What Do You Do While On The Trainer? (Page 2)

I subscribe to cycling tv and watch mountain stages of the Dauphinee, the Giro, etc.

If I'm on a trainer, I'm always riding hard enough for significant periods of time that I can't even listen to music, let alone watch TV. I have no ideas how I would even read on a bike - the sweat pourdown alone would damage the books instantly!

I recognize that it's nearly impossible to spend as much time on a trainer as you do outside due to mental boredom issues. (Some hardcore folks do indeed do 6 hr rides on a trainer!) Thus, I almost always do intervals, hard lactate sets, etc. - basically anything except a relaxed spin. More bang for the buck and less time on the trainer. Plus, you WON'T be bored when you're hammering like crazy, although you feel like you're torturing yourself if you're going hard enough.

Edited by agarose2000 2009-09-12 1:59 PM

You really like to punish yourself, huh.

there's such a thing as cycling tv?

Longest I ever stayed on the drainer was 3.5 hours. Yup, just music. I vary the effort depending on what I am listening to, sometimes I go really hard, sometimes easy. This makes it a little bit more bearable. But yeah...it still stinks! This winter I am going to invest in a Computrainer . Think this will make it more fun. I wish i could ride outside all year round..............

several seasons of 24

Yup. I love it. If you're into following pro cycling and riding the roads of Europe, its the next best thing to being there. Mind you, the gap between the next best thing and the best thing is rather substantial.



http://www.cycling.tv/

First and foremost, I pedal the bike.

I do sometimes watch a movie, but it has to be something that I've seen before, because I tend to zone out of the movie for long stretches during the more painful parts of the pedaling.

I also like doing short recovery 'rides' on the trainer or (more often) rollers, when I'll listen to the radio.

I watched the Dallas/Bucs game today while on the trainer!  Any sports game works for me. 

Sometimes I watch TV, sometimes I listen to my ipod, sometimes I read a book.
I was thinking of getting some of the Spinervals DVDs can anyone recommend particularly good ones?

I've done DVDs, TV and training DVDs.  A word of caution on training DVDs if you have aerobars.  Don't forget that you're on a trainer and you cannot get into the video and turn your bike while in aero.  I cracked the arm rest part of my bars that way!

Last year I did a 4 hour spinathon with the women's only spin/ride group I was with at the time.  I downloaded a season of The Iditarod from iTunes and watched the whole thing on my iPhone.  Worked very well for the long ride. 

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one reading :-)

I just hold mine, though.

I find that I actually ride better when I'm reading, as opposed to watching TV or a movie...My legs get into a much better rhythm, and I tend to ride harder.

Whatever's on the TV or DVR.

Books on CD, transferred to mp3 player so I can listen on headphones without bothering anyone.