Top Ten Indoor Training Tips

There are a number of reasons why we may be training indoors, including weather, time of day, efficiency or enjoyment. Whatever the reason for your indoor workout it’s a great way to maintain consistency in your training and hit your planned Kudu Coach weekly Training Load.

At Kudo Coach we’ve had years of sweating away in our garages, so here are our top ten tips to help you maximise your indoor training time and make the experience as enjoyable and productive as possible.

1. Get a fan
   Obviously with no air flow you are going to get hot, but you’ll not appreciate how hot you’ll get and how much you sweat until you start training indoors. So get yourself the biggest fan you can!
   If your core body temperature rises significantly your performance will be reduced as well as being extremely uncomfortable.
2. Fresh air
   It’s important to make sure your indoor training area is well ventilated and has a flow of fresh air to avoid a dangerous build up of carbon dioxide!!
   Carbon Dioxide is a natural by-product of human respiration, so you’re going to create a lot in a hard workout. This can build up rapidly in a confined space and lead to a number of potentially serious health issues!
3. Bike position
   For comfort and injury prevention it’s important that your bike is level front to rear and also vertical. This will ensure that you sit correctly on the saddle.
   If your floor is not level add some spacers under the legs to ensure the bike is straight and under the front wheels if required.
4. Permanent set up
   If possible make your indoor training area a permanent fixture and have a specific indoor bike. This can be a specific unit like a Wattbike or an older bike that stays on the trainer.
   If you do not have the luxury of a specific bike, it’s great to have the trainer and area itself ready to go, so all you need to do is pop on your bike and go.
   Make sure the training area has a shelf or table to put on your computer/tablet and other items as well as a fan. The less you need to organise to start a training session the more likely you are to get started!
5. Have a planned session
   Time can stand still on an indoor bike so to get the most out of your session, and to ensure your training is effective, make sure you have a plan before you start the workout.
   Use the Kudo Coach workout selector to browse the sessions that have been recommended for the training phase you’re in. Or devise your own session suitable for the event you are planning.

6. Train with zones
   Using a heart rate monitor, power meter or smart trainer will give you feedback of the intensity you are working at, allow you to follow a training session and work with prescribed training zones.
   The Kudo Coach workouts and most indoor training systems, such as Zwift work on knowing your Functional Threshold Power (FTP) or Heart rate (FTHR).
7. Entertainment
   Training needs to be fun so to make your time training indoors more enjoyable, try different forms of entertainment to find out what works for you.
   Some riders like interactive programmes like Zwift or Sufferfest, whereas another rider would prefer to watch a box set or Youtube. Occasionally riders just like to focus on the training session without distractions.
   One thing that always seems to be popular is music and you can choose your cycling playlist to match the workout.

8. Training duration
   The majority of riders and all of us at Kudo Coach find that an hour is a good maximum time to spend on an indoor training workout. This is long enough to work hard but short enough that the discomfort doesn’t kick in.
   For specific event goals and if no outdoor training is possible then some longer workouts may be required and there are plenty of options in the Kudo Coach workout selector for you.
9. Fluid
   To reduce the amount you sweat indoors aim to exercise in a cool room with a big fan. Even with these measures you will still sweat a lot and need to make sure you take on plenty of fluid. Over an hour it’s possible for a rider to achieve 2 litres of sweat loss per hour and this can reduce exercise capacity by roughly 15%!
   It’s impossible to replace this amount of fluid but you reduce the damage by ensuring you are hydrated before you start the session. So drink 500ml of water an hour before the workout starts and then aim for 8ml per kg of body weight each hour when exercising.
   So for a 62kg rider this will be a 500ml bottle per hour. For a larger 85kg rider this would be a large 700ml water bottle.
10. Mix it up!
    Don’t get stuck in a rut with your indoor workouts. Try different options and build up a menu of your favourites to suit different training goals. Of course, you can always use the Kudo Coach indoor workout selector to help you choose a workout suitable for your current training phase and event goal.