How much more difficult do you think trainer miles are compared to being outdoors? I am personally finding my average speed falling about 3km/h slower. This is on a Kurt Kinetic fluid trainer. Then again wind is never a worry when being indoors. Anyways, just seems like 2 hours on the trainer wears me out a lot more than being outside. What are your guys' experiences?

you spent 2 hours on a trainer? are you crazy? 20 minutes on a trainer and I'm ready to jab a soldering iron in my eye.

You are pedaling more than you are outdoors. On an average ride, I am coasting about 20% of the time outdoors.

Be sure to also drink more on the trainer. You sweat more since there is no wind to cool you off.

How can you compare average speed on a trainer with a ride on the road? It's so different as to be almost meaningless. Unless you have a perfectly flat road to ride on, then you'll be trying to average out uphill and downhill sections that will make a big difference to average speed - whatever that means.

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There is no such thing as a "trainer mile."


You've been warned.

Well what if you just took the amount of time spent riding your bike? My usual route takes in a few good climbs and lots of wind resistance.

I still count them on my total yearly mileage. I think they are a good way of checking for progress.

Trainer miles do not count toward the Official BikeForums Total™. Fail.

My Powertap files are really pretty similiar from a typical outdoor training ride and a indoor trainer workout in terms of total workload, average speed, etc..

For example, yesterday I did the 1 hour Spinervals Extreme Threshold workout on my KK trainer and the results were within 5 % of my last 1 hour outdoor interval workout. A few days ago, I did a 3 1/2 hour trainer ride (I spin during a football game to maintain my aerobic base) and my average speed was very close to a typical outdoor workout of the same duration.

I don't really follow your point. Time spent on the bike is even less meaningful - but I don't think that's what you meant? My point is that trainer time is just fundamentally different to riding on a road. Don't get me wrong, I don't think there's anything bad about time spent on your trainer (beyond it just being less fun).

I'd count time spent on the trainer; distance varies greatly depending on what intervals were prescribed.

For indoor training, time & effort > average MPH/KPH.
For outdoor training, time & effort > average MPH/KPH
my 2cents, but I suppose it depends on goals.

Beaker, I'm just saying that I feel more of a workout on the trainer; going by the same amount of time or distance. Maybe the trainer is a more efficient way of getting into shape.

^^^Makes perfect sense to me
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?607221

Regarding time, a trainer is going to feel harder for less power.

Regarding distance, it is not really meaningful for the aforementioned reasons. Some trainers try to approximate the resistance of riding on the road, some are way harder (more power for the same "speed") and some are way easier.

Another aspect is that you almost never coast on the trainer. On the road, there are definitely some times where you end up coasting (rolling into stop signs/lights, downhills, etc.). So, 20 minutes on the bike on the road is maybe 17 minutes pedaling whereas it is 20 minutes pedaling on the trainer.

That makes sense, it's just a bit apples and oranges compared to riding roads.

I just got the Road Machine today as a gift and I did a two hour ride with some intervals and what not. The power curve for the Road Machine is tuned to be like a 165 lb rider with a 20 lb bike going up a 0.1% grade hill or something. I can't remember exactly but it's something like that. So depending on your weight and a ton of other factors it will feel a lot different resistance wise.

A road mile is .8276589 of a trainer mile.

Trust me on this.

I work harder on my trainer since I don't have to hold anything back so I can make it home. Miles are not a very good way of tracking progress since it all depends on how you use your trainer and how/when you ride. Trainer "miles' can be anywhere from much easier to much harder than regular road miles.

I only count the trainer for time, how hard it is depends on where the resistance level is set, what gear you use and how hard you pedal.

The Kurt Kinetic Power Curve simulates an “average” rider assumed to be 165 lbs, riding a 23 lb bike with 170mm crank arms up a 1% grade, at sea level with no wind on rough asphalt... etc. (taken from the Tips + Tech Info section of the KK website)

Constant pedaling, i.e., no coasting on a trainer, too.

I tend to agree with this guy
https://www.sportvelo.com/tips/stationary_trainers.htm

Time on trainer is harder if you are focused and concentrate on the effort you put into it. If I spend an hour on the trainer with no coasting, slowing down for lights, stop signs, poor drivers etc, I feel my workout is more efficient. I can focus more on my heart rate and cadence without any distractions which makes the trainer an efficient workout for me. Maybe the next guy won't push or focus as much and feels the road is more efficient. I definitely burn more calories on the road as my rides are longer but my Cycleops Fluid kicks my ass.

what he said. later.