{"id":299903,"date":"2025-12-05T05:27:14","date_gmt":"2025-12-05T05:27:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/299903\/"},"modified":"2025-12-05T05:27:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-05T05:27:14","slug":"inside-indoor-cycling-why-i-dont-train-indoors-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/299903\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside Indoor Cycling: Why I Don’t Train Indoors\u2026 Yet"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s not because I dislike training or the idea of cycling indoors. And this is not a series of articles that should convince you to stay away from indoor trainers. Rather, I want to take a look at how I approach winter training and what would make me ride indoors.<\/p>\n

Why I still ride outdoors in winter<\/p>\n

First, I should say that I don\u2019t stop cycling outdoors entirely when temperatures drop. If it\u2019s not freezing and the roads are dry, I\u2019m usually out on my road bike. Good winter clothing goes a surprisingly long way. That said, mistakes happen. I recently came home with a cold after underestimating the wind and overestimating my jacket. That\u2019s the kind of error that simply doesn\u2019t happen on an indoor trainer.<\/p>\n

When true winter arrives, with below-freezing temperatures and frozen soil that finally stops being muddy, I switch to my mountain bike. I find winter MTB genuinely fun. There\u2019s a childlike joy to carving through frost-covered trails and navigating the icy parts. But even then, cycling becomes less frequent and more dependent on the weather. Some weeks, the window simply doesn\u2019t open.<\/p>\n

\"E-MTB<\/a>Mountain biking in winter can be real fun. \u00a9 Profimedia
\nWhy I don\u2019t feel the need for an indoor trainer<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve considered buying an indoor trainer more than once. I\u2019ve analysed the prices, watched the review videos, and imagined myself exploring virtual Alpine climbs or getting competitive in Zwift races.<\/a><\/p>\n

But the truth is, I don\u2019t need structured indoor cycling to stay fit, motivated or happy during winter.<\/p>\n

When the weather closes in, I don\u2019t sit on the sofa wishing I had a trainer. I just lean into the other sports I enjoy.<\/p>\n

Running gives me something cycling struggles with: higher-impact loading for bone density. And I like how time efficient it can be compared to cycling.
\nSwimming<\/a> is a whole-body workout, and winter gives me the opportunity to work on technique. Plus, the steam room afterwards feels so nice.
\nBouldering is something I do all year round, but I can go for longer sessions in winter and work on my strength endurance, and just have more fun.
\nCross-country skiing, when I\u2019m lucky enough to get the conditions, is my favourite winter cycling replacement: endurance, technique, beautiful scenery, and fresh mountain air.<\/p>\n

This mix keeps me fit in a way indoor cycling can\u2019t match alone. Sure, it doesn\u2019t get me as cycling-ready for the next season as an indoor trainer would. But so far, the trade-off has been OK with me. Also, there\u2019s something refreshing about not chasing power numbers all year round. A few months of looser structure resets my motivation.<\/p>\n

The appeal of indoor cycling<\/p>\n

For some riders, indoor training keeps them engaged, and it\u2019s a way to maintain cycling form during the cold months. I fully understand the appeal of having cycling-ready legs in March. And that\u2019s not all, indoor training solves very real problems:<\/p>\n

Lack of daylight: You can train any time of day<\/p>\n

Icy roads: You don\u2019t have to deal with the increased risk of a fall<\/p>\n

Limited time: You can get a proper session done in an hour<\/p>\n

Need for structured intervals: Sometimes impractical outdoors, but easy to do indoors<\/p>\n

Because I don\u2019t ride indoors, I\u2019ve had to learn the limitations of my approach. Consistency is harder, weather dictates everything, and I do lose a bit of cycling fitness. I may not be an indoor cyclist, but I keep my options open. Winter fitness isn\u2019t a single path. Indoor cycling is just one tool in the toolkit, and you need to know when it\u2019s the right time for you to use it. Next time, I will write about when I think that may be for me.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s not because I dislike training or the idea of cycling indoors. And this is not a series…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":299904,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[4985,101,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-299903","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-cycling","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299903","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=299903"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/299903\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/299904"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=299903"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=299903"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=299903"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}