I recently signed up for Trainerroad because I enjoy the podcasts and know I need some better structured workouts. However, I am not sure I have the right equipment to really utilize it. I have a few different options for setups:
use a cycleops pro3000 (or similar) spin with ant+ power/speed data at a local gym
I have a very cheap trainer I use an old bike on that would require training based on heart rate
use my new nicer bike outside with a speed sensor
I am not a racer, and would mostly be targeting a few gravel races next year such as DK100 and Madco 100 in Iowa. Having 3 kids I don’t really have the budget to spend on an expensive trainer or power meter.
Do any of these sound like ok plans? Do any of you have recommendations or setups that have worked for you?
You don’t need a power meter or smart trainer. You can get 100% of the training benefits from a dumb trainer and speed sensor. The software will work out your “virtual power,” which then becomes your consistent metric to train against. I did this—eventually I got a power meter, but frankly in hindsight I see that it is nice but totally unnecessary.
So I’d recommend either putting your nice bike on your dumb trainer (would be my personal preference—better to train on the bike you’ll ride outside), or moving/putting a cheap speed sensor on your old bike.
Thank you for the advice. It sounds like moving my speed sensor for now will be my best option. I’ll have to figure out how to get my thru axles converted to skewers for my new bike. I hope to do the ramp test today and then off I go!
