With indoor cycling season well underway in the northern hemisphere, I thought I'd cover my 'Top 5' equipment tips for getting the most out of your indoor sessions. This video covers my tips on cooling, desk setup, music/tunes, smart plugs, and having a maintenance plan for your equipment. If you're a beginner to a seasoned pro indoors, there's always something to improve with indoor setups.
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Video Sponsor: Shokz OpenRun Pro
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VIP SALE (US Nov 21st-27th 2022)
Link: glnk.io/r5j5o/shanemiller
GPLama VIP CODE (US$40 off): Shane40
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Links:
Vornado Fans (Amazon US): amzn.to/3V5AVU9
Meros Smart Plugs w/ Homekit (Amazon US): amzn.to/3gaBhdG
Wahoo Kickr Headwind: bit.ly/3gkIFTx
Wahoo Kickr Desk: bit.ly/3V4eVZY
KOM Cycling Desk (Amazon US): amzn.to/3hQcVWU
Video Index:
0:00 Intro
0:23 Shokz Intro
0:38 Tip 1- Cooling / Fans
2:16 Tip 2 - Desks
3:23 Tip 3 - Music
3:56 Shokz OpenRun Pro
5:03 Tip 4 - Smart Plugs
6:13 Tip 5 - Maintenance
7:02 Wrap Up
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gplama.com
#Cycling #Indoorcycling #Tips
Living in Northern Norway and having my pain cave in the outdoor shed, I could use a heater more than a fan most of the year. 🙂
nothing so bad in the netherlands, but I start my warm up on the attic with a long sleeve winter jacket and a thin pair gloves.
Brrrrr
One additional very simple tip I use is to wear a thick headband. It looks geeky but no one sees you and for me it works better than a towel.
Great tips, always have the windows open to get rid of that sweat. I'll add to the maintenance to set up a reminder to change the battery in your HR strap, I do it every 2-3 months, nothing worse than being half way through a session and the HR dies...
Good tips. I also use a sweat net stretched from aeat post to bars to help stop sweat dripping on the bike frame and a small towel draped over the bars so sweat doesn't soak into the bar tape (just remember not to leave the sweat soaked towel hanging on the bars when you finish).
Big kudos to Shane for doing indoor trainer videos in summer! I (and all cyclists in the northern hemisphere, I'm sure) really appreciate it!
There's no sunshine indoors, true... but on the other hand, no magpies either...
The guy knows his audience…😂😂
Fun fact: Only 10% of the world population is located on the southern hemisphere. And even in their winters the temperature is warm enough to cycle outside most of the time while summers are probably too hot.
@@noragee preferred temperature for cycling is very subjective, I can ride in 40 degrees Celsius, I don't think it gets much hotter than that very often? I'm very uncomfortable under 15 degrees though.
It’s his job and he didn’t actually ride his bike
Ironing board! I have never thought of it! Great tip!
Ironing board instead of an expensive branded desk does the trick as well;)
Thanks Shane, always appreciate your contributions
Great tip about the ironing board! Finally it has a use!!
Good tips, thanks. I ordered one of those Shoks headphones. Also tried my normal bike on the trainer yesterday and man, that was uncomfortable (riding on the same bike outside is much better). For my mainly endurance based indoor training I'll stick with the recumbent bike permanently mounted to it: - No sweat dripping down my face or onto the floor (head naturally in upright position) - no dicomfort on the bum, hands, back - better muti-tasking, e.g. watching bike race while doing low intensity endurance session
dude the smart plug idea is awesome! I have several sitting in my man-cave I'm going to put my trainer and fans on them, great idea!
I guess it is just me as no one else mentions my number one piece of kit for indoor training. That is a dehumidifier fan. If you are training indoors you might be dumping a ~litre of water an hour into the air, and it has to go somewhere (a fan only works if smelly sweat is evaporating off you). If you are in the shed with the lawn mower maybe not a problem. Indoors I want to pull the sweat out the air right by me and not let it wander about.
I really like your setup with the phone stand and everything directly in front of you on the desk. I have a folding tray with everything sitting beside my bike but your setup is ideal! I use a cheap box fan but I am considering buying the fancy Wahoo fan for Zwift.
Great video keep them coming👍👍👍
Kickr fan connected to your heart-rate is gold! Can''t ride indoors without it.
Don’t you just put the fan to 100% at the start of the ride? I find it best to get cool at the start before I get into a thought workout.
@@brandonamos2532 no mate. I don’t need it full blast at the start when I first hop on. I like it to get stronger as the workout gets more intense.
I like kickr fan controlled manually by phone slider in Wahoo app. Phone sits in front groove of wahoo rip-off desk within easy reach and quickly changed
Shout out for the Shokz. I recently got them and they work beautifully. You just have to get used to the occasional vibration but when you are focused on the ride you don't really notice it. As for the smart plug, I use the original smart plug. Who remembers the "Clapper"?
The Clapper! Oh my.... 🤣. First introduced in 1984!
I love asking the cross winds😄
Quad lock handlebar mount for the phone is super useful - keeps it within reach (Zwift Companion app, music etc), secure so you don’t have to hold it (or drop it!), but out of the general sweat range (except when sprinting).
Excellent content as always Shane!
Thanks Pete. Hopefully everyone can get a tip or two from this one. 👌🏼
I use smart plugs for fans and heater (garage). I'll be adding a smart outlet where I plug in my Leaf so that I can turn off the Leaf charger when I turn on the heater (same circuit). I'll also probably add a macro keyboard of some sort for discrete switches for the smart plugs.
Good tips! I might start using a fan, that sounds like it could really help.
I use a keyboard/ organ stand with a piece of timber attached to the top. Works great.
Vornado fan on the kickr desk 50cm from head makes a massive difference. SPD sandals make for a perceptible improvement in heat reduction.
SPD sandals!? Boss move!
@@gplama Yep,a touch Fred but in fact were a revelation.
Never considered the smartplug idea before. Looking fwd to your future video covering those
"Siri, order Ric some smart plugs" 👌🏼
@@gplama 😁
Once again, Shane awesome practical suggestions for comfortable/tolerable long or difficult virtual cycling adventure. Nice set up! Would the Kickr desk which looks very stable be compatible with a motion platform such as the KOM? It's nice you have been able to situate your table close to handlebars on bike, so at to not reach awkwardly forward, potentially injuring your back.
I love to listen to cycling podcasts while on zwift
A similar fan is the Honeywell HT900 in case people are interested. Looks like the fan in the Jack Haig screenshot.
I don't have room for a trainer desk so I got the Trainer Tray from Foothill Products that attaches to my Garmin mount. A good spot to keep my phone, earbud case and a gel or two. But it is probably not big enough if you need a whole keyboard/mouse setup.
Those Trainer Tray mounts are pretty neat.
CHUNES! YES! indoor allows me to crank the CHUNES! :) CHEERS, MATE!🤣
That is a very integrated ad after the music segemnt! Tricked me at first, through it was part of tip 3.
Thanks for this Shane. Please do a video on the mods to the Wahoo desk! Thanks.
Full details here: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
@@gplama Excellent, thanks.
There is a bettet option to the Wahoo Desk from Lifeline. Much cheaper and you don‘t need a bottle holder.
1. Head sweatband 2. Small keyboard with integrated mouse pad. Only the size of a hand.
Hi Shane, I use my Aftershokz every day, and that's my second one after losing the first. They are great...but the biggest problem with them is the inevitable mic failure on discord after 15-20mn if you are in a room with a high level of humidity...Making you sound inaudible or like in an aquarium...I had to stop using them for the WTRL races...if anybody got a solution, thanks to let me know-I played with most settings on discord with echo cancellation etc. cheers!
I don't usually care for in-vid sponsor shoutouts etc. usually however you can pry my open shokz from my cold dead hands, I use them every single day on the bike, absolutely fantastic both indoors and out. Bit of wind noise over 30km/hr so you gotta turn them up and the battery goes a bit quickly, but otherwise they are fantastic.
Have you tried the openruns vs the openrun pros? I've heard that the sound on the pro's is a little more muddled at high volume, and that the bass is marginally better and not really noticeable.
16" floor standing fan with remote to have just the right amount of air flow. I use my Shokz to listen to GPLama but they're not ideal for music.
Great video just wondering how do you have your tv/monitor mounted? :)
Covered in this video here: kzhead.info/sun/edWqeKmqZJqegY0/bejne.html
I am very interested in the mods you have done to your Wahoo desk, and how you did them. I’m especially interested in the phone mount. I currently have a tray attached to my stem via an out front Wahoo computer mount. I hate getting out of the saddle because I just stream sweat onto the tray and my phone. I’d love to move the phone to the desk and still be able to use the Zwift companion app easily (gotta throw out those 👍s).
Covered in detail here: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
Shane - try a finger trackball instead of mouse. Dont have to be reaching to the desk with it. -U10 PS - I have a small fan pulling heat off my trainer. have for years. i feel that all those yrs ago when i smoked my NEO i didnt have the fan on it b/c i had to train in another room temporarily.
Not sure I understand the recommendation of the Shokz headphones - they make sense outdoors certainly, but indoors I find in-ear headphones must better since they can block out (or in some cases noise-cancel) noise such as fan noise, turbo trainer noise etc - not sure what benefit (of any) there is indoors for bone conduction? Surely you want to block out background noise indoors, and don't have the safety aspects that you have outdoors (needing to hear traffic etc)?
Firstly, they're sponsoring this video, so they're going to be on show. Secondly, it depends how much you sweat as to how well in-ear ear phones work indoors. There's a few videos I have up where I'm sprint testing trainers and the left (it's always the left!?) AirPod goes flying out. Ultimately it comes down to preference. If you want to bang out the tunes with a speaker system, over-ear cans, or with a set of bone conducting units, all good.
Hi Shane, I'm thinking I need a smart bike but can't decide between stages,wahoo bike, I'm only going to be doing indoor training so can't see the point in getting a cheaper trainer then buying a bike. What do you recommend
I have a question for you or your viewers….do you wear your garmin/wahoo etc watches whilst riding? I’ve always taken it off as outdoors I get all the data from my head unit, indoors I use Zwift but I find it doesn’t really work all that well with garmin connect… should I wear my garmin watch whilst using Zwift? How can I get them to work together so I’m not recording data twice from the same ride?
Can vouch for the Vornado, I've hooked mine up to a smart power board (TP-link Kasa) and can switch off/on via my phone. Shane, a random question - do you shut down Zwift after every session, or leave it running for quick start next time? Some days the start up I find slow and painful, but then I don't always have a reliable session (in terms of connectivity)...
Good to hear another Vornado success story! :) They're pricy but work very well. I shut down the system I run Zwift on each time. It's Windows 11 with an SSD drive, so start-up isn't too much of a problem. It's more the never-ending Windows updates for the OS and Nvidia card that are a pain.
Where can I find the remote clip and water bottle clips to add to my cycling desk like you have? Those look brilliant
Here's a video covering all my desk upgrades: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
@@gplama I found it after I made comment. Thanks mate. I already drilled a few holes into my desk and will be mounting water bottles tomorrow. They are not secure so they need a nut to hold them still. Apple remote ordered. Thanks mate! btw, you are my 1st go-to for zwift questions. Thanks for all the great vids
One important item that I really think needs to be near the top of the list- towels.. I have a stack of towels and go through 1 or 2 each workout.
We all should have seen enough Southpark episodes to never forget a towel! 🤣
I'd add a better carpet than the ones sold by the smart trainer manufacturers. I use a pickup truck bed liner, it's 4x6 feet and 1 cm think, it is in its 4th season and doesn't even show any wear. They are often made with recycled tires. And best of all, they are half the price of a Wahoo matt that will rip apart one day.
Hey GPLama, is that the regular or the mini OpenRun Pro? I'm thinking of getting them for outdoor rides and would be nice to get something that fits well.
These are the regular.
What - no sweat guard? Not towels on the handlebars to protect the shifters? Even with fans I still sweat enough that protection is a must!
From the looks of the screen in the background you're running Zwift and TR on the same machine. How do you manage that? I like running both, but do it separate devices...Macbook + iPhone or iPad. It'd be nice to have it all working on the Macbook.
Yep. Windows 11 PC with two ANT+ USB sticks. Same should be possible one a Macbook with a combination of BLE/ANT+.
Is that trainer road and zwift on at the same time? Or does zwift now have TR style workouts interface.
That’s both Zwift and TR at the same time.
my sweat seams to be so corrosive both for outdoor bike, same exact blue Giant as you, and my kicrbike. looking for something I can use on the bolts etc to help keep it from rotting away. I wipe it down but short of taking the kickr outside for a washdown wondering what to use. Thanks.
Hi Shane. Which model of Vornado do you use? - 660, 560 or 460? Cheers.
That one is a 533.
What are your thoughts on the sweat catchers Shane? Any good?
Never really liked them. Years ago I tried one, had leg rub... never really tried them again. It depends how much someone sweats I guess.
@@gplama thank you 🙏
Hi Shane, please check hrm fan by dragilla. Great driver for any fans using hr measurment like headwind.
They reached out last week. Unfortunately until it's officially certified for use here in Australia I'll have to pass on the opportunity to test/review it.
@@gplamaThanks for the answer. I'm already enjoying mine, I hope it will be legal in Australia soon.
6:47 crazy how much the bike is moving on that trainer. i got an jetblack volt and i got 0,00 movement. Of course u gotta work with the body, but when ur stable and bike not shaking from side to side ur the fastest
Apologies if you're about to answer this, I'm halfway through your video. How do you run TR and Zwift/MyWhoosh etc at the same time on the same device? Maybe a good video? I hate erg mode and much prefer TR controling the trainer, but am tempted to try MyWhoosh while there's less racing available to watch online.
You'll need to use Bluetooth or have multiple ANT+ USB sticks to run two training apps simultaneously. Note: Only ONE app can have trainer 'control'. The others need to be power/cadence only.
Might be a personal thing, but when I had a fan pointing at my face, I was ending hard races with a sore throat. So I had to tilt my fan down a bit when racing.
Same for me, so having the fan blast my torso and legs. Use a big towel for the copious amounts of salty rain my forehead produce.
Could be the air flow making ur mouth dry since its blowing at ya 247 position and Angle is everything
A Vacmaster Air Mover, is a way better fan, very rarely need to turn it up to max, where the other like yours was on full permanently.
What’s the phone holder you’re using Shane? Looks like a fairly clean attachment to the desk.
QuadLock.
Thanks. Looks like quite the custom fit out you have going on your desk. Could easily do a video just that!
@@chriskennedy1076 Already done! :) Full details here: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
Can you do a more detailed video of your customised desk?
yea, I'd like to know what's on the front of it.
Yep! Covered in detail here: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
Do you get much wind noise as the shokz don't actually go into the ear ?
Good question. I live in Adelaide and it’s bloody windy here. The only thing holding me back on this purchase is how big an impact is this likely to have on the audio?
Shokz make sense on the road to stay alert but indoors ?! Just use some sealing earbuds to kill the wind noise !
Personally, I rate AirPods Pro for active noise cancellation - works a treat on fan and trainer noise.
Training with an open window. Just wondering how you deal with drop bears.
They run the other way when I show them the AppleTV remote and ask them to use it.
Can you show us how you modified the desk??
Covered in detail here: kzhead.info/sun/ZNppnJqrkXuQp4E/bejne.html
Hey Shane, random question about Strava. I feel if anyone will know it will be you. Is it possible to set strava to have an activity type automatically set to "activity" instead of a ride/run? For example: If I want to use my Elemnt Bolt with my motorbike to track distance and time (and even heart rate as that is a form of cross training for me), I don't want to poach segments. Now I know you can change it afterwards but then the KOMs of those segments will still be notified that they lost their KOM even though I corrected the activity and they got it back. Hope that makes sense.
I know on my garmin I use Cardio/workout activity type, that just says workout on Strava. Not sure if Wahoo has a similar activity type.
I'd be looking at something like ActivityFix to auto-fix/change your activities. I've done a video on that here: kzhead.info/sun/fJ2YgKWjqpWoo2g/bejne.html
@@gplama Thanks Shane. I didn't see a way to change the activity type with ActivityFix. But I did get an idea that will work. Instead of using the wahoo app to sync to strava I will upload the .fit file with strava-web because then I can change the activity to any of strava's available activity before uploading.
@@Gr3mlin13 Yeah I didn't see an option for that though. But I got another Idea and that is to upload the .fit file with strava-web instead of syncing it to strava with the wahoo app.
What do you recommend for a baller budget setup?
True ballers use mini projectors. 📽️😉
Where did you pick up that Temperature Gauge?
Like all things small... Amazon. :) amzn.to/3z4MH7B
What saddle did you put on the kickr bike?
Cadex Boost.
@@gplama Thanks for the reply. Weren't getting on with the PRO stealth anymore?
@@xShadowWolfe That's on the road bike.
Thanks for the video GP. I have found that one fan aimed at my back as well as my front is extremely more comfortable while riding indoors .
Any tailwind is welcome on a bike. Even indoors! :)
@@gplama Wahoo will be coming out with the Tailwind fan momentarily 🤣
Maintenance plan guys, no joking The bike may look clean but can be rotted inside like mine was, lots of corroded parts and an almost frozen axle piece on the trainer after six months without removing the bike off the trainer. Chain was stretched too.
indoor training has improved significantly in the last 5-10 years. its also got a lot more expensive. looking forward to the post-zwift era of indoor cycling, when people get bored of the digital simulacrum and races bereft of tactics/breakaways. another video people will find helpful. your efforts appreciated.
Every few weeks I grease the bolts on my exercise bike, otherwise they become almost impossible to budge.
I have to disagree with you on the Shokz Open Run Pros. They are not loud enough to drown out the fans I have, I think Apple Airpod Pro with noise cancelling is much better. I use the Shokz mainly for MTB and road cycling outdoors.
Fair call. I guess it depends on the fans and their positioning. I've tried the AirPod Pro with noise cancelling indoor and find them eerie to use, they block out too much noise. I've become accustom to hearing the low hum of a fan, or my chain ticking over.
The problem with fans is they're loud. I wish there was a way to get cool air movement without noise
Tell me about it! 3 wahoo head winds is my set up and works like a charm with noise canceling head phones being a must
If you are bothered by the noise, you aren’t pedaling hard enough!! 😂😂😂
Try riding outdoors 😂
know any free alternatives to Zwift?
mywoosh - but you need a good computer. mine is not good enough..
RGT is free if you use basic features only.
Outside is free! (well, almost... we pay for it in taxes). 🤣
RIP to everything I've dropped during a Zwift race
If Apple would let me turn on and off crosswinds IRL, I'd buy an iPhone right now.
ok cross wind, that's something luxury instead of necessity 🤣
Those fans are too far away from the rider!
Ftp test thing of the past with trainerroad AI Ftp detection
Long-time subscriber here. Just want to provide some respectful feedback: I see your content as no holds barred, honest product reviews. This is the first time I recall seeing product placement. Including sponsored products as recommendations would definitely take away from the trustworthy consumer advocate reputation you’ve earned, in my view.
I try to integrate these in a way that's not bullshit or misleading in any way. It's clearly marked as sponsored and the sponsored sections clearly defined within the chapters. With how things work with income/revenue in basically giving away my product, it's just business. If having a sponsor on board pisses a few people off, I can't do much about that. It allows me to continue doing what I'm doing. Without video sponsors like this there's more desperation in having to make shitty clickbait videos for attention. And those piss ME off. 🤣 In regard to review trustworthiness, in my review videos I talk to the data and experiences I have. For example, when I'm getting angry at smart trainers or power meters, there's no debate to be had about trust. It's the data that talks. That doesn't change if a sponsor comes on board for the next video. Shokz also sponsored a previous video, this isn't the first. 1447 videos uploaded over seven years. Two sponsored videos. I think the ratio is good.
It must be nice to have the money to have all the gear you have Steve, not many have that amount of cash, but good luck yo you :)
All the money doesn’t mean a thing if people still get your name wrong. 🤷🏻♂️🤣
FAN is the only "must have" on the list... the others are waste of money!
Music is not a must have. Some of us find it annoying, and it has nothing to do with cycling.
Technically fans, desks, and smart plugs have nothing to do with cycling either... but... preferred music is a proven performance enhancer: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20391890/ (Quite an interesting study, imo).