This profile will help your students develop pedaling skills and increase their comfortable range of cadences. It is an ascending ladder from 80–100 rpm. You can also take the techniques outlined in this profile and use them as shorter drills in other classes.Read more…
I received this question from Amy: can you do a field test if you only have a 40-minute time slot? What are some things to consider? I give a short review of the 8-minute field test and some suggestions for validating field tested (or talk tested) thresholds. This should helpRead more…
Here is a simple rolling hills profile set to Irish music to entertain your class. You’re either going up or down on this ride through the bonny green hills of Eire, on narrow roads lined with low stone fences through green pastures dotted with sheep, on your way to meetRead more…
I just became aware of this excellent article from IDEA Health and Fitness Association on indoor cycling instruction. It’s by Martica Heaner, Ph.D. and is called A Smoother Ride. “Group Ex Skills & Drills: These 10 tips will motivate and inspire your indoor cycling class and keep people coming backRead more…
If you follow me on Facebook or Twitter, you might have noticed that I cracked a little bit last week. I hit my tolerance threshold for crappy Spinning® and Indoor Cycling classes and went on a rant about the prevalence of improper instruction in so many cycling classes around theRead more…
The following is an article Jennifer wrote for Active.com. To read the article on the Active.com website, click here. Please share the link (or this blog) with your students, program managers, and instructor peers. As usual, your comments (both on the Active page and on this blog) are always appreciated!Read more…
This is the cutting edge of indoor cycling instruction – using the Talk Test to help your students identify their Ventilatory Threshold and establish training zones. When a field test is too advanced or complicated for your members (at least initially) then a Talk Test is a low-tech easily administeredRead more…
ICA member Kristen read in a book about cycling that suggested some serious maneuvers indoors to “mimic” the position of riding a bike outside up a steep hill. I conferred with fellow cyclists and Master Instructors Tom Scotto and Jennifer Klau, two people who know a whole lot about bothRead more…
You’ve heard me talk about improving efficiency by helping students improve their technique. But did you know that doing so might decrease caloric burn? Yup, you heard me right. But wait! Don’t go deciding not to help students improve their form because you’re afraid they’ll mutiny if they knew aboutRead more…
You’ve decided to conduct a field test and teach your students about threshold-based training. You’ve been training for awhile with the new heart rate numbers, and you’re about to do your first re-test. Now what? How do you interpret the results? How do you answer your students’ questions? What ifRead more…