Trainer Convert

I think some of you are curious where I have my trainer set up and how I am getting motivated to use it, so I thought I'd write a little post to tell you.

Where it is set up has a lot to do with motivating me to use it. It's in our front hall, but practically in the living room thanks to a double doorway. There is a good view of the TV from it. It doesn't get put away. I've been leaving it there all the time with either my bike or Jeff's bike on it. It's unavoidable that way and seeing it there makes us use it. We generally lower the heat a little for our riding, but it's pretty warm. We wear summer kit and still sweat buckets. I have a towel over my bike and a towel for my face. I have a fan aimed at me too.

Jeff and I have made a deal that we will encourage each other to do workouts. Jeff's good about putting my bike back on the trainer for me after he rides his, so I don't have any excuses. When he rides, I bring him water, increase the fan as he warms up and adjust the TV volume so he can just pedal. If we had more space, it would probably be fun to have two trainers.

Stopping negative references to trainer time has helped me too. I figure if I recite 'trainer time is fun!' often enough I might just start to believe myself. Well, maybe not, but thinking about the benefits of it helps. For example, I am suffering less from cabin fever as a result of the workouts. I guess I get too tired on the trainer to care that I can't do much outside this time of year! I also think about how I won't have to start over when spring comes in terms of saddle soreness and base miles.

Movies are great. I can't watch new ones as I miss a lot of dialog and details, but I like watching ones I've seen before. It's mainly about watching the images changing in front of me without really thinking about it. A Good Year, Under the Tuscan Sun, Across the Universe are some non bike ones I've watched in addition to the Dr. Who series.

I want to get some bike DVDs that are fun to watch over and over. So far I've gotten The 9 Ball Diaries which I really like and wish was a bit longer than 50 minutes for trainer riding.

Do you have any favorite bike movies/races you can watch repeatedly on the trainer? I'd love any recommendations!

I have the Spinervals DVD that came 'free' with the trainer. It's three 30 minute workouts. I haven't done it properly yet as I need a new battery for my cadence sensor (hopefully that will fix it!). Jeff's done it right though and he likes it. I think I will get a couple more from that series, like the climbing one.

I think I've moved past the 'white knuckle' phase of trainer workouts. I started the year daunted by the trainer and worried about my ability to stick with it, but the trainer time is becoming a habit for me and not something to dread so much! I am doing rides of varied length and intensity for 1-1:35 hrs, so far. I might do some shorter, really hard efforts at some point. I worry that I might not be working as hard as I should! I might be able to go a bit longer too, but I want to be careful not to burn out, so I'm not going to push the time for now.

I'm only a beginner at this, so I'll continue to look for trainer workout help on blogs and welcome any input from you!