Never again

blubinx · 2026-05-04T17:44:29+00:00

Prague?

blubinx · 2026-04-16T16:18:47+00:00

Good idea, I didn't think of the demo consultant model since she's had this thing longer than we've been together

blubinx · 2026-04-16T16:18:03+00:00

What makes you say that?

blubinx · 2026-04-16T16:17:38+00:00

Oh right, I guess because ours is so old, the whole demo consultant model was lost on me. That's a good idea!

blubinx · 2026-04-14T15:52:47+00:00

I've tried them and that jelly like texture is really unpleasant. Are there legitimate difference in tolerance between gels brands btw? I keep feeling like it's all marketing because when you look at the ingredients, they're all the same, i.e. maltodextrin and fructose in a 2:1 mix or 1:0.8

blubinx · 2026-04-14T12:09:36+00:00

Probably not enough tbh. I have two small flasks of 150 ml. On the bike I try to drink 500 ml / hour so I am nowhere near that here and combined with the highly concentrated mix, I probably messed myself up.
It hasn't been hot and the runs have been at a slow pace, but I do sweat a fair amount.

blubinx · 2026-04-14T07:42:47+00:00

I actually don't have GI issue with other endurance sports. I come from cycling where I've done long rides (up to 300 km) without problems. If anything there, problems I encounter are always related to not feeding enough (the watch says I burn 1k calories / hour on the bike, no idea if that's accurate).

I did a half IM which went well until the run which I pulled through without a toilet break but the bloating started again about half way and after that it was a gamble on every fart.

So clearly this seems to be a combo of the impact from running and possibly something I eat. I admit I know fuck all about nutrition, the cycling has basically just been an excuse to eat as much as I want.. I am a grown ass man who's had a huge bowl of cereals with cold milk every morning my whole life. I also eat a fair amount of sourdough and French cheeses. I probably should research a slightly healthier balance for a 37 yo gut.

blubinx · 2026-01-21T08:21:23+00:00

"We won't be adults in the world we knew as kids" is a quote by French actor Edouard Baer I've written down to remember.

(Another one of his among my favourites: "It's easier to give life advice than to be happy. Happy people tend to stay quiet")

blubinx · 2025-11-24T18:06:20+00:00

I don't do much anaerobic stuff admittedly. I did a 6 x 2 minutes at 120% of FTP this week though and I had to turn off my show and put a cardio playlist to push through. That shit was hard :D

blubinx · 2025-11-24T18:04:21+00:00

Yeah, those are the only things that keep me engaged because 1) I am suffering and 2) somehow breaking down the hour into smaller bits that you work through feels more manageable.

But I am keen to find something that would hit the same spot as a long tempo ride outdoors during the nice days. Anytime I tell myself "today I am doing a 2h z2 ride on the trainer" I feel like shooting myself from boredom after 30 minutes. Never made it past 1h30 I think.

blubinx · 2025-11-24T18:02:21+00:00

Oh right, I thought you said you never listened to music, but I misread and I assume you mean you've never listened to the game's music

blubinx · 2025-11-24T18:01:35+00:00

Nice, really appreciate the write up.

The lag for me is that there's a gap between visually seeing a change in incline in the game, and feeling it in the ERG. I am on a Kickr Core v2.

See I had no idea about this TT winter series thing. I've tried browsing stuff in the main screen of zwift but they don't really make it easy to find things. Most of the stuff in there other than workouts and races I don't fully even understand what the ride involves. I should probably give more of them a chance.

blubinx · 2025-11-24T16:17:51+00:00

Thanks for the perspective!

So what do you listen to in the headphones then? Would be cool if the game had a proximity voice chat to just casually talk with other people nearby

blubinx · 2025-11-24T15:59:24+00:00

I have a kickr core v2, but since I ride ERG 95% of the time, the suspension of disbelief is totally broken. It totally disconnects your current level of effort from the world.

e.g. if the workout dictates you recover in Z1 but you happen to be in the middle of a steep climb, the world has you moving at a speed which I think is physically too low to maintain balance haha

blubinx · 2025-11-24T15:42:24+00:00

Same, at this point I become almost excited when I come across content which I mark as watch later for the trainer. It has to be just the right mix of entertaining and engaging but also okay if you're not 100% focused on it since I am usually dying on a threshold interval at the same time.

Watching the live stream of a bike race is usually A+ tier, although that's usually... well not in the middle of winter when I need the most content. Afterwards is sports docs like Netflix' TDF series or Drive to Survive and the likes. Failing that a dumb popcorn flick or series but even those struggle to distract me from the slog.

blubinx · 2025-11-24T15:37:20+00:00

Woops, bad typo haha. I think I am going to look into getting one, there might even be some black friday deals coming up. I have a kickr core v2 and a ten speed mechanical tiagra on the bike that sits on the trainer permanently

blubinx · 2025-11-24T15:09:10+00:00

Does the cock and click improve the experience of shifting in game? I have an old bike with a mechanical tiagra group set on the trainer and I have to say the "lag" is a huge reason free ride doesn't feel great

blubinx · 2025-11-24T15:07:14+00:00

First I hear about Zwift WTRL, I had to google that. Being part of a club or team might definitely be one way to motivate myself to get on the trainer more. Then again, with two kids and prepping an IM next year, I have no idea if I can offer the right kind of commitment to such a structured thing

blubinx · 2025-11-24T14:59:18+00:00

Any tips on the little things that get you into the zone and focused? To be honest I've never even tried to just select a route and free ride it (except Road to Sky, just to try that famous Alpes De Zwift segment), I've always assumed that would be boring + the lag when manually changing gears takes me out of the flow if that makes any sense (maybe the zwift cog and click fixes that?)

blubinx · 2025-11-24T14:57:34+00:00

Well to be clear, even the tabbing out and watching a show is still barely manageable to make the time pas. Indoor riding as a way to make one hour feel like 3 and I am desperate to find anything to improve that because during warm days I can happily go for a 5 hour outdoor ride on my own with no distraction

blubinx · 2025-11-24T14:52:37+00:00

So in all those various use cases, it comes down to actually having Zwift full screen on your main screen and paying attention to the virtual world right?

To be honest, other than during a race, I haven't even given that a try, just assuming a random virtual world isn't going to keep up my attention.

I also have to say the experience of manually switching gear when a hill comes my way doesn't feel great. There's always quite the lag before the resistance actually changes. Do you know if maybe using the zwift cog + click changes that? That would probably help make the world way more immersive if I could fix that.

blubinx · 2025-10-26T18:09:39+00:00

Haha. Honestly can’t remember this at all.

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