Ok, just back from hospital. Acromioclavicular reconstruction following a disagreement with a curb 10months ago.
Going to be off the bike for at least 6 weeks. I need to try and keep fit. The turbo trainer has arrived ( elite qubo fluid). I’ve no knowledge of turbo trainers the price seemed good.

What do I need now? I have an iPhone 6 and want to try out a training app..

Thanks for any advice

GCN do some good videos to start you off. Plus if that is a smart turbo that you have you can use apps like trainerroad and zwift..

It’s unclear if it broadcasts Bluetooth Smart, in which case you don’t really need anything for Zwift, which is the most accessible training programme. That said… an iPhone 6 is a very small screen to use, I’d want to airplay it to a larger screen.

If it doesn’t then use a laptop with an ANT+ dongle. If you don’t have a device to airplay your phone to then I’d do that anyway.

I was going to say the usual procedure is to pop it in a corner somewhere where it will get dusty and go for a real ride but as you’re healing up from surgery you may find others advice more helpful.

Have you got a solid tyre for the turbo or something cheap to stick on the back wheel?

Use it a few times, then leave it in the garage gathering dust as it’s a hateful experience 😀

GCN video’s are a good start, they’re free, easy to follow and a good workout. I view them on an iPad but anything will be fine, albeit a phone screen may be a little small.
Try to think of being on the turbo as entirely functional, it’s not a bike ride, it’s not fun, it’s about getting fit. Have a clear goal in mind and work to it, you’ll use it more and get more from it that way.
In time you’ll learn to embrace the pain, there’s something very satisfying about going really deep on a session and having a glow in your legs for a few hours afterwards. There’s also a similar satisfaction when you work so hard you vomit outside the garage…
As you can tell, I quite like mine and use it a fair amount, 3 times per week over the winter and will likely still do 2 sessions over the summer.

Thanks for the advice…

Good luck with the recovery. Glad you are on the mend now.

Put TV on. Get on turbo. Pedal.

🙂

i manage a 30 minute spin on a very basic turbo most weekday mornings (i work from home). its part of my morning routine. its mind numbing boring but i really notice very quickly the difference when the nobbly tyre goes back on and hit the hills at that the weekends. its like extra gears!

i play some ‘motorik’ music and vary the intensity/resistance and i feel like I’m in a Kraftwerk video or something.

did i say its very boring? great way to keep in shape or get more in shape but very boring.

Here is the Zwift thread. Whether you want to go that route / expense is up to you. My sister is a roadie and uses the turbo over the winter as despite living in an area great for small roads and road biking she feels unsafe in dark over the winter. The turbo alows her to do a quick spin or two midweek or when the weather is terrible

Zwift, my journey, my weight and my fitness.

@damscus + 1 – healing vibes

As per lunge and some of the others, you need to have an objective in mind every time you get on the turbo. Just pedalling for even 15minutes will seem totally pointless and mind numbing without a reason for being there.

The end goal is presumably to be fit (enough) when you get back outdoors.

Then you need a plan for every session, is it an hour easy spin, is it an hour tempo, is it some kind of intervals? And you’ll get some feeling of progress over the weeks if you gradually build on each session.

Sufferfest is fairly entertaining

Another vote for the GCN videos – I find them quite addictive tbh – if you can bring yourself to regularly repeat sessions, you really can start to feel the difference…..go for it (gently to start with mind)

I’d second Sufferfest. Zwift is a virtual ride around Richmond Park, Sufferfest has real humour, and you used to be able to but the videos, but now have to stream them. The Strava app also has training videos. They are road orientated, but don’t let that detract.

Since a turbo has no wind resistance, speed of wheel is related to power output. So these apps use a bluetooth or ANT speed sensor to convert to power (obviously it has to be on the back wheel 😉 . You can also link a heart rate monitor and cadence. Smarter trainers have these sensors built in. Really smart sensors will control resistance automatically.

For apps, the phone is a little small if you have middle aged eyesight and are in a dark garage 😉 . I use an iPad mini, and that is pushing it. The nice thing about a phone is the mounting option.

So if you want the full experience, I’d recommend the Wahoo Tickr HR monitor, speed and cadence sensors (all bluetooth and will talk directly to phone). Download Zwift and/or sufferfest apps, try them.

Yes they are boring, bur Sufferfest can keep me on a spinning bike in a hotel away from home for 2hrs at a time.

Zwift, I’m less excited by; it’s trying to be too real – speed in Zwift land is related to power and “terrain”, so if you are turning out a virtual 200 Watts, and it’s telling you you are climbing a mountain, your Zwift speed will be slow 😉 . You can race too, but I prefer that in the real world.

Have fun, it’s bad, but some people ride on a turbo almost exclusively. And I hop you recover well.

Just had my shoulder fixed and will be back using Zwift with a Taxx Smart trainer. It’s kept me sane for the last 9 months whilst I’ve waited to see a surgeon! Saw surgeon on 10th March and had surgery on 28th March! Hope OP is recovering well.

To counter TiRed’s view I find Sufferfest a bit aimless and repetitive, whilst I think Zwift is very good indeed. Used to like Trainer Road, but that needs a very specific target in mind for each session. Zwift races are great fun. Remarkably like the real world.

I haven’t used mine since being in a similar position to OP 3 years ago but I was a fan of Sufferfests.

GCN have quite a selection now.

Some workouts here

Five of the best turbo trainer sessions