1. Having no plan
When out on the road for a training session you have (hopefully) planned what you'r going to . You'll have a distance or time planned, appropriate wattage, heart rate or rpe to guide you and maybe whether you're going for long and slow, short and fast, hilly or intervals.
The same should apply to a turbo set. Make sure you set yourself a plan before you get on the turbo - what's the expression, failing to plan is planning to fail (or something like that). The athlete without a plan is usually the one will cut the session short, or not work hard or easily enough.
2. Don’t go all out – all the time
Many athletes think that a turbo session has to be hard and fast, made up of high intensity intervals or performed at threshold all the time. Certainly high intensity sessions are important and will improve your strength and power, but once or twice a week is more than enough. Mix them up with purely aerobic sessions and as a guide follow the 80/20 rule regarding your overall volume (80% low intensity : 15-20% high intensity)
3. Get aero
Setting up your race bike (but not using your race wheels!) on the turbo is ideal for getting your body used to the different position you will adopt during a race, especially if you are planning to use aero bars.
Build sections into your session to ride on the aero bars and gradually increase the amount of time you can hold the position. You can also gradually increase the angle at the front to make you more and more aero over time, while conditioning your neck and back.
4. But I find it boring.....
We don't get bored while out and about on our bikes but a long turbo session can be a completely different story. So here are a few ideas to keep you going: audio books, TV or music videos, podcasts that you haven't had time to listen to, Zwift, binge watching box sets, long films. How about setting yourself tasks to do on key words/actions within a film: eg. you speed up every time you hear 'the force' during Star Wars, and slow down each timesomeone lights up a light sabre.
But don't forget how noisy this can be and respect your neighbours..!
5. Overheating
Remember there is no wind chill when riding indoors - indeed you may have to go around and switch off some heating before heading onto your turbo. Make sure you have plenty ventilation and it's well worth investing in a large fan.
6. Fluids and fuel
As mentioned above you will heat up on the turbo. Make sure you are well hydrated before you start and have electrolytes in your drink to counter the sweating. If you’re going longer, you may want to refuel - this is a perfect opportunity to practice your fuelling and hydration choices, even down to practicing taking them out of your back pocket ready for race day.
7. Be Prepared
Make sure you have everything planned in advance to avoid getting on and off the turbo... no excuses for finishing that session before you reach the end. Drinks/fuel/sweat towel/ fan switched on and heating off/ remote control / been to the loo / phone nearby (or not, whichever you prefer)
Comentarios