Fine-tune your indoor training setup

Training indoors during the cold weather can be fun and seriously rewarding if you’ve got the proper setup. There are a few essential things that you need to get sorted to make the most of training indoors, including a fan, towel and more.

Fan

No one should ever ride on the turbo without a proper fan; regardless of how cold you set the thermostat, riding indoors always gets you into a serious sweat. Investing in a good, powerful fan is well worth it. You’ll find yourself using it throughout the colder months while on the turbo, and you’ll be incredibly grateful for the fan when those stifling August heatwaves roll back around.

Look at Wahoo’s KICKR Headwind or the Elite Aria to take your setup to the next level.

The guys and girls at Velo tested out a range of fans last winter to find the best option for training indoors. Here’s what they found.

Towel

Or a couple. You might need an extra towel, depending on how long you’re on the bike. You should place an extra towel below your bike to protect the floor and catch all that excess sweat. The last thing you want is to climb off the turbo with jelly legs only to slip in your puddle of sweat.

Screen

You’re welcome to hop on your trainer and lose yourself in thought for a couple of hours, but going nowhere slowly for that long can be mentally challenging, even for the best daydreamers. Having a screen with a platform like Zwift, TrainerRoad, or Rouvy makes the ride go by much quicker, and we’ve found that these platforms help make our rides more productive, too. Platforms like Zwift also have a chat feature that allows you to chat with mates while riding, plus you can host group rides, so the crew can still ride together without getting cold and wet. Cycling Weekly rated their favourite indoor cycling apps here.

Entertainment

Add some motivation to your ride by listening to music or watching a series or a movie while pedalling. A couple of hours of the turbo is a great time to catch up on your favourite series or watch that new movie that you haven’t had the time to watch yet. Get your friends involved and create a shared turbo trainer playlist where you can all add your favourite songs to keep the vibes high while riding. We’re currently loving this high-energy indoor playlist from House Culture.

Hydration

You sweat more on your turbo than when riding outside. The most significant reason for this is wind or the lack thereof. Convective cooling is lower indoors, leading to an increased perceived exertion rate. Ensure you get enough fluids back into your body when on the turbo. We like to fill a bottle or two with electrolytes, mix or plain, depending on how long we’re riding for and how intense the session promises to be so that we’re prepared.

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