Trainer Workouts

• Heart-Rate Monitor - If you have a heart rate monitor, this is a great way to tell how hard you're working. Zone 1 (60-65% of Max Heart Rate) for easy/recover riding, Zone 2 (65-70% MHR) for endurance training, Zone 3 (70-80% MHR) for aerobic capacity training, Zone 4 (80-85% MHR) for lactate threshold training. If you don't know your Max HR, a very general rule of thumb is 220 minus your age.
• Start Out Easy - During the winter and early months of training, it is best to do longer periods of time in zone 1 and lower zone 2. This type of riding slowly builds heart and cardiovascular endurance. Also, you will be able to train your body to burn more energy using lipid or fat stores, and retain more glycogen in the body for those days when you concentrate on intervals and harder workouts. If you don't have a heart rate monitor, you should be able to carry on a conversation without being out of breath.
• Mix up your workouts - Combine days of hard workouts with days of easy workouts. Try for at least one day of a hard workout per week, for 3 out of 4 weeks/mo, but make sure you mix this with days of easier workouts to let your muscles recover. A hard workout can be 45-60 minutes in zone 3, or 2-3 intervals (10-20min) in zone 4 with 10-15 minutes recovery in zone 1 in between. An easy workout would be 45-60min in zone 1-2.
• Cool Down - Try to spend 5-10 min in zone 1 or below at the end of each workout to cool down.
• Short Workouts - Don't spend so long on the trainer that you get tired of using it. It's better to spend less time each session and use it at least 1-2/wk than to spend a long time on each session but only use it once every few weeks.
• Sprints - Try some sprints occasionally - pedal fast in as hard a gear as you can for 1-3 minutes then slow down and relax until you're breathing normally.
• One Legged Pedaling - Try some one-legged workouts. Put a chair next to your bike so that you can move one foot out of the way and pedal with just the other one. This helps develop a nice even stroke so that you are using your muscles more efficiently for the full pedal stroke - not just when you're pushing down.
• Watch TV - Try setting up your trainer in front of the TV so that you can watch your favorite show or a movie while riding your trainer. You might also enjoy watching tapes/dvds of bicycle races such as the Tour de France while you work out to get into the spirit. Some of the trainers also come with training dvds which will take you through a good workout.