I’ve been experimenting a bit with some of the workouts and again confirmed an issue I seem to be having across all of them with Stayin’ Alive Lite. As I begin to get into the >100%FTP intervals, I’m overspinning shortly into the interval to the point when I come out of it and need to drop my effort down to 50 or even 88%FTP, I literally have to stop pedaling due to the extreme cadence. Then when I reach the last couple of intervals in the workout, even the final rest, I literally have to stand on the pedals just to get them to turn, and I weigh 100kilos. I can generate the rest interval watts at about 10RPM, how is that any sort of cooldown. Help me make sense of this. I’ve done a spindown, updated software, etc., and appear to be in ERG mode during the workouts as shifting has no effect on what I’ve observed.
Just keep an even steady cadence and the trainer shoud generate enough resistance to hit the target. When in ERG mode, when you increase cadence the trainer will adjust by providing less resistance, and the opposite as you have experienced when in a low cadence it adds so much resistance you can’t move the pedals (known as the spiral of death).
What trainer are you using too?
Using Zwift Ride with Kickr Core 2. You might have nailed it. I have been ramping up my cadence as I near the arch instead of maintaining what was comfortable, because with short intervals I want to ride as much of them as I can with the called for power. When I overspin and slow pedaling after the work interval, the trainer is sensing it and increasing the resistance in response. This will take a bit of practice getting used to.
The more cadence changes you make, the more the trainer has to adjust resistance, and those changes can take an amount of time that a human can notice. That also means if the power target changes on the screen, the trainer won’t instantly set it at the new target, and if you try to compensate by spinning faster, that only complicates it further. On the screen you might see the app say “more power” or “less power” but when you are in ERG mode, that information is completely irrelevant and shouldn’t even be displayed. You have to ignore that and wait for the trainer increase or decrease resistance to allow you to get to that new power target.
Good info. So the trainer is theoretically “smart” enough to alter the resistance at whatever cadence I’m holding to allow me to maintain it at the new higher or lower power demand?
Yes when you are in ERG mode, you are at the mercy of the trainer to set the resistance to achieve the power level at the cadence you are doing. You just have to let it run the show and that’s as good as it gets. ERG mode means you have no control over power.
Cool. Good to know that it leaves the cadence up to the whim of the rider and whether or not you want a spinning or grinding workout, regardless of the power.