Day 44 of Self-Isolation in Switzerland – A Zwift session
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Day 44 of Self-Isolation in Switzerland – A Zwift session

Byrichard

Today the weather was rainy so I had a Zwift session. I decided to cycle the Yorkshire circuit. Cycling indoors is not as exciting as you don’t see as much. I listened to a hiking podcast but I didn’t pay much attention to the Zwift interface for at least the first fifteen minutes or so.


For the first time in 44 days or more I started the car’s engine and went for a drive. I heard the engine making a slightly different noise than usual so I let it warm up a bit and then I drove to the shops taking the long route. By long route I simply mean the walk that I’ve done dozens of times. It’s around 10 kilometres of driving in total. As it’s a diesel car it makes sense to drive far enough to get the engine warmed up and ready for when life returns to “normal”.


Strava have an article about mental health today. They called it Looking After Your Mind.


1. Focus on your sensory perception.

To switch off during sport, try to designate ten minutes of your run or ride to consciously focus on the world around you. What do I smell, hear, see and feel during exercise? Focusing on the here and now gives a feeling of security and makes conscious enjoyment possible.

Eva-Maria Sperger


With all of the pictures, descriptions of smells and even river walking I think I’ve definitely lived up to point 1. I have been running, cycling, walking, river walking and exploring variants on the routes I walk often. I can now walk without crossing people for ninety eight percent of my walks. People in cars don’t count.


I have spent a lot of time on TikTok which is both good and bad. It’s good because it cheers me up and now I’m familiar with another video sharing platform for when I’m applying for jobs but it’s bad because I could do more during the day.


Let’s see what tomorrow brings.

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Indoor Training With The Elite Qubo Fluid

Byrichard

The Elite Qubo fluid is a home trainer using a viscous fluid to provide resistance when you’re cycling with your road bike indoors. It is easy to assemble and within minutes you can start using it. 


https://youtu.be/ulhpwTRvAfo


These devices cost less than apartment bikes and allow you to train with your existing bike within the comfort of your own home or garage over the winter months when wind, rain or snow would make cycling outdoors less practical. 


They also have the advantage that they’re cheaper than a gym membership and more flexible. My issue with gym memberships is that if you spent an equivalent amount of money you could buy some nice machines and keep them at home. With the equivalent of two years of gym membership you could buy an elliptical machine and use it from the comfort of your own home. 


I tested it twice today. The first time I tested it on the balcony for a few minutes just to get a feel for it and then I moved it and the bike indoors and trained for 23 minutes. 


With such a device you vary the intensity of the resistance by pedalling faster but also by changing gears. If you want more resistance you can shift up a gear or two and if you want to recover you can shift back down. This provides you with the intensity that you want. 


After the 23 minute workout I touched the radiator unit and it was very warm to the touch. I didn’t see how long it takes to cool down. When you are done with the workout you can remove the bike in seconds, fold away the trainer and store it out of the way until the next time you use it. 


If I setup the cateye device on the bike I am currently using I could log the distance and cadence of my training and observe the progression as well as get an estimate of the simulated distance I am riding.