Author Topic: VR Training (Read 33637 times)

DrMekon · « **Reply #125 on:** 26 September, 2016, 09:57:31 am »

Wife is clearly stressed about me being on the road following my RTA. On her says so, just sold the smart vortex and ordered a Tacx Neo. Suspect I'll be doing a lot of miles on Watopia for a while.

chrisbainbridge · « **Reply #126 on:** 26 September, 2016, 02:46:36 pm »

I do like my Tacx Neo. I suspect that my wife's happiness with my present training is also to do with my safety inside.

I think there is a learning curve to getting really good power curves. I find that if I am starting a hard interval I will increase cadence just before the interval to get a smooth transfer into the interval.

simonp · « **Reply #127 on:** 26 September, 2016, 04:30:27 pm »

Similar experience on the KickR - it's a good idea to get your cadence on target before the resistance suddenly increases, rather than having to muscle through the first few seconds at too low a cadence.

chrisbainbridge · « **Reply #128 on:** 26 September, 2016, 09:59:28 pm »

This was tonights session. http://tpks.ws/lgSV2 If you right click on the W and hide others. you will see on the first interval that i did not match properly and ended up with a big overshoot in the power. On the rest i was better.

I still drop out of the big ring on recovery as there is a different feel to spinning a 34 to a 52 ring. Therefore about 15 seconds before the interval I put it back into the big ring and the 14 tooth on the cassette. This plays around with the cadence as the resistance fluctuates to accommodate. Then I try to gently bring the cadence up as the power adjusts so that i hit the power as close to perfect as I can!!!

PloddinPedro · « **Reply #129 on:** 27 September, 2016, 07:54:42 am »

Quote from: chrisbainbridge on 26 September, 2016, 09:59:28 pm

....... http://tpks.ws/lgSV2 If you right click on the W and hide others.

Nothing happens when I r.click on the 'W' except an invitation to Upgrade - is that graph one that comes with the 'Premium' version?

DrMekon · « **Reply #130 on:** 27 September, 2016, 11:35:20 am »

Just did my first FTP test since the spring. Was 67kg then, am 74kg today. Did 365w average for 20 min then (FTP 252), and 306w (FTP 291) today. All that means I've gone from 3.76 w/kg to 3.93 w/kg.

Pretty pleased with that, given the shitty week I've had. Done no training whatsoever, just ridden my bike a lot. I'm going to start on the FTP builder when my neo arrives. Maybe 4 w/kg is possible.

chrisbainbridge · « **Reply #131 on:** 27 September, 2016, 06:41:17 pm »

Quote

Nothing happens when I r.click on the 'W' except an invitation to Upgrade - is that graph one that comes with the 'Premium' version?

Sorry left click on the W lets you hide all but the power and then you can smooth as you wish.

valkyrie · « **Reply #132 on:** 22 October, 2016, 07:42:51 pm »

I've had my Tacx iFlow for a few years but now it's dying. Resistance stays very high for first 5 - 10 minutes then suddenly starts controlling properly. Super frustrating when I've just got 45 minutes for a work-out. I've had a search online and it seems to be a problem that's often caused by bad connections on the circuit board. Opened it up to have a look today but couldn't find anything amiss. A replacement brake section is £230 so I'm thinking I might as well spend a little bit more and get something more modern. I've only ever used the iFlow off-line and I basically just like being able to set myself a routine controlled on power output - 30 second intervals with 30 sec recovery, that kind of thing.

What should I buy? I'm thinking of the Tacx Vortex as that seems to be the cheapest Smart trainer, not sure if I should be looking at the PC interface or if I'll get the functionality I need from the iPad.

DrMekon · « **Reply #133 on:** 23 October, 2016, 11:53:30 am »

Quote from: valkyrie on 22 October, 2016, 07:42:51 pm

I've had my Tacx iFlow for a few years but now it's dying. Resistance stays very high for first 5 - 10 minutes then suddenly starts controlling properly. Super frustrating when I've just got 45 minutes for a work-out. I've had a search online and it seems to be a problem that's often caused by bad connections on the circuit board. Opened it up to have a look today but couldn't find anything amiss. A replacement brake section is £230 so I'm thinking I might as well spend a little bit more and get something more modern. I've only ever used the iFlow off-line and I basically just like being able to set myself a routine controlled on power output - 30 second intervals with 30 sec recovery, that kind of thing.

What should I buy? I'm thinking of the Tacx Vortex as that seems to be the cheapest Smart trainer, not sure if I should be looking at the PC interface or if I'll get the functionality I need from the iPad.

If you wait a little while, Zwift will be available on iOS. If you have a decent graphics card in a PC, just get a ant+ dongle. If you don't, a basic alienware alpha is a good option if you don't need the fancier graphics. If you want 4k ultra settings, apparently the new alienware alpha r2 runs beautifully.

zigzag · « **Reply #134 on:** 13 November, 2016, 06:24:39 pm »

a question - is there a possibility to control the resistance of neo trainer based on the values of stages power meter readings? the reason for this is that neo shows inflated power readings (by 6-7%) and looking at them on the screen i will get used to how the effort feels based by false numbers. then on the road, where i use stages there will be too much effort to rewire my brain to process different readings for the same effort.
it might be of course that stages is under reading, but i'd rather go by it's data as that's what i see when i'm out on the road.

DrMekon · « **Reply #135 on:** 13 November, 2016, 06:37:25 pm »

I think so - I think in zwift, just make the Stages the power meter and the Neo the controllable trainer. I *think* it's as simple as that.

I'm planning to get a stages if I get a decent settlement. I'm disappointed to hear that there's a discrepancy. Is there possibility of recalibrating the Stages? The Neo has a great reputation for accuracy, and is supposed not to require any calibration.

Shmibble · « **Reply #136 on:** 13 November, 2016, 06:55:35 pm »

Quote from: zigzag on 13 November, 2016, 06:24:39 pm

a question - is there a possibility to control the resistance of neo trainer based on the values of stages power meter readings? the reason for this is that neo shows inflated power readings (by 6-7%) and looking at them on the screen i will get used to how the effort feels based by false numbers. then on the road, where i use stages there will be too much effort to rewire my brain to process different readings for the same effort.
it might be of course that stages is under reading, but i'd rather go by it's data as that's what i see when i'm out on the road.

There should be an option in the app to use your power meter to control the trainer - it's mentioned at the bottom of this page: http://support.trainerroad.com/hc/en-us/articles/204880670-Tacx-Electronic-Trainers

zigzag · « **Reply #137 on:** 13 November, 2016, 07:39:14 pm »

Quote from: Shmibble on 13 November, 2016, 06:55:35 pm

There should be an option in the app to use your power meter to control the trainer - it's mentioned at the bottom of this page: http://support.trainerroad.com/hc/en-us/articles/204880670-Tacx-Electronic-Trainers

thank you, i'd like the trainer itself to be able to pair with, accept and broadcast external power meter's values, so then it's compatible with any relevant app on the market.
or, in an ideal case all power enabled devices should be showing the true figures (i.e. as they actually are).

eta: there is still an issue with this workaround that if i swap a different bike without it's own power meter, the trainer will be working with its own (i.e. inflated) power values.

zigzag · « **Reply #138 on:** 13 November, 2016, 07:43:58 pm »

Quote from: DrMekon on 13 November, 2016, 06:37:25 pm

I think so - I think in zwift, just make the Stages the power meter and the Neo the controllable trainer. I *think* it's as simple as that.

I'm planning to get a stages if I get a decent settlement. I'm disappointed to hear that there's a discrepancy. Is there possibility of recalibrating the Stages? The Neo has a great reputation for accuracy, and is supposed not to require any calibration.

stages calibrate only according to the temperature, afaik, and the value is pretty stable all the time (i've always got the same figure so far), it has 2% accuracy which is acceptable to me (if that's what it really is

).

Shmibble · « **Reply #139 on:** 14 November, 2016, 12:49:54 pm »

Ah, sorry Zigzag I misunderstood what you were asking. Not sure if there's a way to do what you're looking at, at least I haven't seen any way to do it when fiddling with my Neo. Might be worth emailing Tacx? They're supposed to be quite helpful.

zigzag · « **Reply #140 on:** 17 November, 2016, 04:30:11 pm »

fwiw, their reply:

"There is always a difference. That cannot be compensated. The NEO could be more accurate to this. We have a difference ouput on the wheel with less then 1%.
If you want you can connect your stages to the software program and use that powerprofile.

Kind Regards

Tacx Support"

simonp · « **Reply #141 on:** 17 November, 2016, 04:40:11 pm »

TrainerRoad has their powermatch option which allows you to use the power from a power meter to control an electronic trainer which should allow you to eliminate such differences.

zigzag · « **Reply #142 on:** 17 November, 2016, 05:29:35 pm »

Quote from: simonp on 17 November, 2016, 04:40:11 pm

TrainerRoad has their powermatch option which allows you to use the power from a power meter to control an electronic trainer which should allow you to eliminate such differences.

that is quite an easy workaround with the stages pm, however if i used a powertap hub on the road it would be a different story (no easy way to compare though!

)

LMT · « **Reply #143 on:** 17 November, 2016, 06:58:11 pm »

Quote from: simonp on 17 November, 2016, 04:40:11 pm

TrainerRoad has their powermatch option which allows you to use the power from a power meter to control an electronic trainer which should allow you to eliminate such differences.

Yep, keeps it simple.

simonp · « **Reply #144 on:** 02 January, 2017, 08:07:36 pm »

Decided to try out zwift. Crashed 50 minutes in. The entire site, that is.

chrisbainbridge · « **Reply #145 on:** 03 January, 2017, 07:22:46 am »

Must have been my fault. I tried it yesterday morning as well and it worked fine. i did the "surprise me" option which was a lovely hill climb. Some sustained 12-14% ramps. I loved cycling through the snow in short sleeves.

First time I came across the road simulation on the Neo on the cobbles and a couple of wooden bridges. Seemed very interesting. Not sure how much it really added.

Overall for frosty days when you want a controlled session with no chance of drivers hitting you in low sun or coming off on black ice I thought it was excellent.

DrMekon · « **Reply #146 on:** 08 January, 2017, 10:04:18 pm »

Did you go all the way up to the lift station? I think that hits 17% in places. If you don't want to navigate yourself, choose the pretzel. It sounds like you did the mountain route.

I dont like the road feel thing - I don't mind the boardwalk, the but cobbles are too much. If it was less extreme, I wouldn't mind. On erg mode, you can see it really causes your effort to increase.

I did the Velonews podcast ride today - very cool. You start on the pier as per normal for events, but in a special Velonews kit, then when it starts a velonews podcast plays through the speakers. It was on the utility of HR in the context of power meters

http://www.velonews.com/2016/10/news/fast-talk-ep-4-myth-useless-hr-monitor_423470

TimC · « **Reply #147 on:** 08 January, 2017, 10:49:38 pm »

I bought a Neo about a month ago (to replace my BKool trainer) and I'm very impressed. The road feel effect is interesting, though I have a suspicion that it's not great for your bike's BB! Of course, it's disabled in Zwift's Workout mode, for which I've learned how to program CTS workouts from the Strava plans (very easy in a text editor).

Quote from: simonp on 02 January, 2017, 08:07:36 pm

Decided to try out zwift. Crashed 50 minutes in. The entire site, that is.

Zwift's servers went down for a few hours last weekend. As far as I know (I've been using it since Beta), it's the first time that's happened and sounds like what befell you. The increase in users has been stunning - it's over 3000 simultaneously in busy times now, so I'm not surprised that it cot a bit overloaded. The Zwift Devs were very quick to get an explanation and apology out; they are extremely responsive and communicative via the forums and Facebook pages, and are often found out on the course of the day.

DrMekon · « **Reply #148 on:** 08 January, 2017, 11:13:13 pm »

Quote from: TimC on 08 January, 2017, 10:49:38 pm

... in Zwift's Workout mode, for which I've learned how to program CTS workouts from the Strava plans (very easy in a text editor).

I suspect it's only a matter of time before all the coaching software exports to Zwift. When I make a plan in Today's Plan, it automagically puts each week's workouts in a subsection. If I do a one off workout, I can export it. It does the same for various platforms, including trainerroad.

TimC · « **Reply #149 on:** 08 January, 2017, 11:27:35 pm »

Yes, I've seen the Today's Plan workouts. But I've had to call a halt to subscribing to every cycling website - they're not as cheap as they once were! Zwift, Strava, Training Peaks and Sufferfest add up to around £350 a year, which I can afford but can't really justify. I've binned RidewithGPS, TrainerRoad and Endomondo. If Zwift ever finds a way to interface with hotel gym cycling machines, Sufferfest will go (Zwift's already about to release a running mode which will work on gym treadmills).

Author Topic: VR Training (Read 33637 times)

simonp

simonp

LMT

simonp