Wednesday, January 2, 2008

Stop the Madness Spinervals 26.0


There isn't much worse than locking your bike into a trainer and trying to keep some fitness hammering away in the basement. There was a time that I could set my rollers up in front of garage door and train, those days are gone. I need distractions-movies, tvs, etc. Without a doubt doing some kind of intervals helps a workout go by and based on that Spinervals should be a good choice. Wrong!
Why would I want to ride my bike looking at a large group of people suffering on bikes looking back at me? Why would I want to endure the heinous instrumental madness that they use as background music(think "I Can't Drive 55" minus vocals)? Why do I want Type A do-gooder Coach Troy barking "Come On" at me every couple of minutes. I guess in the quest to get a workout done, I can put up with alot and maybe the "mental toughness" angle is actually from dealing with all the goofiness.
But there is one Spinveral tape I cannot comprehend at all. 26.0 "the Hardcore 100" 3DVDs and over 5 hours??? That is not a selling point it is a death sentence. Why would you spend 5+ on a trainer??? That is insane.(my longest trainer ride was length of the GodfatherDVD and I don't intend to improve on that). Do you live in the Arctic? Are there no cross-training activities you can do? How will pedaling a static bike for 5 hours really help you? In the real world you have to steer, pay attention, and think. On the trainer you zone out and suffer. I would like to see the people that are buying this thing.
For me the least possible amount of time on the trainer is the best time. 40-90 minutes max. And as far as intervals? Leg Speed drills, I don't think that a trainer replicates real road conditions well enough to build strength. Maintain yes, build no. The trainer is a necessary evil, but extened abuse obviously is addtictive.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

You aren't the audience. Check out the Ultra Marathon Cycling Assoc web site and indoor challenge. There are several of ultra distance types that do sit on the bike for hours. Many are in places that snowed in. Hey, 5 hours isn't for anyone and I don't normally go that long. 5 hours becomes short when you compare it to a 600k, PBP (1200K) or FC508.