82 Minutes and Going Nowhere Fast

I've been building up my tolerance for the trainer on a daily basis. Today was L.S.N.D. Long Slow No Distance. I had the goals today of good form, keeping it in the high end of HR Zone 2 and burn 1000 calories. Mission accomplished. 1:22/1004K. Nowhere Fast*, but hey I got saddle time in and finished my day -900 calories and by NO means starved myself.

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So you want to be mediocre?

I got an e mail from a fellow blogger yesterday who is having a tough time getting "into" riding the trainer, and wanted some input. I'm never sure if I'm giving good or bad advice when someone asks me about my training or racing. I mean I really only have a bunch of entry fee paid for t shirts and water bottles to show for my efforts. But hey this mid packer holds no secrets! I wouldn't call the following "tips" or "advice" by any means. They're more just "observations" of what works for me. I won't bore you with my full reply but this is it in a nutshell...

01. There is no REAL joy in indoor sessions on the trainer. I never have as much fun or get as much mentally out of being on the trainer as I do outside on a bike, so I just put that out of my mind.

02. I can't do movies or DVDs. Distracts me from the work out. I've tried to do the Spinerval DVDs, and I just can't get into it. The ONE that I tried had a bunch of spandex clad folks on trainers along a river and had about the same film quality as an old porno. I half expected Jenna Jameson to be bending Ron Jeremy's Crank Arm! I will sometimes put an old Tour video or MTB race on just to glance at occasionally for motivation, but the workout tapes just don't cut it for me.

03. My iPod with headphones is a must. When I do my spin/weight work outs I have some speakers I blast, much to Wifey and B-Man's dismay in the living room above me.

04. I have an old mirror that I like to keep near bye to watch my form and make sure my pedal stroke doesn't get to lazy and choppy. Plus I like to look at myself. (Joking! Sort of.)

05. Using a HR monitor is great for keeping things in control and to motivate me. Using a HRM on the trainer is where my HRM gets 95% of it's use.

06. I go into a session with a set work out in mind and try to stick to it. Random spinning is a sure way to lose interest fast, climb off and sit on the couch with a big carton of F*ck-It 'Tude™

07. This might sound whacked out, but mental imagery is a HUGE part for me. Slow grinds in 53/14 I see climbs on my fave rides or races I've done. High cadence spins I'm cruising along farm roads on a summer night or putting the hammer down during a race. Whatever can motivate my legs to move and get the workout done.

08. The trainer is a tool. It will never replace riding for me. BUT I do enjoy it more than going to a gym, it's cheaper in the long run and it allows me to focus on a given work out without cars, etc., etc., It would be nice to have some scantily clad gym bunnies walking around the basement to look at, instead of piles of dirty laundry, drying chamois & jerseys, and my sweaty ass in an old dirty mirror ;)

09. Some folks have a higher tolerance for trainers or rollers than others. I might be one of those people. At this phase of the year 1:30 is about the longest I will go but come Jan & Feb. if weather doesn't cooperate 2+ hours will be done to help me be ready for outdoor riding in March.

10. There is no "10" but I hated to leave off at 9. Sorry.

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*Nostalgia": The above link to The Smith's "Nowhere Fast" is from a 1985 show, recorded by the BBC at the Apollo Theatre in Oxford. Later it was broadcast on onetime Pittsburgh "alternative" radio station WXXP. I recorded that show onto cassette tape via a boom box on my kitchen table. I would have been about 14 years old at the time it aired. I had that tape in my car constantly for roughly 12 years or so before we finally parted ways. I found the complete recording on the Net about a year ago. Thanks to the "jolly BBC" and some kind, tech savvy Smiths fans I am 14 again, if only for 57 minutes. Good times....

Later.