Pace: trainer vs. outdoors

[zoom-zoom]

My computer does give me speed on the trainer (rear wheel mounted). I am definitely slower on the trainer, and the slower pace still feels harder than a pace ~5mph faster would feel on the road.

FWIW, I am also slower on the treadmill than I am running outside.

Interesting, Liza. I have a Garmin Forerunner with the speed/cadence/distance sensor, so it's nice to be able to track my mileage and training improvement during these long Winter months. I'm hoping I see the same effect that you do from your bike computer.

I am usually faster on a TM, since I want to get it over with (I have never been able to do more than 5.5 miles on the TM...feels like 20 on the road). I don't mind the bike trainer nearly as much, but it doesn't hold a candle to being outdoors.

Thanks for all the reassurance, ladies. I can't wait until better weather/roads so I can see my persistence pay off!

[annielynn]

I hate my trainer. I work twice as hard on my trainer than I do on the road. I feel exhausted quicker and 30 minutes just about kills me. My hubby says he feels that same way and is a more advanced cyclist than I. I most time dread getting on the darn thing but I know that it helps, even if it is just slightly.

[ny biker]

I hate my trainer. I work twice as hard on my trainer than I do on the road. I feel exhausted quicker and 30 minutes just about kills me. My hubby says he feels that same way and is a more advanced cyclist than I. I most time dread getting on the darn thing but I know that it helps, even if it is just slightly.

Are you doing interval training on the trainer or just going all-out the whole time? I find that intervals make the time go faster and you work hard but also get opportunities to soft pedal and catch your breath.

[SlowButSteady]

I usually dislike the trainer. But the other night I was watching the tight-tied Saints-Vikings game and I barely noticed that I hated it and the time flew by.

I interval by clicking up (to a more difficult gear) two gears during commercials and down one gear after the commercial, gradually escalating resistance throughout my ride.

The game held my attention so that I barely noticed it.

[zoom-zoom]

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only one who finds the trainer to be a challenge.

Hubby and I do "intervals" of easy riding with maybe 30-60 seconds in the highest gear and our butts out of the saddle every 2-3 miles. It keeps things interesting.

[indigoiis]

I'm not so fond of my trainer. I find I rock back and forth on it and it really bugs me. But I use it on days like today when it's ten degrees with 40 mph winds and a run just doesn't seem possible.

I do my intervals this way: I turn on my mvp player to random and during fast songs, I up the cadence and spin to the music for the full three minutes of the song. If that is followed by another fast song, I'll unclip one foot and do the best I can to pedal rounds on both sides to the end of that song. Slow songs I have to go into the big ring and get out of the saddle for the full three minutes, even if it is at a resting pace. I do this for eight songs, and then a half hour has gone by and I get off and go do weights.

[ridebikeme]

Indigoiis...sounds like a great workout! Do you think that your trainer has adjustable knobs to perhaps even out an uneven floor/carpet? I thought perhaps that might be your rocking motion...