Welcome to the Indoor Cycling Association
A Different Twist on a Turkey-Themed Profile!
ICA member Bill Jenks sent me this Thanksgiving “story ride,” a cross between Jonathan Livingston Seagull and The Wizard of Oz. Take your students on a journey to meet Tom the turkey, who dreams about soaring with the eagles and flying off to some wonderful place where he can be happy. All the songs align with the message.Read more…
Is EVERYONE at Your Studio or Gym AED Certified?
According to Club Industry, a lawsuit was filed in California against 24 Hour Fitness for the wrongful death of a member who had a heart attack while playing basketball. Employees allegedly didn’t know where the AED was, and when it was found, it was not fully charged. Does your studio or gym have an AED? Are you certified? Here is information that can help you and your management.Read more…
Strategies for Strength: The Cheek to Cheek Technique
The majority of people who do not like to stand claim they feel awkward out of the saddle and it drives their heart rate through the roof. Many believe they don’t have the strength to stand. It is not an issue of strength but technique. Read more…
Let’s Come Together
A friend shared this song with me on my Facebook page this morning, and I am offering this song here without comment. I would have played it in my Monday class had I known. Let’s come together in sweet harmony, world. Read more…
Step Outside Your Musical Box: Hip-Hop
Hip-hop today is completely unrecognizable in many ways compared to what it sounded like when it first hit the music scene in the ’70s. This month we’re taking it old-school…back to the golden age of hip-hop.
Read more…
Strategies for Strength: Synchronized Breathing
I started experimenting more with breathing technique after adding yoga to my training about ten years ago. We all know breathing is important, but I was unaware of the hidden benefits of developing breathing technique until I experienced it firsthand on the bike.Read more…
Strategies for Strength: Activate Those Hip Flexors
This strategy for strength dips in the world of biomechanics—one of my favorite topics! We can sometimes spend hours working on our pedal stroke seated, but neglect full muscle usage when standing. When proper pedal stroke technique is not emphasized out of the saddle, riders usually resort to simply mashing down on the pedals. This only activates the quadriceps and reduces efficiency, endurance, and power. So let’s throw some hip in there.Read more…
Strategies for Strength: A Sprinter’s Take on Climbing Strategies
Before I contribute a few of my favorite climbing strategies, I want to share my perspective on climbing. Because I’m mostly a sprinter, one might wonder what climbing strategies I have to offer. Well, if anyone has strategies for climbing, it would be a person who knows suffering is always involved.Read more…
Strategies for Strength: Counting Pedal Strokes
This climbing strategy helped me get over climbs of two or more hours in the Alps and New Zealand. I’ve found a way to use it in my classes and really get students to zone inward when their road tilts upward for long periods. It’s not quite what you think!Read more…
Strategies for Strength in Your Spinning Climbing Classes
Climbing big mountains is a rite of passage for cyclists. Getting you and your bicycle up that hill in defiance of gravity is one of the most difficult aspects of riding a bicycle, but it is also one of the great attractions to cycling. Overcoming the mountain challenges you—it bares your soul; it asks you to perform beyond what you thought was even possible. Over the next few weeks, Tom and I will be giving you our favorite strategies—both physical and mental—to get you and your students over that hump. We’ll be drawing from our own experience climbing long, hard mountains.Read more…