used the trainer in December, I didn't have the use of a computer to monitor my progress as I pedaled. I had no idea how fast I was pedaling or how my efforts might translate into distance. I think that made that session easier. I simply pedaled and presumed I was working at a decent clip.
This time I had objective real-time results staring me in the face. It wasn't pretty. I don't recall 17 mph seeming so difficult to maintain while cycling the local trails. Clearly, this trainer business is different.
I quickly learned a couple of other things. First, without the aid of wind or breezes caused by your motion while cycling outside, you sweat buckets on a trainer. And the temperature in my weightroom prior to my trainer session was only in the low 50s. Nevertheless, I perspired profusely. My sweat dripped below my bike and pooled on the rubber flooring. The waves in my pool of sweat crested at about two inches.
Secondly, 30 minutes -- the planned duration of my ride -- is an interminable amount of time on a trainer. I don't know how hard-core cyclists and triathletes spend hours at a time pedaling in place. Even with the distraction of my favorite college basketball team playing on the TV in front of me, a half-hour seemed like an merciless eternity.
I think the trainer will be a welcome, useful addition to my offseason routine. If the first 30 minutes -- not to mention 8.5-plus miles and 171 average watts -- on it is any indication, it just won't provide the easy workouts I thought it might. They'll be tougher and, as a result, I'll become a stronger cyclist.
Tonight was my formal introduction to my trainer. I had been on a trainer only once before -- in December, when I tested the trainer I bought for her. My initial trainer session in December was rather brutal and then I was worried only about the unit's function and what accessories I might need to purchase so that she could get the most of it.
This time is was all about a workout. I figure that whatever I can do on my bike now, in the comfort of my basement weightroom, will help me stay fit now and better prepare me for springtime cycling.
I planned on a half-hour ride. I didn't plan on it be so grueling.
When I used the trainer in December, I didn't have the use of a computer to monitor my progress as I pedaled. I had no idea how fast I was pedaling or how my efforts might translate into distance. I think that made that session easier. I simply pedaled and presumed I was working at a decent clip.
This time I had objective real-time results staring me in the face. It wasn't pretty. I don't recall 17 mph seeming so difficult to maintain while cycling the local trails. Clearly, this trainer business is different.
I quickly learned a couple of other things. First, without the aid of wind or breezes caused by your motion while cycling outside, you sweat buckets on a trainer. And the temperature in my weightroom prior to my trainer session was only in the low 50s. Nevertheless, I perspired profusely. My sweat dripped below my bike and pooled on the rubber flooring. The waves in my pool of sweat crested at about two inches.
Secondly, 30 minutes -- the planned duration of my ride -- is an interminable amount of time on a trainer. I don't know how hard-core cyclists and triathletes spend hours at a time pedaling in place. Even with the distraction of my favorite college basketball team playing on the TV in front of me, a half-hour seemed like an merciless eternity.
I think the trainer will be a welcome, useful addition to my offseason routine. If the first 30 minutes -- not to mention 8.5-plus miles and 171 average watts -- on it is any indication, it just won't provide the easy workouts I thought it might. They'll be tougher and, as a result, I'll become a stronger cyclist.
posted by RTG at 7:13 PM
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