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In: Ask the Expert, Instructor Issues & growth, New Instructors
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A new instructor posed this excellent question, and because it depends on so many caveats, I am creating a series out of this topic. Part 1 provides the most basic, short-term way to assess how hard or easy your class is for your riders. But instructors, get ready to do a little self-analysis—I’ve got some homework for you. This series may very well pave the path to tremendous personal growth!Read more…

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In: Class Profiles, Outdoor Cycling
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Outdoor cyclists use the term “group ride” to describe organized (and not so organized) rides that often leave from predetermined destinations. These rides may start at a local bike shop or a convenient coffee shop. In many cases, group rides run on a regular weekly schedule, each with their own specific route. This profile follows one of the many routes my club and I use. Riding at a moderate to hard pace, it literally takes an hour to complete. With the exception of the warm-up and cool-down on Massachusetts Avenue, it is a loop. The first hill (Grove Street), third hill (Woods Street), and last hill (Mass Ave) are between a 5.5% and 6% grade. The second hill (South Road) is a 2.5% to 3% grade. The smaller grades make for very aggressive and fast climbing; one needs to be on alert for random attacks of kindness.Read more…

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In: Coaching and Cueing, OCD - Obsessed with Cycling Drills
With: 24 Comments

Welcome to our first installment of our newest series: OCD—Obsessed with Cycling Drills. Yes, we are definitely obsessive about everything to do with indoor cycling drills including the music, cues, and objective. Pressure Cooker does exactly what the name implies: it places the body under continuous and increasing pressure. You get to choose whether to put the muscles or lungs in the pressure cooker.Read more…

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In: Ask the Expert, Instructor Issues & growth, Physiology, Heart Rate & RPE
With: 1 Comment

Tom, do you have a litmus test to tell if recoveries are too short for the efforts you are asking? For example, if you are asking for a 5-minute, 4-minute, 2-minute, and 1-minute best effort, one right after the other in that order, how much recovery would you give in between each? Thanks.

– Julie Zweck-BronnerRead more…

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In: Instructor & Club Spotlight
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Learn how this inspiring cycling instructor and life coach has “flipped” his riders and clients to not only choose fitness, but to think of themselves as athletes and take on huge life-changing goals. Dane is as much about the mental side of health and fitness as the physical. After reading about Coach Boyle, you may want to become a “flipper” yourself!Read more…

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In: Free Articles, General Coaching, Tour de France, Tour de France Package
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If you are one of those instructors who loves to bring the experience of riding outdoors to your indoor riders, now is the time to get them excited. Give them a taste of the Tour de France (TDF) and introduce them to some of the fun we enjoy during one of the greatest sporting events of all time. Here are some recommendations for leaning TDF lingo, visualizing the terrain and intensity, and connecting the experience of outdoor cycling to your indoor riders.Read more…