Virtual training, smart training, indoor training. Whichever way you describe it, there can be no denying it has completely changed the way a huge percentage of cyclists maintain, retain and improve fitness. 

From entry-level riders, to keen amateurs and even top-level professionals, smart training through online platforms has arguably been the biggest game-changer in cycling over the past decade or so. 

Options abound in the virtual training space, with a variety of different platforms to suit differing personal tastes and riders of all persuasions.

We’ve recently been spending time on one such platform, and that’s ROUVY. Hugely popular in the northern hemisphere and probably not as well known here in the antipodes, there’s a fascinating real-life backstory to this augmented reality training platform.

Created by two Czech brothers who were mad-keen summertime cyclists, Petr and Jiri Samek trained indoors during Prague’s bitterly cold winters back in the early 2000s. 

“Everybody knows winter cycling is boring,” says Petr. 

“We thought about how to make things more interesting, how to motivate ourselves to ride everyday indoors to be ready for outdoor riding and races.” Yes, this was back in 2003! 

Jump forward to 2009 and the brothers were working on a central online cycling hub that housed virtual tours and training diaries. From there the platform went from strength to strength, and by 2017 had evolved to be what we now know as Rouvy — an interactive training platform that combines real life video of some of the world’s best-known cycling routes, with the use of Augmented Reality, immersive technology that places your own personal avatar on those dream roads.

With cooler days and less morning and afternoon light in the lead up to winter, we’ve recently been riding ROUVY to A: get a feel for the platform, B: re-ride some dreamy overseas locations, and C: research the top reasons we’d ride ROUVY.

Structured Training Plans: ROUVY offers a variety of structured training plans designed to improve your cycling performance. These plans typically include a progressive series of workouts targeting different aspects of overall fitness such as endurance, strength, speed, and power. Following a well-designed training plan can help you build a solid foundation, increase your aerobic capacity, and develop specific cycling skills. 

Power-Based Training: ROUVY is compatible with power meters and smart trainers, allowing you to train based on power output. Power-based training is highly effective in optimising performance because it provides accurate and objective data on your effort level. By consistently training at specific power zones, you can improve your muscular endurance, increase your lactate threshold, and enhance overall power output. 

Interval Training: ROUVY enables you to perform structured interval training sessions. Intervals involve alternating periods of high-intensity effort with recovery periods. These workouts are an effective way to improve your anaerobic capacity, increase your VO2 max, and enhance your ability to sustain high-intensity efforts. The virtual routes and resistance adjustments on smart trainers can simulate the terrain and intensity variations needed for effective interval training. 

Hill Climbing and Simulating Terrain: ROUVY offers a variety of virtual routes, including those with challenging climbs and descents. Climbing is an excellent way to build leg strength and improve your ability to sustain efforts at high gradients.

By tackling virtual hills on ROUVY, you can simulate the feel of real-world climbs and train your muscles and cardiovascular system to handle the actual challenges.

We are loving the graphic interface and riding epic old haunts such as Alpe d’Huez and the Stelvio … it’s so realistic and brings back fantastic (if painful) memories.

Time Trial and Race Simulation: ROUVY allows you to participate in virtual time trials and races. These events can help you improve your race-specific skills, including pacing, positioning, and tactical decision-making.

By competing against other riders in a virtual environment you can push your limits, experience race-like scenarios, and gain valuable experience in handling competitive pressure.  

Monitoring: ROUVY provides detailed performance data and analytics, allowing you to track your progress over time. You can monitor your training load, track improvements in power output or speed, and analyse your performance metrics.

This feedback helps you understand your strengths and weaknesses, identify areas for improvement, and make informed adjustments to your training plan.

Accessibility: These platforms enable individuals to participate in various training programs and workouts regardless of their geographical location. Users can access a wide range of virtual routes and training plans, making it convenient for people living in areas with limited outdoor training options or specific terrain requirements. 

Time Efficiency: Indoor training platforms offer structured workouts that are time-efficient and tailored to specific goals. Users can make the most of their training sessions by focusing on targeted efforts, optimising training time, and maximising results within a shorter duration.

Safety: By training indoors riders can avoid potential hazards associated with outdoor activities, such as traffic and cold mornings. I must say it’s a great feeling to be be warm, cozy and working up a sweat inside, training while watching the morning news or having the stereo blaring. 

Our Thoughts: Overall, we’ve found the platform to be particularly engaging, interesting, and captivating to ride. Looking for an indoor alternative to supplement and help develop your outdoor cycling this winter? We’d highly recommend checking it out.

To find out more visit www.ROUVY.com

The post First Ride With ROUVY: Indoor Training Meets Augmented Reality appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Just the mention of the word can make anyone who’s previously suffered wince in pain … yes, it’s sciatica, a lower back condition that affects a large percentage of the population – particularly those in their 30s, 40s and beyond.
It often comes on after strenuous physical activity, and it’s agonising effects can last two or more weeks. Common symptoms include referred pain from the lower back down one leg. This pain can be felt anywhere along the sciatic nerve – from deep in the thigh way down to tingling under the foot.

For a detailed and professional explanation of sciatica we spoke with Sydney-based Physiotherapist Peter Sharp, a keen cyclist and specialist in the field.

Bicycling Australia: Sciatica – we know the term generally refers to leg pain stemming from the lower back, but can you tell us a little more?

Peter Sharp: Sciatica is a common but old-fashioned term. It is better known now as ‘radicular pain’; there’s nerve root involvement from your back. Symptoms include pain in certain distributions of the leg, worse than the back pain, and worse with coughing/sneezing/straining.

BA: And the level of pain?

PS: The whole spectrum – from mild tightness in the leg to being too painful to walk!

BA: So who are the prime candidates?

PS: 58-84% of people have back pain in their lifetime. It’s more likely in those with previous episodes of back pain, have other physical or mental health conditions, smokers, physically demanding jobs and obese individuals.

BA: What is your advice for someone starting to suffer sciatica-like symptoms?

PS: Consult a health professional. There’s no point waiting and sometimes you can be back on the bike quickly. They can also rule out nastier causes of back pain, e.g. fractures, although these are very rare at less than 1%.

BA: Cycling and sciatica… we put a post on our social channels and were surprised by the widespread response and interest. Broadly speaking, many say that cycling has indeed helped – is this your finding?

PS: Physical activity is great and cycling is relatively low impact. Cycling can be harder if it’s particularly painful, so easy walking (even in a pool) can be a good start.

BA: You gave us an interesting and surprising statistic on lower back pain – can you elaborate on this?

PS: It’s the leading cause of disability worldwide and accounted for around 4 million working days lost per year. The cost of this stacks up!

BA: So what can readers do to help minimise or prevent lower back pain and, ultimately, sciatica?

PS: Keep healthy and active! Be smart with your training. Schedule recovery after big events or heavy training loads. Get your bike set up properly if you’re getting niggles. Don’t neglect strength training too – it will make you a stronger cyclist and you’ll be a more physically capable human being.

BA: We do appreciate your time and professional opinion & advice – for readers who’d like to get in touch, how can they contact you?

PS: You can get in touch by making an appointment, via our website (www.dorastreetphysiotherapy.com), or by phone (02 95809020).

Bike Fit & Saddle Height Can Make The Difference

Elliot Denver is a physiotherapist and specialist bike fitter at The Body Mechanic in Lavender Bay, Sydney.

We asked his thoughts on the subject and he was quick to point out the critical importance of both a professional bike fit and the use of a high quality saddle such as the revered Selle SMP.

“Sciatica, or any neural symptoms in the buttocks or legs is a very common presentation,” he told us.

“Depending on the severity of the symptoms, it is very often possible to continue riding, at light intensity. This actually helps recovery in preference to refraining from all exercise or movement.”

A bike fit is very important; especially the saddle, Elliot said.

“One with a cut-out and sway-back can really help as it promotes a neutral lumbar spine, or flat lower back. If the rider gets fatigued or lazy, they will tend to flex the lower back i.e. round forward which stresses the lumbar spine joints and can exacerbate sciatica symptoms. A neutral spine can help to alleviate this.”

For further details visit www.thebodymechanic.com.au

The post Sciatica & Cycling – All You Need to Know appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Started training for the 2023 Snowy Classic yet? If not, now is high time to start getting those kilometres and vertical metres into the legs.

The two courses of Jindabyne’s Snowy Classic are the 110km Challenge Classic with 1400 meters of climbing, and the 170km Maxi Classic with a whopping 2800 metres straight up!

Register for the Snowy Classic today and save 15% – Use code STRAVA15 

To help prepare and motivate riders 2023’s alpine classic the Bicycling Australia team have put together an Australia-wide Strava competition – the Snowy Classic Climbing Challenge. 

Held over the festive break – a time when riders typically have more time and more reason to get out on the bike, this is your opportunity to get solid kilometres into the legs and potentially win a great prize.

To take part in the four week festive challenge simply join the Bicycling Australia Cycling Club on Strava, cover as many kilometres (and metres) as you can between Boxing Day and Sunday January 29, 2023, name at least one of your rides ‘Snowy Classic Climbing Challenge’ and climb, climb, climb.

For your efforts you’ll have the chance to win one of FOUR subscriptions to BA + a Black Sheep Classics jerseys for top Male and Female climber through the challenge.

Register for the Snowy Classic today and save 15% – Use code STRAVA15 

T’s & C’s 

The Snowy Classic Climbing Challenge starts at 12am on December 26, 2023. It finishes at midnight on January 29, 2023. Winners will be announced on the Bicycling Australia Strava Club on Friday 3, February.

Entry is open to members of the Bicycling Australia Strava Club – join here https://www.strava.com/clubs/5830

You must name at least one of your Strava rides ‘Snowy Classic Climbing Challenge’ to identify you are riding the challenge.

Elevation will be tracked on the BA Strava Club and winners of the Challenge will be announced on the Strava Club page on Tuesday, January 31. 

Overall Winners: One Male KOM and one Female QOM rider will receive an annual subscription to Bicycling Australia Magazine plus a Black Sheep Classics jersey.

Publisher’s Choice: One Male & one Female rider will also be awarded an annual subscription to Bicycling Australia Magazine plus a Black Sheep Classics jersey.

The competition is open to Bicycling Australia Strava Club members however the prizes can only be mailed to an Australian address.

You can register for the Snowy Classic at www.SnowyClassic.com.au

The post Take On The Snowy Classic Festive Climbing Challenge appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Now who are we to argue with that? The great point he made there was that you will get results even if you don’t lift big heavy weights.

Cyclists of all levels can benefit from a strength training program, which trains both the primary muscle groups and their opposing muscles to achieve balanced strength and muscular development across the body.
Most of us have stronger muscles in the front of our body simply because we use them more. For example, we use the quads for cycling and the biceps for lifting things.

Watch For Overuse

Training only the primary muscles can lead to overuse injuries because the muscles on one side of a joint become much stronger than those on the other side, The weaker muscles may become even weaker and more prone to injury.

A strength program that trains the muscles on the front and rear of the body is a must. This is especially true for most cyclists, who are very quad-dominant and are not utilising the raw power of the strongest muscle group in the body, the glutes.

Due to the non-weight bearing nature of the sport, cyclists can be at a higher risk of developing osteoporosis (brittle bones) as they age. This is especially true if cycling is your only form of exercise. The forces applied through the bones during strength training help to stimulate bone growth and therefore help offset the risk of osteopenia or osteoporosis.

TIP: Two Sessions A Week

I have outlined five excellent body weight exercises that you can start incorporating into your weekly training. Ideally try to complete these exercises three times through in one session, and complete two sessions a week.

You should start seeing improvements after a couple of weeks. Don’t be surprised if there are areas of your body which feel a bit sore after the first session: it is just because you haven’t used these muscles in a long time.

The most important factor is to have some consistency in your strength training. Pick the right exercises and be mindful in your strength sessions.

By ‘mindful’ I mean focus on the area you are supposed to be working. For example, if it is a core exercise then actively brace your core to get it switched on before you start the exercise. Doing this will not only make sure you are getting the most out of every session, but will also help reinforce good form.

You will notice that most of the exercises listed below have you holding the eccentric portion of the movement for a count of three.

Pro tip: Don’t skip this!

I don’t want to get too nerdy, but it is worthwhile highlighting why we are holding the eccentric portion of movement as it is really important:

1. Failure to hold the eccentric portion can actually reinforce any poor movement patterns you may have developed over time.
2. Muscle spindles provide the greatest level of feedback to the brain during the eccentric ‘hold’.
3. It enhances symmetry in the body.
4. You no longer need to do millions of reps to get a great training effect.

Kickstand Squat

This is effectively a single leg squat without the challenges of balance that a true single leg squat would provide. I love this variation as it really highlights any left/right weaknesses and imbalances without overcomplicating the exercise.
Keep your rear heel high so that the sole of that foot is almost vertical.
Hold the bottom position for a count of three.
Repeat six repetitions on each side before swapping legs.

Pro tip: 90% of your weight should be on your front leg. The rear leg is only on the floor to aid in balance and support.

Single Leg Romanian Deadlift

The Romanian Deadlift (RDL) is an exercise which targets the glutes and hamstrings. The single leg version will also work your calf, ankle and feet.
The main difference between a squat and a deadlift in terms of how it looks and feels is as follows. In the squat, you really sit your butt back and down and keep your torso upright, as if you were sitting into a chair.
In the deadlift you keep your hips up high, and hinge from the hips. Your torso will move down towards the floor as if you are bowing to someone.
For the RDL keep the rear leg bent at 90 degrees and hinge at the hips.
Let the hips move back and keep them high. Your supporting leg will have a slight bend in the knee.
Stop when you get to a 90-degree angle at the supporting leg and hip and then hold this position for a count of three. Repeat for six reps on each side.

Pro tip: form tight fists with your hands to help muscle activation of the upper body.

Staggered stance glute bridge

This variation of the glute bridge again targets one leg at a time. One foot is firmly planted into the floor, taking most of the weight, whilst the other foot lightly rests on the heel. The leg with the heel on the floor is only providing stability.
Repeat 8-12 reps on each side.

Pro tip: as you lift your back off the floor focus on tucking your tailbone under. This will prevent excessive arching of the lower back.

Feet elevated plank alternate leg raise

Sorry this doesn’t have a cool name, it just says what it is!
Find a bench or a chair to use for this exercise. Make sure you are right up on your tip toes. Position your hands directly underneath your shoulders. To make it more challenging, position your hands slightly in front of your shoulders (you should feel slightly stretched in this position).
Do not let your hips sag. When you raise one leg, focus on maintaining a rock solid core and square hips (don’t let one side drop) and hold this position for five to ten seconds. Complete six leg raises in total.

Pro tip: Don’t lift your leg too high. Lifting it too high will create excessive arching of the lower spine.

Inverted row

You do not need to be in a gym to do this exercise. You dining room table will also be ok, but do make sure your family aren’t having dinner at the same time, or they might think you are a bit peculiar!
Keeping your knees bent at 90 degrees and your hips high with your glutes switched on, row your body up towards the bar (or table). Keep your neck in alignment with the rest of your spine. Many people butcher this exercise by ‘over-rowing’ – pulling their chest up to touch the bar. The top of the row is actually when the back of your arms are level with your back. Hold the top of the row position for a count of three. Complete six to ten rows.

Pro tip: actively puff your chest out, this will help to not over-row.

The post Fitter & Faster: How Off-Bike Exercise Can Improve Your Cycling appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Here are our top 5 post-ride recovery tips –

1. Cool Down Slowly

Recovery begins the moment you stop moving. Whether it’s a race, training ride or Gran Fondo event, spend a minimum of five to ten minutes cooling your body down – whether it’s spinning or time on a stationary trainer. Once off the bike keep moving – stretch, shake, bend and allow your body to ease settle back to off bike mode.

2. Keep Hydrating

Regardless of how much fluid intake you’ve had on the bike, now’s the time for more. Whether it’s simply an one or two more bidons of water, or an electrolyte or sport drink, it’s time to top up lost fluids and prevent the onset of dehydration.

3. It’s Protein O’Clock 

Protein feeds the body and fuels recovery – whether it’s a simple bar, shake, chocolate milk or small meal, starting the refuelling process is important soon after you stop exercise.

4.  Reset With Rest

For a cyclist the couch can be just as important as cadence! Rest is vital for recovery and kick-starting the muscle repair process. It also heals the body, helps prepare muscles for your next ride  and assists in the prevention of illness. The equation is simple – eat, sleep, ride, repeat.

5. Consider a Massage

Massage goes hand in hand with the sport almost as much as coffee and beer do. The skills of a masseur will help relax the legs, assist in circulation and often help remove muscle knots that may formed during exercise.

The Cycling Classic For Jindabyne, the Snowy Classic, will be held in the stunning Snowy Mountains on Saturday April 1, 2023. To enter visit www.SnowyClassic.com.au

The post Training Talk: Top 5 Recovery Tips appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

In the months and weeks leading up to a major cycling event you can study the course profiles and see exactly where the major climbs, descents, turns and rest stops are located. But other than being there and riding the course in advance, what unfolds on the day is generally somewhat of a mystery … until now.

The Classics series Gran Fondo’s – the Snowy, Mudgee, Noosa and Bowral Classics – are pleased to have teamed up with Australian-based training platform FulGaz to help riders train, prepare and recon their next Classic’s event.

Combining real life video with your indoor smart trainer, FulGaz features more than 1,500 real-world routes from around the globe. Favourites include such iconic places as The Muur, Alpe d’Huez and the Stelvio Pass along with many of the world’s most famous climbs and rides.

Throughout 2023, Bicycling Australia’s Classics events courses will be added to FulGaz, the first being a section of the brutal Bowral Classic Maxi Classic. 

A Virtual Ride Around Bowral

So how does it feel to be training for a Fondo from home? We downloaded FulGaz, connected the app to the smart trainer, and went for a spin. Here are our thoughts –

‘Today, while enjoying the privilege of working home, I took some time out to ride part of the Bowral Classic’s Maxi Classic course. Yes, a ride through the Southern Highlands, complete with a stunning sunrise, all without leaving the home office.

A virtual trip to Bowral – or any smart trainer based session for that matter – will never beat or replace the real thing. But it was a fascinating and memorable experience and one I highly recommend. No gentle Sunday roll, sections of this ride were solid efforts and the hour workout certainly left a sting in the legs!  

The platform offers a familiar, immersive and surprisingly realistic feeling. Riding the Bowral Classic FulGaz course on a Wattbike Atom, the gear selection seemed to match what I would most likely have been using in real life. And yes, that includes 2nd on one of the harsher climbs – more on that later.

Based on actual footage from one of the lead vehicles at the 2022 Bowral Classic, following a police motorcycle plus seeing the roadside volunteers, course marshalls, event signage and the rest stops keeps you present, focussed and engaged.

The climbing feels surprisingly accurate and keeps you honest! This is no flatland out-and-back training ride. With 300m of climbing in the first 20km, the undulating terrain and bigger climbs – particularly on the notorious Greenhills Road.

Power, accuracy and effort wise, the flatter sections, hills and descents felt spot on, particularly the above mentioned Greenhills climb which bought back horrible memories from the first time I road it in real life.

Summing up, it’s an incredibly realistic and a very honest workout … the total opposite of a flatland out-and-back to simply help with distance goals. The training ride left me with aching legs, an overall post-ride buzz, and a thirst to get back to the Highlands and again ride those impressive roads.

Overall … the FulGaz Classics courses are perfect pre-event training and a great way for riders to see and feel what they have signed up for. Indoor training will never surpass or replace real life riding, but it’s a wonderful way to train, fully prepare, get a feel and see the terrain of your next event.’

To celebrate the partnership, FulGaz is offering Classics riders an extended 30-day free trial to help kickstart their 2023 training. Simply download the FulGaz app, create an account and add the promo code – 30DAYCLASSICS23 to redeem your 30-day free trial. More at www.FulGaz.com 

The post Virtual Training: Preparing For Your Next Gran Fondo Event With FulGaz appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Recently we put the call out via the Bicycling Australia Facebook page, asking who’d like to take our faster in 4-week challenge. After a deluge of enquiries we selected four perfect candidates – more about them and their inspirational stories soon.

Each of these riders has agreed to stick to a tough, 4-week programme. They’ll be offering feedback & progress reports along the way. It will be fascinating and helpful for all of us to listen to their individual stories and learn from their experiences.

How You Can Get Involved

The good news is our ‘Faster in Four Weeks’ challenge is not limited to those four participants, not at all. Through an exclusive partnership with Zwift we’d love you to get involved as well!

Taking the challenge is simple. Provided you have a compatible smart trainer and a Zwift account, all you need to do is download the Zwift workout files you’ll see further down this page. Upload them to the virtual training platform, follow the instructions, and start the workouts.

Don’t think you have the time? The good news is this program involves 3-4 workout sessions per week of just an hour or less. 

‘Produce More Power When The Moment Counts’

Kevin Poulton, a specialist consultant who advised Bicycling Australia on the Faster in Four Weeks program, said it’s ideal for the cyclist wanting to improve their ability to produce short, race-like efforts.

“Not only is it important to improve your speed over these high intensity efforts, but the ability to repeat these efforts is improved with this training plan,” he said. “You will improve your power in closing small gaps in racing, or surging over short climbs on bunch rides.”

Poulton said by focusing on a range of Vo2max efforts with minimal recovery, participants will challenge this system to become more efficient.

“It will allow participants to produce more power and speed when the moment counts. Other sessions focus on improving your ability to produce speed from an already intense effort,” he said.

“When the pace in the bunch is already high, being able to produce repeated high intensity surges above your threshold pace will allow you to stay at the front of the bunch while other riders lose contact. We improve this system in the training plan by riding at a near threshold pace and repeatedly dipping into anaerobic threshold power.”

Fuel Up Before And After

Before commencing this plan, Poulton said, riders will need to have completed a reasonable amount of base training and be ready to add the finishing touches to fitness by focusing on speed and power.

“The Bicycling Australia Faster in Four Weeks training plan, involves high intensity training, he said. “So it’s important to commence each session fuelled up and ready to benefit from the hard work.”

“To improve your response to the sessions and recovery, don’t forget to consume a good recovery meal within 30min of completing each session.”

To download the files click here.

Instructions on how to add custom workouts to your Zwift account.

PC/Mac – Go to your DocumentsZwiftWorkouts folder, find the “.zwo” file. Any .zwo files you move to your DocumentsZwiftWorkouts folder will be added to your custom workouts menu the next time you launch Zwift.

iOS – Plug your device into your computer and open up iTunes. Click on your device in iTunes, then click “Apps” and scroll down to the “File Sharing” section.  You should see Zwift listed, and it should have a “Zwift” folder. Click that, click “Save To,” and save it to a location of your choice. Find the saved Zwift folder, and copy all the workouts you want into the Zwift/Workouts folder
Go back to iTunes, click “Add,” and choose the Zwift folder with the new workout files. You’ll want to “replace” the folder on the device with your newly modified folder. Click “Sync” to save the changes to the device. When you start Zwift, they will show up in your Custom Workouts section at the bottom of the available Workouts.

For further instructions on adding the workout files to your device click here.

It’s sure to be an interesting and exciting month ahead – instead of losing a degree of bike fitness over this cooler time of the year, we’d love you to join the challenge and ultimately come out of winter an even stronger rider.

Any questions or comments? Have your say below. Other than that, we’ll see you on Zwift … Ride On! 

The post Faster In Four Weeks Using The Home Trainer & Zwift appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

JetBlack are no strangers to the smart trainer scene, the Aussie company’s offerings proving popular and indeed selling out over this most extraordinary year. JetBlack recently added another model to the stable – here we review the electromagnetic Volt.

First spied at Eurobike 2019 and later at last year’s Bowral Classic, the release of the Volt smart trainer from Aussie-based JetBlack Cycling has been a little like a drawn-out drumroll. 

They say ‘good things come to those who wait’, and being a very content long-time user of JetBlack’s Whisper Drive smart trainer, the arrival of an updated model was an exciting affair. Having enjoyed those sneak peaks along the way, the first few pedal strokes proved the unit was well worth the wait.

Delivered in a compact box, four main components are neatly packaged and these include a front and rear stand, the Volt smart trainer and 240v / 24v adaptor. Assembly and getting started is a cinch, simply attach the base stands to the unit and secure, place the bike into position, plug in the power supply and pedal.

Opening Zwift and finding the Bluetooth signal for the first time was equally simple and virtually instantaneous. 

Wattopia’s Hilly Loop was the location of the first ride and within moments the Volt’s major points of difference became obvious – this trainer is teflon smooth and incredibly quiet. How quiet? Well the old drivetrain on the test bike made far more noise than the Volt could ever make – nice work JetBlack!

Smoother Through Electromagnetic Drive

So other than the audible advantages of silky smooth drive and near silent operation, how else does this benefit the user? During and indeed at the end of that first review ride the legs felt fresher and I felt more involved, more immersed and more a part of the training ride. The refinement and inherent efficiencies of the electromagnetic system were obvious, no more so than when the road ramped up and gradients of 6 … 8 … 10 and more percent appeared on the screen. 

One problem of smart trainers in the past has been the brick wall factor – almost coming to a sudden stop or becoming infinitely harder to pedal at the start of a climb. Jetblack have helped iron this issue out with the Volt, the trainer seems to smooth out the climbs – particularly the ramps at each end on an incline – to deliver a more realistic overall feel when the going gets vertical.

Front Turn Block

It’s said the simple ideas are often the best, and this is definitely the case with the turn block from JetBlack. A rotating base for the front wheel, the unit lifts the wheel off the ground to deliver a more natural ride position. In addition it allows natural left and right movement while underway. More importantly, the use of this simple block dramatically reduces frame twist. 

Trainer Caddy

Two other impressive offerings from the company are their purpose-designed Trainer Caddy – a table to hold a laptop computer, table, phone, nutrition and hydration supplies. They have also designed, engineered & manufactured a heavy duty TV stand specifically optimised, height and angle wise, for indoor training. 

Completing the indoor training ecosystem, Jetblack also offer a heavy duty trainer mat to help protect the floor and absorb vibrations. 

Overall and it’s obvious an enormous amount of research, development, time and testing has gone into not only the Volt smart trainer but full range of accessories across the JetBlack range. We’ve taken a close look and rigorously tested all items (other than the caddy which was unavailable), and can vouch for build, workmanship, application and abilities. 

Taking on the big name multi-nationals of the booming smart trainer industry can’t be an easy feat. But the team this relatively small Aussie company have been doing an admirable job for some time now, and continue to innovate and impress. 

The post Indoor Training: JetBlack Volt Smart Trainer Tested appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Sarah Hunter takes an in-depth look at all aspects of indoor training and answers the most common questions on setting up to ride inside.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few years, you will have definitely seen the rise in popularity of indoor training. The changes in the world due to Coronavirus have certainly made indoor training a lot more popular of late, and many riders are starting to embrace it out of necessity to continue riding and keeping some level of riding fitness. 

I have been answering a lot of questions on the topic of indoor training recently; here are the most frequently asked questions, and not surprisingly there are a few regarding Zwift.

Q: I hate riding indoors, why should I do it? Are there any benefits?

Undoubtedly indoor training can be boring, but if you address each indoor session with a purpose, then it gives you a reason and a goal for the session. Lets look at some of the benefits of riding indoors:

It’s not weather dependant, so it gives you the ability to ride no matter how bad it is outside.

It is very time efficient. There is no free-wheeling during an indoor session, most coaches agree a 45-minute session on the trainer is equivalent to about 1-hour on the road.

Every indoor session is an opportunity to work on your riding posture and pedal stroke. Set yourself up in front of a mirror to view yourself when riding, if that’s not possible then set up a Go-Pro behind or in front and bluetooth it to your phone to give you a live view of your pedal stroke and posture from all different angles. Use these indoor sessions to really focus on good technique and form.

Terrain can be a limiter for some prescribed training sessions. Want to work on low-cadence and high-cadence pedaling? Then indoors is perfect.

Don’t live near hills or mountains but training for a hilly race? Then you can alter the incline of your bike by putting a book or two under your front wheel and go hit some hill repeats indoors.

Q: What is the minimum I need to set up my pain cave for this winter?

A really good fan. You will not believe how much you sweat in an indoor bike session. Without a fan the sessions can become really nasty, and when your body overheats you will find that your top-end performance suffers.

A mat to protect your floor from all that aforementioned sweat. The brands that make the indoor trainers all tend to make the mats as well. They may cost a little more than say a regular yoga mat, but they are harder wearing and bigger, so worthy of investing in.

A laptop/pc/smartphone with Bluetooth or ANT+ to connect to your trainer and run Zwift. I won’t delve into too much detail here as this is another huge topic in itself. Suffice to say there are many different setups to choose from here, depending on your budget, available space and IT savviness.

A trainer. A smart trainer will connect to a training app to control the resistance, and the resistance will change according to the terrain in Zwift. You can still effectively train indoors on a non-smart trainer as well, the resistance changes will have to be controlled by the rider and a speed sensor or power meter would be needed to ride Zwift.

Q: Regarding smart trainers, with so many to choose from can you explain the main differences?

The main points to consider are noise, footprint and direct drive or wheel on? Here are the options –

Smart Trainer Direct Drive

Direct drive trainers are easily recognisable as they require a cassette.

Advantages: Accurate, max power outputs (1500 – 2000 watts), quiet, with adapters they can fit almost all bikes including CX bikes, MTBs, bikes with thru-axles and bikes with disc brakes. 

Fully controllable by Zwift and other apps.

Disadvantages: Heavy, typically at the higher price point (>$1200).

Smart Trainer Wheel On

Advantages: Lighter weight than the direct drive, smaller footprint and easier to transport. Fully controllable by Zwift and other apps.

Disadvantages: Rear tyre wear, noisier than most direct drive units, less accurate than direct drive, especially during low cadence efforts.

Non-smart Trainer  (Turbo)

Advantages: Lighter weight, very easy to transport. 

Disadvantages: Rear tyre wear, noiser than most direct drive units, not controllable by Zwift and other apps.

Non-smart Trainer (Rollers)

Advantages: Lighter weight, very easy to transport, good for working on balance and pedaling technique.

Disadvantages: Not controllable by Zwift and other apps, high resistance workouts not possible.

Smart Bike

Advantages: If your first world problems revolve around taking your bike on and off the indoor trainer then this might be for you. They are quiet, work with all major training apps, are highly-adjustable so other members of the household can use the one bike, and they have an inbuilt powermeter.

Disadvantages: They can be as expensive (sometimes more) than a new bike, are very heavy, and need a dedicated space. 

When researching the best trainer for you I’d suggest you look up the noise ratings in dB, and also make a note the decibel scale is not linear (yes seriously!) That means 70 dB is twice as loud as 60dB.

Q: I have been riding in Zwift but just haven’t got into it. What can I do to make it more fun?

There are 4 different aspects to Zwift which keep me engaged and coming back 
for more. These are –

• Structured workouts
• The social aspect
• The gamification
• The racing

When I first started using Zwift, all I ever did was my highly structured short workouts in this environment. It work particularly well when you have a smart trainer, as the trainer adjusts the resistance to force you to put out whatever watts have been prescribed (this is called ERG Mode). Intervals can be varied and many, the kind of sessions you would not give to a rider to complete outside as they are just too varied to remember yet alone complete successfully.

The social aspect of Zwift riding has really come into its own during the past three months of social restrictions. There is a function within Zwift called Meetup. It is easy to create a Meetup using the Zwift companion app and invite your friends along to ride with you. Using the ‘Keep Everyone Together’ option does exactly what it says on the tin. It enables riders of all abilities to ride together no matter how many watts they put out.

You can also chat privately within your meetup group. Admittedly typing whilst riding isn’t the easiest thing to do, so I use the dictation button on the key pad (it looks like a microphone) to chat whilst riding.  You could up the level of interaction by running a zoom meeting whilst riding or using discord to chat.

One point that is worthwhile making – you cannot join a meetup late, so make sure you are early otherwise you’ll be Norman no mates whilst your friends ride off without you.

Points & Levels

Q: How do you earn Zwift points?

Points (XP in Zwift language) are accumulated for every km ridden and drops are awarded per calories burned. Think of drops as your currency that you can spend in the ‘drop shop’ and the XP as ways to progress through the levels and unlock more goodies (new courses, and bikes etc).

Accumulate more points (XP) and you progress through the levels in Zwift. Burn more calories and you’ll earn more drops.

Currently there are 50 levels in Zwift. As you progress through the levels and earn more drops, so your garage or ‘drop shop’ of goodies grows and you can start to customise your bike, wheels, kits, helmet and glasses. Also, certain courses are locked until your reach a particular level. 

…If you are able to keep your core temperature down by using a huge fan, then keep your FTP the same as it is outside and see how you go…

Want to ride the Alpe du Zwift and experience all 21 hairpin bends to get to the top of the virtual iconic Alp d’Huez, then you’ll need to get to level 6 to unlock that course. 

Want the super stylin’ Zwift Concept Z1 glowing bike, more affectionately known as the Tron bike? Well, you need to complete the Everest Challenge to unlock that. Don’t be fooled by the name of the challenge, you actually have to climb a whopping 50,000m to get that bike. 

So knowing that the more points, drops and more challenges you complete can get you looking bling, how do you get the points in the most efficient manor?

Don’t forget the downhills – effectively you are getting 20XP for every km of very low effort but very fast riding!

Go to badges, and ride routes that you have not completed. For every new route completed you get bonus XPs.

If you are riding by yourself then ride a TT bike – these go faster and also collect more points every time you cross a banner as well as for every km ridden.

If you are riding structured workouts you points are calculated on whether you hit the targets for each interval, and not the distance ridden.

Getting more drops to spend is a little simpler, Zwift awards more drops for riding more elevation and you get more drops the more ‘ride ons’ (those big thumbs up that riders can give to each other) you receive.

Racing

Q: How do I start racing on Zwift?

There are so many races available on Zwift that you need to just find a time that suits, pick the race, make sure you select the correct grade to race in, and off you go. If you want to be including in the results then you’ll need to register on the Zwiftpower website and ride with a heart rate monitor as well (as this extra data helps to stop cheating). 

…Expect a very fast and furious start, so you will need to get a good warmup before you start… 

Be warned that Zwift racing is rather different to racing on the road. Expect a very fast and furious start, so you will need to get a good warmup before you start. Drafting does work quite effectively in Zwift, however you will find that a Zwift race is generally way harder than a real race, so it’s good that they are mostly short in duration.

Q: Should I change my FTP in Zwift compared to riding outside?

The answer for this is…it depends.

If you are doing the bulk of your riding indoors and completing structured workouts then probably yes as your RPE and heart rate tend to be higher during indoor sessions, therefore for interval sessions targeting threshold and VO2, lowering your FTP by 5-10% will make the sessions more successful and attainable. 

If you are able to keep your core temperature down by using a huge fan, then keep your FTP the same as it is outside and see how you go. 
If your HR starts to drift up and the RPE feels much higher than the same session outside then you might want to tune your FTP down.

If you are only doing the odd structured session here and there on the indoor trainer, and if these are designed to be breakthrough sessions where you come into these feeling fresh and ready to smash it, then leave your FTP the same as outside.

Hopefully there is something here to get you pumped to ride indoors this winter, and I look forward to seeing you in the virtual world sometime soon! 

The post Indoor Training: Sarah Hunter Answers The Most Commonly Asked Questions appeared first on Bicycling Australia.

Keen to come out of winter an even stronger rider? Bicycling Australia are thrilled to announce a FREE 4-week training plan with remote coaching professionals Spokes Fit.

Full details including a fascinating interview with Pav Bryan of Spokes are in the current edition of Bicycling Australia which is out now.

Spokes is a global sports coaching business providing highly personalised remote coaching programmes that integrate training, nutrition and motivation plans for cyclists and triathletes of all ages, abilities and aspirations. They have more than 30 coaches, nutritionists and other industry experts, and one of the largest online followings.

In addition to the training plan Spokes offer access to a range of blogs and podcasts featuring a range of training-related subjects including –

 

• Getting set up for training
• Performance Analysis
• Motivation and Mental Fitness
• Nutrition
• Recovery
• Goal Setting

There’s also a Facebook-based support group that can be joined here SpokesFit.

For more from Bicycling Australia you can subscribe here.

The post Winter Training: Free Online Coaching Plan From Spokes & Bicycling Australia appeared first on Bicycling Australia.