Old 12-09-19, 10:32 AM
  #33  
TinyBear
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Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Ontario Canada
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Bikes: Giant Boulder SE, Giant Seek1

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Originally Posted by zjrog

Yes. A regular bike on an indoor trainer stand. They come in several styles. Magnetic trainers, fluid trainers and now smart trainers. Magnetic, most are adjustable for resistance. About the cheapest you can go. Fluid trainers, use a viscous fluid that provides a non-linear but predictable resistance to your speed. Smart trainers are available in several styles now. Wheel on and wheel off. Wheel on, is like mine above. It is a Kurt Kinetic fluid trainer, originally just a "dumb" trainer. Kurt Kinetic has an add on iNride sensor that estimates power output. This useful on it's own in the app or, for use in the online world of Zwift, Rouvy and others. But, it's not a full smart trainer, as the apps available, can control resistance of the smarter trainers in response to hills. Wahoo makes a good wheel on smart trainer, as do others. Next up, in price as well as efficiency, are the wheel off trainers. As the name suggests, you pull the wheel off, and the trainer has gearing on it.

Are these better than a good indoor exercise bike? A lot depends on the bike. Is your exercise bike for spin classes and acts like a fixed gear bike? Or does the flywheel spin free if you stop pedaling? The advantage to using your bicycle, is it is fit to you already. But none of them are any good if they aren't used.

In my case, I have a bike dedicated to the trainer. I crashed on this bike, breaking my back 8 years ago. I have a mental block about riding it outdoors. So it is my dedicated trainer bike. To this, I have a way to hold my laptop where I can use it, and have an HDMI cable to a tv for Zwift or Rouvy. The iNride sensor is ANT+, so I have an ANT+ USB dongle on the floor by the trainer and a USB extension cord to the laptop. My bikes all have speed and cadence sensors, and I use a heart rate monitor chest belt. These all connect to the laptop as well. It makes it easy to see the days I'm not doing as well, or days that I am doing very well. Zwift is a bit more of a social environment, Rouvy has real world video of thousands of locations worlwide... Both are good ways to bide the time on the trainer and sort of feel like you are going somewhere. Just make sure to grab a towel and at least one good fan.

I have 2 other roadbikes, and my fit is nearly identical between the 3. My 29er MTB has drop bars, and I've come close to a matching fit to my other bikes. I do drop the seat almost 2 inches when trail riding the 29er. Riding the 4 bikes, the only significant difference are in bike weight and available gearing.
Oh ok. No my stationary bike has no free wheel. But it does have electronic adjustments and a computer to simulate hills and such and a basic computer with estimated calories burned ,distance ridden, and heart rate (taken from your hands on the grips.
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