sopas said:
....I usually go out with my bike and ride about 2 hours a day, 4 days a week. I dont follow any "profesional" schedule or anything. I just practice a little bit of everything depending how I feel. ONe day I may do 10 sprints, other day climb a mountain, or just ride in the flat....
It sounds like you have a good fitness base from swimming and general riding alone and with groups. There's certainly no reason you have to start structured training if you don't intend to compete, but based on what you described you have plenty of background to start a more structured program if you so choose.
The indoor trainer lends itself to some level of structured training as it's mentally difficult to ride in place week in and week out over the winter if you don't have some goals and direction. Just spinning away with no particular purpose is very hard for me to sustain. I absolutely hated trainer time until I added some structure and goals to my training. Now I know exactly what I'm trying to accomplish during my indoor sessions. I also have a power meter that helps me track progress and lets me know the time invested is actually paying off. But as long as you use the same trainer you can track sustainable speed, or distance covered during your workouts to keep track of your progress.
... I am also lucky to have a 10-km long mountain with 8 and 9% slopes about 30 km from my home....
That ride almost certainly would qualify as an SST workout. Unless you have extremely low gearing on your bike (like a touring triple crankset paired with large rear cogs) it's likely that a 10km climb with 8-9% grades forces you to ride somewhere in the Tempo/SST range. IOW, without trying too hard you end up putting out a good solid effort to climb that mountain. Long steady climbs are my easiest SST days at least mentally. I don't have to stay on top of my gears and stay focused to put out the power, I simply have to ride steady bottom to top.
Think about holding that sort of effort while riding the indoor trainer. Not killing yourself everytime you try to ride indoors, but good solid work near the top end of your sustainable aerobic range in blocks of 20, 30 or more minutes.
Popular and productive sessions on the indoor trainer include 2x20 minute efforts where you warmup for 5-10 minutes, ride 20 minutes at a steady pace that gets you breathing deeply and requires focus to finish, 5 minutes of easy spinning, another 20 minute effort at similar intensity to the first and a cooldown. That takes approximately an hour and is a very good solid workout that leads to a very powerful aerobic engine.
You can't and shouldn't try to do every day at that intensity. It can easily lead to burnout and you can start to dread the trainer if you work so hard every day. So folks do other workouts including 2x30 minutes with similar format but backed off in intensity enough to complete both efforts. Late in my training week I like to do a solid block of at least an hour after warmup but backed off again so it isn't mentally or physically too tough. The point is that you trade intensity and sustained duration, shorter efforts are harder and longer efforts are backed off. It's a combination of intensity and time at that intensity that leads to fitness gains so mix them up a bit to match your schedule and your motivation.
In the summer I'll take a day or two each week to ride a short very easy recovery ride. In the winter I don't get on the trainer at all for recovery days. The trainer just isn't very pleasant and I want to save my motivation for workouts that matter. If I want complete recovery I just take a day off, if I want some longer mellow exercise I'll cross country ski or head into the mountains on backcountry skis or do some other activity. Winter is long, you don't want to start dreading the trainer long before spring rolls around.
...I agree that on the home trainer is harder, but it is also better?...
Well, I'd say it's definitely more efficient from a time on the bike standpoint. IOW, I get a better workout per hour invested than I do outdoors with traffic, stops, coasting on descents, etc. But that doesn't mean the trainer is "better". Riding outdoors has varied terrain, much longer rides are not only possible but far more enjoyable and after all most of us don't ride bikes for the time spent grunting away in front of a fan
The trainer is a great way to maintain or build fitness during the winter but I only get on it during summer months to warmup for races regardless of its time efficiency. I know some very strong racers that continue to use a trainer during the season it can definitely provide a very good workout, but I tend to ride outside when I can.
Start riding the trainer, try some block intervals in the 20 to 30 minute range and find the intensity that requires concentration, gets you breathing deeply but isn't so brutal you have to quit early or can't finish more than one. When you find that level (probably easiest to see as a certain speed if you have a rear wheel speed sensor or a certain cadence and gear combo if you don't) make a note of it. See if you can stretch the duration of those efforts at the same intensity and over time see if you can bump up the intensity. Don't feel the need to chase records all the time, do some easier days, some harder days, and take days off just like you do in the summer. 4 to 5 days per week of various workouts is a solid schedule just make sure the time on the trainer isn't ridiculously easy. If you could easily chat with another rider and don't notice your breathing or effort and the pedals feel like there's no resistance than it's probably not the best use of your indoor time.
Good luck and let us know how it goes....
-Dave