Welcome to the Indoor Cycling Association
Leveraging Competition in Your Cycling Classes
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…
Ask the Expert: How Much Should We Stand On Long Flat Roads?
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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Teaching Tour de France Stages in Your Spinning Classes? Here Are Some Fun Resources!
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…
Fourth of July Songs
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…
We Are All Beginners at Some Things
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…
Make Recovery Work
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…
Are Celebrity Trainers Making People Fat in Your Spinning Classes?
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…
Cues for Reconnecting to Your Students During Longer Tasks
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…
How to Get News Coverage for Your Indoor Cycling Program
How would you like to become the go-to person on indoor cycling in your community—the one reporters and the public think of first? Here’s a simple step-by-step outline to help you promote your classes by building lasting relationships with your local media.Read more…
Cycling Lessons from the Cancer Clinic
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…