There comes a time during a workout when we inevitably sneak a peak at the person beside us and engage in one of the strongest motivators of all—competition. Dr. Haley Perlus proposes leveraging the power of competition in a healthy and supportive manner to empower your riders.Read more…
On one of the Friday Favorite song suggestions for a flat road at 90 rpm, an ICA member was unsure how much to stand and how to invite students to take breaks on long songs like that. He asked, “How do I invite students to take a break while on a flat road? Are we talking about standing breaks? If so, they would need more resistance to stand, right?”
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Who watched Stage 1 of the Tour de France today? Edge of your seat exciting!! Sorry that Cavendish is most likely out, but happy for Kittel’s win and, of course, that my very favorite Jens Voigt is in red and white. The British fans are proving that they are trulyRead more…
Here are 120 songs to use in your 4th of July profiles this week. I hope you have a fantastic and fun holiday, and have the opportunity to thrill your class with some exciting music with an American theme!Read more…
Christine Nielsen was recently diagnosed with cancer. She is graciously writing a series of articles as she goes through her treatments and has an uncanny way of drawing parallels from life to what we do as indoor cycling instructors. This article on being a “newbie” cancer patient might inspire you to contemplate a little more deeply about the challenges our brand-new students face.Read more…
Yeah, sort of a play on words, but hopefully this article will help you use your recovery times more effectively. I’m aware there are different views on what constitutes proper recovery and its effectiveness, but for now, let’s just assume we all agree that we need recovery and look at how to make it work for you and your class.Read more…
I was interviewed for an article in ACE Fitness magazine by Amanda Vogel called “Are Celebrity Trainers Making People Fat?” The tongue-in-cheek title of the article mimics the headline that appeared in Harper’s Bazaar magazine last fall called “Is Spinning Making You Fat?” Amanda asks whether fitness professionals stay silent or take a stand against the popular but misleading headlines propagated by the media.Read more…
Following on the heels of my last post, “Are you comfortable with silence?”, here are some short motivational cues to deliver in the middle of longer periods of silence. These short phrases help you reconnect with your students and make sure they’re on target, but release you from the need to say a lot. Read more…
In my journey through the health care system I have been observing the interactions I have with “authorities.” When you become a patient, everyone who carries the key to your wellness is an authority. It is an interesting turn of events for someone like me who is accustomed to being the leader and the one that has the answers. I can learn some valuable lessons from the experience of being on the “other” side. The first and very salient lesson came in the form of an experience with language.Read more…
Do you talk too much when you are teaching your classes? Do you have this internal dialogue when you see your students looking back at you after you’ve given them a cue? “They’re staring at me. I better say something! I know they’re bored, I can tell! Look, someone just stood up…Oh no! They hate me!”
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