I still can't ride properly after breaking my elbow but would like to start preparing, before I turn into a lardpotato. The physio has suggested a static bike.
Never used a turbo and can't spend more than £100. Advice appreciated!
I have a road bike, QR, no discs.
Halford's have a £55 one that seems to get good reviews. Is that all I need? There are plenty others second-hand on ebay but there I get a bit lost. If I don't care about smart connectivity, what am I missing with the Halfords one that I might gain from a second-hand Elite/Wahoo/Tacx/Whatever? Do I need to go down the rabbit hole here, or just grab any old thing and it'll do the job?
Breaking down your questions:
Halford's have a £55 one that seems to get good reviews. Is that all I need?
No, you need a smart trainer.
There are plenty others second-hand on ebay but there I get a bit lost. If I don't care about smart connectivity, what am I missing with the Halfords one that I might gain from a second-hand Elite/Wahoo/Tacx/Whatever?
You're missing smart connectivity
Do I need to go down the rabbit hole here, or just grab any old thing and it'll do the job?
Yes you need to go down that rabbit hole.
To put it bluntly, unless you're the most super committed person in the world, and possess a yogi / buddha like ability to tune out how dull and horrible turbo training really is then doing a turbo workout without a smart trainer isn't possible. You'll do it once or twice then it'll bore you to tears even if you manage to write yourself a plan and stick to it.
Have a look on facebook marketplace for 2nd hand turbo's. The market for them collapsed after covid. I got a Pinnacle HC from Evans for £100 NEW (they've since gone back up to £200 though). My old wheel on smart trainer is still in the shed because I literally couldn't give it away (if you're near Reading you're welcome to it). The old trainer still works just fine for just pootling around on Zwift or following a training plan, although it over-reads by about 50W.
For most people the make and model won't matter. As long as it's smart then even the accuracy is of little consequence unless you want to go racing. There are differences in how they feel but 95% of your training is doing interval between 100W and 400W, being able to do 2000W sprints or 20% gradients isn't necessary. I'd probably say any model less than 5 years old now is very good. Pre 2020 you're starting to look at not-so-smart turbos that maybe reported data but weren't following the commands from an app (Elite Muin B+), or were a bit noisy (early Wahoo Kickr's for example). How quickly an Elite Direto XR reacts Vs a Kickr Core, or that a Cyclops Hammer can simulate an insane gradient isn't really that important unless you're a reviewer looking at them back to back.
TL:DR
Just find whatever's for sale locally <£100 and then pay £12 a month for Wahoo Systm* or Zwift, or MyWhoosh is free, or whatever, depending on what your laptop is capable of running.
*I actually prefer this for it's simplicity, Zwift is fine for simulating going for a ride, but actually for training I just want the trainer to keep me honest in ERG mode. So when the plan says do 20minutes at 200W, it just keeps it at a rock steady 200W whilst I focus on cadence and whatever video is on. You can do all that from a Garmin or other computer but the wahoo app makes it straightforward. I do still use the odd Zwift free trial just to ride up Mt Ventoux or something, but not every day.
If you're Leeds based you can come and collect my Elite Muin Smart B+ Direct Drive Turbo Trainer for 75 English pounds.
To put it bluntly, unless you're the most super committed person in the world, and possess a yogi / buddha like ability to tune out how dull and horrible turbo training really is then doing a turbo workout without a smart trainer isn't possible. You'll do it once or twice then it'll bore you to tears even if you manage to write yourself a plan and stick to it.
Seriously? And I thought I respected you as well 😉
I am far from a yogic Buddha and manage alright on my dumb Kinetics trainer (the bright green ones) that I got for £75.
The secret is actually following a workout of sorts (GCN vids off YouTube are good for this) and good tunes in the headphones, I like some minimalist techno stuff that I found on YouTube but Songs for the Deaf works equally well, if a bit TOO motivating.
Simple workouts like sweetspot/threshold etc. take a couple of attempts to pace right, so pay attention to speed (might need a sensor) and little things like tyre pressure and how tight you tight the trainer on to the wheel. Makes workouts more repeatable.
Fluid trainers are definitely better than magnetic though 👍
Agree with tinas.
also worth adding that I find the most important aspect in not becoming a lard potato during injuries is diet rather than the turbo!
Definitely worth getting direct drive
i think GCN videos are great and free
Also agree with TINAS. I spent a while on a simple fluid trainer from when CRC shut down. Then got a smart trainer. Enormous difference in the level of motivation required. Smart trainer means that all you need to do is keep the pedals turning, and youll get your desired workout.
Just for example, Elite Direto, £100.
Assuming it's all working as it should then I doubt you'd find a better turbo in budget.
also worth adding that I find the most important aspect in not becoming a lard potato during injuries is diet rather than the turbo!
+1 , and it's advice I never follow.
An hour on the Turbo doing threshold intervals (i.e. longer steady ones with shorter breaks) usually burns about 500 calories according to the computer (which should be fairly accurate as it's literally measuring energy output and just has to apply a fairly well established efficiency factor). The more sprinty the intervals the lower it goes right down to the low 200's for short/hard intervals with lots of rest.
That's 2 to 4 Foxes chocolate chip cookies or a couple of Aldi's low-ish calorie protein pots.
You can't out-train a bad diet.
Focus on lowering your calorie intake and keeping active in other ways. Walking for an hour isn't far off the same calories as turbo training, and you can repeat it pretty much indefinitely without fatigue, or even burning many carbs so you won't feel tired and hungry afterwards.
Seriously? And I thought I respected you as well 😉
Well that was a mistake 😂
Rollers are still good fun though.
Thanks for the advice, all. I shall attempt to actually get one of the things and not just procrastinate forever (good luck with that)
If you're Leeds based you can come and collect my Elite Muin Smart B+ Direct Drive Turbo Trainer for 75 English pounds.
A bit far away, thanks though. Tempting, it does match the colour of my bike quite nicely 🤣
Might have had to boycott you anyway for using PB classifieds instead of STW 😉
Get second hand rollers. I found them far better to train on than a turbo.
It's perfectly easy to train without smart connectivity on rollers or a turbo, as thousands of people did before it existed.
Sub-100 quid Turbo Trainers you say...
If you’re near Reading I’ve got a barely used Prime turbo trainer (non-smart) you can have for free.
I bought it during the great chiggle purge for very little and then scored a cheap smart trainer off eBay for even less so it is just surplus to requirements and is taking up space… But I’m not posting the bastard thing, it weighs a ton.
I got a set of Elite rollers with resistance for £20 off eBay, not the most effective as I'm currently on a singlespeed but they work and you have to stay engaged otherwise you'll fall off. I just follow GCN training videos which again aren't always great with singlespeed, but I'm still a sweaty mess by the end of it.
You've got some nice offers on here.
I'd just add that I've only used a non-smart trainer and it was totally fine for my needs. I used to record road races on the Sky box and watch them while I was training. CBA with the faff of sensors, laptops etc to turn it into a computer game.
Like you, I was dong it when I had a broken arm. Actually gained fitness compared to before, and managed to maintain it after I'd healed and got rid of the turbo.
If you’re near Reading I’ve got a barely used Prime turbo trainer (non-smart) you can have for free.
TY, but I'm in Manchester so if I'm not going to Leeds I'm certainly not going to Reading 😉
