Quick Profile: Lather, Rinse, Repeat, Take 2 (4-Minute Intervals)
2018-02-28
Did you like our “Lather, Rinse, Repeat” Quick Profile? In this version, we increase to 4-minute intervals in Zone 5, the VO2 max zone.Read more…
Quick Profile: Lather, Rinse, Repeat (3-Minute Intervals)
2018-02-16
At first glance, this profile may seem “basic,” but it’s anything but “easy.” When intervals are distilled down to their basic format of hard followed by easy, they are simple to create, (fairly) simple to put music to, and simple to coach. Bonus: They may end up being some of the physically hardest classes you teach!Read more…
How to Educate Your Riders, Part 4: Using Storytelling and Non-Cycling Examples
2018-02-11
Continuing our series on Educating Your Students, Christine gives some suggestions about how to use non-cycling examples to help students understand cycling technique and what they should be feeling while pedaling. She does this primarily through storytelling in her profiles, although that’s not a prerequisite of the method. Christine is an expert at this technique and has been extremely successful educating her students.Read more…
The Olympic Dreams Profile
2018-02-01
This awesome, creative, and fun profile by Christine Nielsen used the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, to explore some form and intensity topics related to four winter sports, describing teams from four different countries. The music for each sport is performed by musicians from each of the focus countries.Read more…
OCD: The Olympic Rings Pedal Stroke Drill
2018-01-29
I’ve been teaching this pedal stroke drill for almost as long as I’ve been teaching (20 years). I first introduced it at a conference in my session called The Anatomy of the Pedal Stroke at WSSC in 2002. It’s a fabulous visual to help riders connect with their pedal strokes.Read more…
Educating Your Students, Part 2: Using Humor, Metaphors, and Analogies
2018-01-28
Everyone had a class with a fun and wacky science teacher in high school, right? I’m not advocating that we start developing quirks or acting wacky in our indoor cycling classes, but the point is, making education fun using humor and wit is a great way to learn AND and a fun way to teach. Hopefully our dating, bagels, poultry, and pasta analogies will spark some ideas to create some of your own wacky ways to explain something on the bike.Read more…
Ask the Expert: Is Zone 3 a “No-Man’s Land”?
2018-01-27
In a recent post of an aerobic-intensity profile called Ebb and Flow, I received a question about the Zone 3 level of intensity of the profile. This zone has been called a “no-man’s land” or a “dead zone” by some cycling coaches. Is this true, and if so, should we be worried about it?
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Magic Coaching Minute: Bouncing in the Saddle
2018-01-16
How can you help riders quiet their form and eliminate bouncing? Jennifer Sage and Tom Scotto discuss why this happens and provide a few solutions.Read more…
Instructor Keeps Cool in High-Stress Situation
2018-01-13
What is the most stressful situation you’ve ever experienced during one of your cycling classes? I bet this story will top anyone else’s! Imagine being in Hawaii yesterday as you are beginning your warm-up. Betsy takes us through this surreal moment from the instructor bike. Read more…
Magic Coaching Minute: Standing Flats
2018-01-08
What is the best advice for standing up when you describe a “flat road” to your riders? Since balance and fitness can affect how well a rider can stand up, these tips will help you improve your riders’ performance, and ultimately their fitness, in your classes. Read more…