You wake up on a morning and the weather is like… yesterday! It’s pouring with rain, the wind is bending the trees almost to horizontal and the stream at the bottom of the garden has swollen so much that it’s flowing over and around the weir rather than through its the channel.

Worst of all, you’ve a 3 hour bike ride planned. What do you do?

I know I wouldn’t go out in that weather, more from a safety point of view than a fear of the weather. So I choose my turbo trainer.

And here are a few tips to make it more bearable:

• Cut the planned session in half – 90 minutes maximum – you want to stay sane after all and due to the lack of freewheeling involved on a turbo, you get much the same benefit in less time.
• Have a plan. If you know what you’re going to do, you’ll get much more out of the session. Keep an eye on the site, I’ll publish a new one in a few days time.
• Set up in front of the television or download a favorite playlist to your MP3 Player – music has been shown to decrease your perception of effort and it helps to make the time pass more quickly.
• Use a fan to create a breeze and to decrease the amount of perspiration that rolls of you and onto the floor.
• Finally, consider a “bike thong” to prevent all that salty sweat from corroding and gumming up your bike.

Most of us have a love/hate relationship with opur turbo trainers, but in a country that has the weather we do, your turbo provides a safe, effective way to ensure you get in your consistent training time.