So I’ve been using TR in connection with Kinetic InRide for over a month now. I’ve been cycling for several years outdoors, but this is my first crack at power training. The problem is, the speeds that TR is telling me I sustained are substantially lower than what I know I push on the road fairly easily, yet I’m substantially more tired on the trainer. I know that the FTP is on the low side, set at 168w, which is super weak. But the workouts are in balance with my perceived effort. So the question is, did I really lose several MPH of speed somehow? Or is there something wrong with the fluid trainer creating more resistance? I am at a loss and I guess we’ll see once i get on the road, but I just wanted to see if anyone else has had a similar experience or can provide any insight.
I know that my Kurt Kinetic road machine simulates a 1% grade and therefore my speed on the trainer is a lot lower (about 1-2 MPH slower) than my speed outdoors at the same power level…
Joel
On a trainer speed is irrelevant. Power is all that matters.
Mine is that way too. I can wreck myself on a hard trainer ride for an hour and be between 17-18 mph… speed of your wheel of course will depend on how tight your wheel is against the drum. In short, I wouldn’t pay attention to speed at all.
Typically people can’t sustain the same level of power indoors as they can indoors.
And unless you’ve inputted your exact Crr/Cda into an application, its speed estimates for trainer rides will be enormously off the mark. A guy sitting upright doing 160W won’t go anywhere near as fast as another person in a full TT tuck, but the application has no clue about that. Similarly, as others say above: The trainer itself will only give an accurate speed for a certain rider. I actually find my KKRM speed matches my outdoor speed, but my position is awful. This means that for most people with better positions, their KKRM speed probably goes well under their outdoor speed.
Welcome to the darkside!
Don’t worry about it, as long as you are consistent with your knob tensioner setting, tire PSI, and coast down timing you’re good to go. I never look at the speed result, its the power profile of the workout you’re after.
Starting to feel much better.
My Kinetic trainer consistently shows several mph lower than I would put out on a flat road. This is true even with a working calibration tool. I just ignore the speed and focus on the power (Kinetic inRide unit and Wahoo Fitness App), which is quite accurate when using the calibration. If you don’t have simulated or real power on the trainer, just accept that the trainer speed is going to be lower than a real-world speed on a flat road, and adjust your workout accordingly.
Some people who are used to riding in hills, where downhills provide an occasional rest, will find they get more tired on a trainer, where you can’t coast for long. But if you’re trying to maintain the same “Speed” you do outdoors, you’ll have to work a lot harder on the Kinetic trainer. The guy who says it simulates a light incline has it right, but I couldn’t say what the percentage is.