Using resistance mode instead of erg mode for Trainer

Hey so just a quick rant/thoughts. I really don’t like erg mode for my Wahoo Snap. Like if I am one second late to a sprint and the resistance changes drastically so quick I can’t even start the sprint because the resistance is so high up (my power going from 230 to 550 watts in a second for a 120lb person).

So are my doing something wrong or is it ok of I train in resistance mode. Even when I did my FTP test if I needed to give myself a quick breather after going a little too hard if I stopped pedaling I could not even shift gears to start again. When I do FTP tests I don’t sit at 220 watts (I am a human not a robot) so I naturally go a little high then a little down and when I go from lower watts it feels like so much more work then on the road then in the real world). An example of this is me during the summer I went 20min full gas and maintained 275 watts USING THE SAME POWER METER as the one I did a ramp test and it suggested an FTP of 230.

Anyone have any tips or something I am doing wrong?

I prefer to use resistance mode most of the time on a trainer. ERG has its place but it’s not realistic. There’s other reason for and against both.

I’m either a little confused or worried about how you’re doing an FTP test. If 20 minutes is what you use, there are no “breathers” to be taken and you don’t vary the power much (if at all). It needs to be a consistent power output for the whole period. Almost certain TR has said this is not the test they use because it’s hard to do correctly compared to the ramp where you just pedal until you can’t anymore. Like trainer modes there’s pros and cons of every test method too.

I switched to resistance mode on my Snap a few weeks ago after using ERG for years and very glad I did.

I wouldn’t use ERG for a 20 minute test, or take breathers/breaks during the test either. That said the whole ERG vs resistance thing is pure preference. I do everything in ERG including sprints. Just gotta time it correctly and you won’t feel like you hit a wall

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