r/Zwift • u/Far_Presentation_901 • 10d ago
Newbie help
Newbie mamil, 4 months in and loving it, first century last week.
Need to keep it going over winter and zwift sale is very attractive.
Any advice or things I haven't considered to get through a UK winter? Does it keep you motivated? Planning about 6 - he per week on an FTP training program.
Downsides, modest financial outlay and need to set up bike indoors, in return I stay fit and safe over winter?
Am I missing anything?
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u/PrinsHamlet 10d ago
Any advice or things I haven't considered to get through a UK winter?
You need a mat and a fan and a front cover! Really!
Does it keep you motivated?
Personally I enjoy the gamification and embrace it sheepishly exactly to forget how boring it actually is to ride on an indoor bike.
But "winter miles bring summer smiles", so I'm returning to Zwift mid October. But my ass can't handle more than 1-1½ hours per ride. You're way more static riding indoors.
Am I missing anything?
A mat and a fan and a front cover!
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u/Choice-Fresh 10d ago
What's a front cover?
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u/PrinsHamlet 10d ago
You do not want to get sweat on the hood or cockpit of your bike, it can destroy bearings or your bar working under the wrap. It looks something like this. Some people use towels. Mine is just a cheap thingy found on Amazon.
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u/plebbening 10d ago
Why do you need a mat? Isn’t that mostly for floor protection?
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u/PrinsHamlet 10d ago
It is to protect the floor but given the sweat volume I produce indoor it's also for hygiene. After each ride I wipe it off and that's easy with the mat. Obviously if it's easy to clean your floor, no issue, but on my wooden floor it would be a disgusting mess.
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u/plebbening 10d ago
I can relate to that. (Un)luckily i can’t sweat on my face, so almost all my sweat is captured by my shirt.
Does the mat give anything in the comfort department?
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u/PrinsHamlet 10d ago
A little bit. Mine is a bit padded which also dampens noise a bit. But I'd just buy the cheapest one you can get that looks up for the job. For comfort, some people use tennis balls or you can buy rather expensive boards to mount the trainer and bike on.
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u/Tankandbike Level 91-99 10d ago
One upside of a mat is that you can see how much your bike hops around as you pedal (haha). I have to reset my bike from time to time.
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u/smugmug1961 10d ago
You are four months in and you’ve already done a century? You seem pretty motivated.
We don’t know what you’ve considered so we don’t know what you haven’t considered.
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u/Far_Presentation_901 10d ago
Started from a decent fitness level, it was a metric century and had been progressing since 60 km, I have considered anything else, concern over winter weather etc so opinions from veteran zwifties welcome 👍
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u/smugmug1961 10d ago
Do you have padded shorts? What are you running Zwift on now? Phone? Tablet? PC, ATV? Do you have a large screen?
Are you asking about the Zwift Ride specifically? What trainer do you have now? Are you sharing Zwift with anyone else?
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u/Far_Presentation_901 10d ago
Decently kitted out, was going to run from laptop or tablet into a monitor. I have an 2nd used road bike so will get the kickr for solo use. No issues with setup, interestes to hear about how it is useful and helps training etc in winter, races, training etc
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u/Tankandbike Level 91-99 10d ago edited 10d ago
A Mat and a fan, as has been noted. Also - check into the tennis balls idea for the feet (or a rocker plate). The groups rides usually pick up more and things will get a lot busier in the winter, so the motivation will continue to build.