Newbie lessons learned

General Discussion
#1

Lessons learned and still learning. About me, I’m a roller guy, just starting to use power, haven’t competed in many many years, just got first smart trainer, Elite Suito, use Garmin 245 watch for heart rate, on 2014 Trek Domane. All connected via Bluetooth on Windows

What I learned so far:

*Warm up the trainer then calibrate
*Don’t just do FTP test and expect good results. Get familiar with new sensations.
*Pick one gear you’re comfortable with while doing FTP test/4 week FTP training. Let ERG do it’s thing
*Keep cadence up and a few seconds before power load increase, bump up cadence.

Do you calibrate each ride? Or use other tools to calibrate? I assume if I’m using zwift then calibrate via zwift spin down

After FTP ramp up test and 3 days of FTP training, I’m beginning to get it. I’m sure I’ll learn more each ride.

#2

as an extra note, every time you do an FTP test, do the exact same workout, as different FTP tests will yield different results. it’s better to stick to 1 test method for trending purposes.

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#3

I agree. I’ll be sticking with ramp test lite.

#4

Check the documentation that came with your trainer RE: calibration. But my guess is that it’s probably not required for every ride.

One tip I can give you as a new smart trainer user: Stay away from “crossover gears.” In fact, when doing workouts or ERG mode in general, do your darnedest to keep your chain as straight and friction-free as possible. Wasting watts through drivetrain friction is pure waste.

This lesson holds true in real life too. But it’s become painfully obvious to me over the last couple of thousand kilometres in Zwift.

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