Hey, this provides a little something you might not have had on your own *if you have put in the work*. That is the takeaway. I use it occasionally for specific training workouts that I know will simulate race efforts. I definitely use it on race day. What matters most is the work you have put into your base training so that when the time for a marginal gain oriented product like this comes, you have both variables working in your favor. Slathering this on as some sort of substitute or supplement for training is probably going to leave you disappointed and slimy feeling.
I've ridden for 25+ years and never used chamois butter or creams, always thinking that I just needed to "toughen up" my skin around the more sensitive contact points. This worked for many years with only a slight bit of discomfort on longer (50+ miles) rides with 2000+ft or more of climbing. A few years ago, my schedule became more hectic and limited my daylight saddle time. With post-work riding hours reduced, but not wanting to reduce my fitness, I bought a smart trainer and a Zwift subscription to ride indoors at night. I quickly found that any rides over 30 miles on the trainer started to "rub me the wrong way"! I knew that I had to try a butter or cream, but didn't like the thought of "slathering up" before I rode. I then found this product. It does everything I needed and nothing I didn't. This product goes on dry and provides more than enough "slip" to make Zwift rides over 50 miles and 3000+ft of elevation gain more manageable and little to no soreness to date. I'm a believer now and will continue to buy this product for use both inside and out!
You're probably fine without these, but the motion plates make the trainer better to use. And regardless of how poor of a value it is to pay over $200 for some plastic feet for your trainer, you'll most likely never want to ride without them once you set them up. They make the experience on my 2T a lot more enjoyable. To be frank, I think my nether regions hurt less with these installed. My biggest gripe is that they are only connected by some relatively weak magnets and will fall off easily if you try to move or fold the trainer with them on. I've also seen reviews saying they don't do well for sprinting...haven't tried it personally, but I've done some standing efforts on hill climbs and they do just fine.
