How to choose a home trainer to train during the coronavirus crisis? | 3bikes.fr your Cycling, Gravel & Triathlon magazine

During this very special period of confinement, it is still possible to stay in shape by using a home trainer. If you are planning to buy a new model, don't wait too long, as many online sellers are already out of stock. Among all the devices on the market, What type of device to choose?

(Reprint of the article: What type of home trainer should I choose? already posted on our site)

By Guillaume Peephole – Photos: XPlova / Tacx / 3bikes.fr

WHERE CAN I FIND AN AVAILABLE HOME-TRAINER?

Manufacturers or importers are struggling to cope with the huge demand for home trainers, especially during this period of confinement. Nevertheless, we were able to find you some devices still available:

-> SEE AS WELL : What sessions should you do on a home trainer during confinement?

More or less advanced devices provide sensations close to the route, especially when they are connected.

The practice of home trainer is justified firstly because of the weather and the shorter days in winter, which seriously limit sessions in the evening or early in the morning for those who have a classic professional activity. But also in times of confinement, when we cannot ride outside for the exceptional reasons that we know. Installed at home, and with your own bike, the home trainer requires very light clothing equipment and avoids the tedious maintenance of the equipment after a session. You can even ride at any time. And above all, this type of session, if it is well conducted, optimizes the time spent training. Only advantagestages beforehand, provided you don't expect too much from a preparation exclusively focused on this practice, and have a modern device, which provides realistic pedaling sensations. You also need to arm yourself with a lot of motivation to multiply the sessions without seeing the landscape go by.

Our advice: Use the home trainer wisely, at a reasonable frequency (say twice a week), and by targeting the content of your sessions. Your desire to cycle in the open air will only increase tenfold after confinement.

=> SEE AS WELL : 5 mistakes to avoid with the home trainer

From the rollers to the connected device

Behind the name home trainer, there are actually several types of devices hidden behind them. Forget the simple rollers without resistance, today largely supplanted by home trainers with resistance with electric, motor or hydraulic braking. They are coupled or not with training software, virtual reality software or real life video. There are three categories: resistance devices with software, simple resistance devices and rollers.

Rollers can be offered with adjustable resistance.

With the former, you can do everything. Connected to a computer, they allow you to follow a training plan, record all exercise data and replay courses on video. Participating in virtual races via the Internet is also possible. It's fun for a while, but not necessarily constructive. With the latter, you train without a computer, but with a dedicated counter, sometimes wireless, and connected to a resistance unit with standard or personalized training programs. They are sufficient for the examples of sessions that we give you later. Finally, the rollers work on technique or pedaling cadence, but advanced devices also have a magnetic resistance unit and a control screen.

The coach's point of view: « Home trainer practice is a substitute for training on route.«

Antoine Vayer gives us his opinion on the practice of home trainer, which he describes as " replacement method in case of lack of time or if it is too cold, but which cannot completely replace the practice of cycling on route. Cycling on route is an endurance sport, and it would be illusory to hope to prepare for a long event only with short sessions carried out indoors. Then, the power produced on the home trainer is different from that of the route. There is not the same friction or resistance to forward movement. Power on a home trainer, whether measured by a power sensor on the bike or by the device itself, can only be compared to power on a home trainer. If you want to define a point of comparison, you should carry out a test with a stable heart rate on route and on a home trainer, and try to get a standard deviation from it. However, the home trainer is very interesting as a warm-up tool, and especially for active recovery, either after a tough workout or race, or the next day.

How to choose ?

There are several things to consider, such as system stability, ease of installation, noise, and compatibility with certain bike frames. But there is also a question of level of resistance (for the most severe sessions) and sensations more or less close to reality. For example, with a resistance that gives jerky pedaling for the first price devices. Because the price is obviously an essential factor to take into account, from around a hundred euros for the first devices, up to almost €1500 for the most advanced.

Connected devices are in high demand today.

The investment you make will depend on the time you want or need to devote to it, and your motivation. For a few recovery sessions during the season, a very simple device may be sufficient, especially since you can keep it for several years. For the most advanced home trainers, you have to add to the purchase price the monthly subscription to the application which will allow you to ride connected, either with videos, or by following personalized training plans, or finally by competing against other users all over the world. A classic home trainer has a brake that provides resistance to a plastic roller rubbing against the rear wheel. The most advanced models are designed around a frame on which the bike is placed without its rear wheel. These are called direct-drive home trainers, and they seriously smooth out the sensations. The maximum resistance of a home trainer depends on the type of brake (electric, motor, hydraulic).

For training, think about the location of the installation, which should not be too austere.

The most expensive units can provide up to 2500 watts of resistance, while simpler models are limited to 500 watts.. In terms of noise pollution, a very clear buzzing sound can invade you and disturb the neighbors or other inhabitants of the house. With their hydraulic resistance, very advanced models solve the problem. Finally, rollers are the easiest to install and interesting in terms of specific training. They require a certain amount of skill (at the beginning), require a certain amount of concentration to keep your balance, and allow you to work on flexibility in the hips and buttocks to steer the bike. As on the route. But to offer a wide range of possibilities, it is better to choose them with resistance adjustment, whether they are connected or not.

Testimony: Anthony Le Clainche, three months of preparation on a home trainer.

Anthony Le Clainche has just finished his cyclo-cross season with a fourth place in the regional championship in the Departmental category. While only racing every other weekend for family reasons, he was only able to base his preparation exclusively on home trainer: " I started a training program in mid-September, only on a home trainer. I was never able to ride on route throughout this period, and I trained three to four times a week, in the evening between 20 and 22 p.m., in sessions of 30 to 90 minutes. I equipped myself with a connected device, which offers sensations very close to the route, and above all allowed me to follow courses on video. I was thus able to avoid boredom. I would not have been able to follow such a program using a basic device. And if most of my sessions were difficult, I had good legs on the day of my objective. The results are therefore rather positive"

Applications for connected devices

Bkool, Zwift, or MyeTraining for example are applications that allow you to connect the home trainer to the computer or tablet. You see on the screen data such as virtual speed, power output, pedaling cadence, and possibly heart rate. Depending on the application program, the resistance of the home trainer varies, the whole thing being connected wirelessly. You can thus simulate routes, import GPS tracks and reproduce a session carried out outside, or follow a circuit on video. Climbing Alpe d'Huez from your living room is possible! You can also follow a program with power data, or with a simulated slope. Finally, Zwift is the most famous app, with limited routes but the ability to race online against other users. Be careful, because all these more or less fun applications require a monthly subscription. It's up to you to decide how you plan to use the home trainer to fill this long period of confinement that awaits us.

=> SEE AS WELL : All our Coaching articles