Trainer Tension

I have a mag rather than a fluid, but I take into account the duration, RPM I want, and sometimes my HR zone.  I find the tension that works at that gear ratio and at an RPM I can sustain for the predetermined duration, and keeps me in the zone I want.  If I don't care about zone (rather just want to kick my butt), it's at a tension that I can keep the RPM up without passing out. 

I assume you're asking what gear you should be compared to what Coach Troy tells you, since the Fluid 2 doesn't have a tension adjustment.

It really depends on you. You need to just get a feel for how hard he tells you that you should be working and go from there. I know in some of the videos, he talks about being on the big chain ring in front and 13 or 14 on the back, 90 rpm, and under your LT. Yeah, right. I'd need to be pushing 300+ watts to spin 85-90 RPM in that gear.

I do have a tension knob (I really don't know what else to call it).  I screw it up next to my tire.  I can turn it once or until the tire barely rotates around when I spin it with my hand. Does that make sense?

Ah. As mentioned, you should tighten this 2-2.5 turns AFTER it makes contact with the tire. It has nothing to do with resistance

I purchased the Fluid 2 two weeks ago so had the instructions nearby. 

Do you have the knob resistance unit or the Quick Cam Resistance unit?

Knob resistance tighten it 2 to 2 1/2 turns once the roller is in contact with the tire.  More if tire still slides.

Quick Cam Lever Resistance Unit Rotate the cam lever in open position until the roller just contacts the tire then throw the lever into closed position.

Edited by CalgaryRunner 2007-12-05 6:20 PM

Thanks for the clarification and help.

I have the knob resitance version.  So if I am understanding the instruction from you and others, the tire should not move on the roller at all.  The roller should do all the movement.  Is that correct?

Sorry for being so dense on this one.

 

 

Edited by SSMinnow 2007-12-05 8:19 PM

Right. If the tire moves, the roller moves. It shouldn't slip at all.

As long as you tighten it enough so that the tire doesn't slip while you are riding, you CAN use it to modify resistance to some degree. But the best way to ride on a traininer is to maintain as many things as you can without change so that your workouts are comparable to one another.

So always check your tire pressure and make sure it's the same every time you ride.
Always tighten the "resistance" knob the same number of turns once it makes contact.

If you do the above two things, then riding in your middle gear and smallest back gear, you should always have about the same amount of resistance.

Making the knob tighter does provide more resistance, but the way you should change resistance is to switch to a harder or easier gear. If you find you are still spinning out in your biggest gear, then youc an tighten it a bit more, but be sure you always do it the same way every workout so that you get used to the gears you have.

Some people use dedicated trainer tires as it will tend to chew up tires, especially soft tires if you have the tension on the unit very, very high.

My disclaimer is that I would just follow the instructions and tighten it 2- 2 1/2 turns.