Trainer time vs. road time

tdicus

I'm doing the IMWI camp weekend on my own this weekend due to business travel the following week. The plan shows a six hour ride on Friday. I might have to start this on the trainer due to rush hour traffic in my area. Is the time on the trainer equivalent to more time on the road due to constant effort?  (E.g., if I do 2 hours on the trainer, does this translate to 3 hrs on the bike?) I just want to do things right. I wasn't able to find this answer in the wiki, but I apologize if it's in there and I missed it.  Thanks.

Todd

novaavant

I use a 1 to 1.5 ratio for trainer rides, so 1 hour on the trainer equals 1.5 hours outside.

robin sarner

There have been various discussions on this.     Opinions vary.    The Normalized Power you end up with at the end of a workout is what it is.    But indoors seems to be harder than most for various reasons.          I do most training indoors.      My customized plan is hard to translate, but I might think of more a 4 to 5 ratio. 

Coach Patrick

Todd, there is some math you can "normally" use, as in Ride Time * .66 -- so a 4 hour ride is 2.5 hours. But when you are in the final six weeks....or in a volume weekend like your camp, then it's about the full duration, not a modified one! Good luck!