Screenshot of the Big Finish from Tour Of The West - heading into & above the clouds .
With the weather starting to break here in the frozen north, today [Sunday] is my last scheduled Performance class for the season. To celebrate our (hopeful) return to riding outdoors, I thought it would be fun to ride along with this new Indoor Cycling DVD from Epic Planet - Tour of The West.
This 60/45 minute video is a compilation of five minute long segments, from past titles, that includes various terrains. This should make for an excellent interval class, with lots of climbing, intermixed with plenty of fast flats.
I'll be coaching my riders to be working, as usual; Below/@/Above the PTP we'll discover during the first climb - segment #3 Mt Lemmon Climb. Alternately, you could easily coach this as an Interval set Below/@/Above Threshold Heart Rate, if you don't have power.
You might need some remote control for this
My preference is to ride along with the class, facing the screens, whenever I'm teaching to video. That way a can comment on what they're seeing + easily view the countdown timer. You'll need to have control of either your music... or the video, to pull this off professionally. With the of the video segments being exactly 5 minutes long, you'll want to change songs with the video. My playlist below is comprised of ~5:00 min songs (not exact), so you'll want to skip ahead a few times to keep the music and video in sync. Now if you've got a really long cord for your iPhone you're set. If not, my solution is to use an inexpensive Bluetooth receiver. You can learn more about using these simple devices here & here.
Tour of The West Class Profile
[wlm_private 'PRO-Platinum|PRO-Monthly|PRO-Gratis|PRO-Seasonal|Platinum-trial|Monthly-trial|PRO-Military|30-Days-of-PRO|90 Day PRO|Stages-Instructor|Schwinn-Instructor|Instructor-Bonus|28 Day Challenge']
Featuring Epic Planet Video [ Title ] - the segments shown in Red are skipped if you select the 45 minute play option. My preference for a 45 min class, is to use the 60 min version and forward past #s 8 - 9 & 10. The first four segments conform better to my class format. You can obviously skip any three segments you choose, or if you're feeling devilish, repeat #5 [Beartooth Pass] to create a 10 minute threshold effort 🙂 Just make sure you have the video remote handy.
#1 [Wine Country] - Warm up > Let's get this class started! I take everyone through very purposeful series of intensity increases. The track Eireann is ~ 95RPM. Your objective to begin to feel warm and your effort should have you noticing that early change in breathing that signifies crossing over VT1 (Aerobic Threshold)
#2 [Saguaro East] - Openers > Repeated hard efforts, with the last one reaching Threshold. We slow the pedals to ~ 64 RPM to match the track Daybreak and I have everyone add load until they sense they need to stand > which we do. There's a nice build of intensity in the music that really hits at 1:00 where we accelerate to as fast as possible and hold for 30 seconds. I have my participants "walk", with very slow cadence, during the recoveries. Follow the changes that you hear for around 30 secs on/off. Pay attention to the time on the countdown timer. I'll have everyone really push for the final minute. This should have everyone breathless (or close) so we get that first, painful trip to threshold out of the way.
#3 [Mt. Lemmon] - Four Minute "Best Effort" > I love these and my classes tell me they enjoy them as well = I include them on every ride I do, regardless if I have power meters or not. Use the first minute as an easy spin and to describe the effort to follow. If your power bikes have a stage timer, I encourage you to use it to time and record the maximum amount to work everyone can do during the last four minutes of the climb.
#4 [Monument Valley] - Establish "Base" Watts/Effort > I'll tell my class: On a group ride, you often don't get the chance to fully recover after a long climb. You have to keep up so you're not dropped, so you take whatever recovery you can grab. This often means you need to recover, while you continue to work, abet at a lower effort level.
Now that we're warm and aerobic, we'll use this fast flat (Call me the Breeze) @ 100RPM to establish the wattage or RPE, that has us early into Zone 3 - just above the transition in your breathing. I like to describe this as "above chatty"... and it is. VT1 is where your class begins to shut up and ride, because their need for O2 has them losing interest in talking with their neighbor.
NOTE: from here on we're limiting recoveries to no lower than "Base" Watts/Effort (HRs above Zone 2 / VT1) Your riders can recover there > it just takes awhile longer. This is a great opportunity to train out that need to; WORK - FULLY RECOVER. You never get that chance in the real world, why would you include it in your classes?
#5 [Beartooth Pass] - Five Minute "Performance Climb" > Between your "Base" and "Best Effort" is an intensity where you can perform for a long period of time. I make this time "self directed" by simply telling them; you've got a 5 minute climb somewhere between your base and best effort. You decide if you want to lead at the front... or struggle along at the rear.
Next you enter a series of rollers and short, steep climbs
#6 [San Diego] - Watch and ride these rollers. This segment includes a steep, 45 sec all out effort to keep up.
#7 [Mt. Baldy] - More rollers that have you powering your way over a 1:29 min and 1:50 climb
#8 [San Diego] - Hits with a sharp climb right at the start. Plenty of fast downhill action to stretch everyones legs.
#9 [Aspen] - 5 minute climb > back to a performance climb here. The rider's in this video don't appear to be working very hard = we just need to sustain the effort to keep with them. You're saving energy so you can beat everyone to the top of Mt Evans.
#10 [Sedona] - Begins with a gentle climb that flattens out to a nice fast flat were everyone should quickly find and maintain their Base Watts.
#11 [Mt. Evans] - BIG FINISH! > here's where everyone can demonstrate their physical endurance. THE RACE ISN'T WON AT THE BEGINNING... YOU NEED TO CRUSH THEM AT THE TOP! Here I'm asking for an effort above their 4 min "Best Effort", for the complete 5 minutes. I don't care how they do it, I just want an average Watts / above Threshold HR for the total time. Get after it!
#12 [Wine Country] - Cool down and recovery
Here's the full playlist
Let me know how this worked for you. [/wlm_private]
John is a member on the AFS (Association of Fitness Studios) Advisory Council.
Holding certifications from; Schwinn, Heart Zones, Team ICG and Life Time Fitness, John's held regularly scheduled cycling classes between 1998 and 2015 when he moved to Florida.
When the weather permits, you'll find him riding and leading outdoor groups by himself or with his Tandem partner (wife) Amy.
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