Fuelling for Indoor Training

#1. Eat before

We recommend you consume your main pre-training meal 3-4 hours before a session to ensure it is fully digested. A breakfast before a long endurance ride indoors should be full of high carbohydrate foods such as porridge, breads, honey, jam etc.

#2. During

The amount of fuel required will vary depending on the intensity and the duration of your indoor session.  

During longer and intense workouts, you may need to take on fuel. Consider keeping energy bars, energy gels and / or an energy drink to hand. As a rule of thumb, on rides over 90 minutes, you should be looking to consume 30-60g of carbohydrates per hour.

#1. Eat before

We recommend you consume your main pre-training meal 3-4 hours before a session to ensure it is fully digested. A breakfast before a long endurance ride indoors should be full of high carbohydrate foods such as porridge, breads, honey, jam etc.

#2. During

The amount of fuel required will vary depending on the intensity and the duration of your indoor session.  

During longer and intense workouts, you may need to take on fuel. Consider keeping energy bars, energy gels and / or an energy drink to hand. As a rule of thumb, on rides over 90 minutes, you should be looking to consume 30-60g of carbohydrates per hour.

#3. Hydrate

Indoor cycling is hot, thirsty work and you are likely to sweat buckets. Make sure you start exercise in a hydrated state.

Have a bottle (or two!) of water in easy reach so you can drink as you train. You might get away with 500ml/hour of fluid when riding outdoors, don’t be surprised if you drink 750-1000ml/hour when riding inside. Hydro electrolyte tablets added to your water bottle can help boost your performance and ensure you stay optimally hydrated. 

#4. Recover

Recovery starts as soon as you finish your training session. Known as the ‘training window’, which lasts up to 30 minutes post exercise, this is the optimal time to take on protein and carbohydrates to replenish your glycogen stores. We'd recommend the REGO Rapid Recovery drink.

#3. Keep hydrated

Indoor cycling is hot, thirsty work and you are likely to sweat buckets. Make sure you start exercise in a hydrated state.

Have a bottle (or two!) of water in easy reach so you can drink as you train. You might get away with 500ml/hour of fluid when riding outdoors, don’t be surprised if you drink 750-1000ml/hour when riding inside. Hydro electrolyte tablets added to your water bottle can help boost your performance and ensure you stay optimally hydrated. 

#4. Recover after

Recovery starts as soon as you finish your training session. Known as the ‘training window’, which lasts up to 30 minutes post exercise, this is the optimal time to take on protein and carbohydrates to replenish your glycogen stores.

Benefits of Indoor Cycling

It’s not always possible to get outside on two wheels, whether you’re avoiding the weather, the traffic or you just want a sweat-inducing addition to your training plan; there are a variety of reasons to consider indoor cycling. 

- A great way to improve your fitness. One of the most significant differences with indoor cycling workouts is the constant pedalling that you don’t often replicate when outdoors due to the varying terrain.  

- You can do targeted workouts to improve your endurance, speed, cardiovascular fitness, VO2 max and more. Using a virtual training program such as Zwift which mimics real-world cycling, makes indoor training fun. 

- By removing both bad weather and traffic from the equation it allows you to focus on the session with little or no distraction. 

- It’s convenient and time-efficient, with the bonus of no time needed to clean your bike post-ride.