Staying Motivated Thru Winter

Top 10 ways to make riding on an indoor trainer more enjoyable

Winter in upstate New York: not the most bike-friendly place to ride.

Whether Punxsutawney Phil spied his shadow or not earlier this month in your neck of the woods, or the global warming phenomenon has barraged your hometown with torrential rain, massive flooding, 10 ft. snowdrifts, or bitter cold, by mid-February cyclists in many parts of North America are experiencing a serious case of cabin fever. How do we stay motivated to ride, train, remain healthy and get in shape when our feet are itching to clip in to the pedals but the roads and/or trail conditions forbid it?



Move over, Frosty; in times like these, an indoor trainer might become your most reliable winter companion.

Sure, we became cyclists to go out and explore the great outdoors, not fix our back wheels to a stationary object and ride in place. But if weather, circumstances or time constraints dictate your workout schedule, then it might be time to crank up the tunes and indulge in some interval sessions. Keeping them challenging, fast, and relatively short (1 hour 3 times a week suffices for many, especially when paired with weightlifting or other cross-training winter activities), you can keep your legs "tuned up" for spring while avoiding the mind-numbing boredom staring at four walls typically brings.

We polled fellow cyclists our Facebook fan page to find out, What keeps you motivated and spinning your wheels thru winter? Based on the variety of responses and suggestions offered, BicyclingHub.com presents the top 10 ways to make riding on an indoor trainer more enjoyable.

10. Watch a Paris-Roubaix video while listening to iPod LOUD. ~Roger M.

9. Good music, good friends, cool video, do it naked! ~Colleen T.

8. We try to mix up the places we actually ride (buddy's houses, basements, etc.) this helps with the same ol same ol. Follow the lead of the host trainer to get a good mix of workouts. ~Todd P.

7. I'll go with good tunes or a movie, but I also like Spinervals and Carmichael training videos. ~Jim M.

6. Thesufferfest.com has nice video workouts! Nicely produced. (they don't pay me to say this!) ~Mark N.

5. I live in SE Florida, why bother training inside? ~RJ H.

4. Not sure but I am going to find out. Setting up my rollers in the garage tonight. Gonna try the mountain biking DVD's first, then maybe some interval training DVD's and then Netflix. Beer will probably be involved with all three at some point. ~John R.

3. Watching TV and having a training plan that isn't boring - changes up every day. ~Sue S.

2. Take up a spin class ..great training for the winter. ~Beatrice I. D.

1. Ride outside, dress appropriately. ~Chad M.

You know the old Norwegian saying, "There's no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing?" BicyclingHub.com couldn't agree more.

With the appropriate gear and a good attitude, you can make even the Worst Day of the Year your best ride yet.