by John | Mar 4, 2014 | Latest News
This email I got from Sally Edwards is exciting!
This is just a quick note because some of you asked about this….but my company ZONING Fitness was selected by QVC home shopping network appearance in Philadelphia as a hot new item…they booked me today and I’ll be appearing in 48 hours live from Philadelphia.
The appearance is this Thursday, March 6th at 7:00 am (or latter) eastern standard time live from Philadelphia. Here's a chance to get the QVC price on our patented ZONING program and the heart rate monitor that I invented and the book ZONING for only $50. Watch it. Tell your friends. Forward this to your friends. Buy when you see that I am on – during the time – if you do, QVC, one of the largest retailers in America will invite me to return – and we can get America fit!
With heart,
SALLY
I'm sure this is very exciting (and a little scary) for Sally and I wish her well with this. She's been a tireless champion for improving the health and fitness of thousands – she deserves this national exposure 🙂
It appears that Sally will be part of the Mornings Made Easy segment Thursday, March 06, 2014 07:00 – 09:00 AM EST.
by John | Mar 1, 2014 | Instructor Training
Future Stages Master Trainer Doug Rusho hard at work during our last ICI/PRO conference.
The FreeMotion S11.9 Indoor Cycle and Stages Indoor Cycling education were a relative unknown to many of us before our 2011 ICI/PRO conference. Since then they've really gained a foothold in this market, becoming a solid choice for any club or studio looking to invest in power.
The S11.X series featured the first Indoor Cycle offering measured power/watts through an innovative strain gauge located in the left-hand crank-arm. The early bikes featured a conventional chain drive – which is a bit noisy compared to other brands. Now FreeMotion offers an optional belt drive (Gates Carbon) that eliminates 90% of any gear train noise, while still communicating the familiar feel of a standard bicycle chain.
So how do Instructors like them? Let's take a look…
Surveys are funny things – both bikes use the exact same power meter, and yet we're seeing different results.
by John | Feb 28, 2014 | Instructor Training, Music
Some profiles call for a slow, powerful song to really encourage everyone to crank on a bunch of gears. I love to transition to some some strength work in the middle of class, before everyone is fatigued. There's a nice place about 2:30 in where you can cue focused pedal technique.
If you really want to challenge your power class you might try this for fun. Have everyone dial up their FTP / PTP watts – at this very slow 60 RPM and then maintain it for the duration – or – if you're feeling frisky, you might throw in a few, short accelerations and then recover back to this slow grind. Here's where you might consider turning down the music so you can hear the breathing of their struggle.
AWOLNATION — Sail
http://youtu.be/PPtSKimbjOU
This track AWOLNATION — Sail – Unlimited Gravity Remix and the free track are a bit faster @ 74 RPM – still both feature that very powerful downbeat that will have even your most rhythmic challenged pounding along with the song.
by John | Feb 26, 2014 | Instructor Training
My first exposure to the Schwinn AC Performance Indoor Cycle was back in the Fall of 2009. Since then I've seen them make a number of improvements > specifically to the console display with the intent of simplifying the calibration, improving the accuracy/consistency of wattage displayed and reduce the number of additional sensor batteries. I informed each manufacturer when I was preparing this survey, asking for direction that I hoped would improve the final results. Schwinn explained to me that their new red Echelon console is substantially improved over earlier versions and asked that I separate responses; older grey vs. newer red consoles – which you'll see that I did below.
Schwinn is now offering an updated AC Performance Plus using a conventional chain drive and an optional belt driven version (they call Carbon Blue) but this survey doesn't differentiate between the different cycle versions or include responses from owners of the belt drive.
What follows appears to show that Schwinn's new Red Echelon console is an improvement.
And the Echelon console is scoring higher on accuracy and consistency.
by John | Feb 25, 2014 | Instructor Tips and Tricks, Leading Group Rides
10+ years of shifting has left its mark on my gloves.
My buddy Randy is convinced that we'll be riding outdoors by March 15th. As it was -9° F this morning, I'm thinking he's a bit optimistic. But can you blame him for wishing winter will be over soon?
We've had cold/winter here since Halloween. That followed a summer that didn't really begin until mid June. Day two of our annual MS150 ride on June 9th blessed us with a light, consistent rain and hypothermia inducing temps in the early 40's. Amy and I were shivering so convulsively at the half way point, that we could barely ride our tandem. Then we did the unthinkable; we abandoned the ride at the lunch stop 🙁
So when March 15th rolls around, and if the roads are dry, me, Randy and a few others will attempt a short ride… for no reason other than breaking the depression many of us are feeling. That's not the only reason. You see Randy is the regional Life Time Cycle Lead = he manages all of the outdoor group rides and he's picked me as the ride leader for our home club in Eden Prairie.
The realist in me says I had better be prepared to stay warm.
I enjoyed winter riding on my MTB for years, mostly alone – I never didn't have much luck finding anyone to ride with. As long as my hands and feet stayed warm, I would ride for hours. I have some very ugly shoe covers that do a great job keeping my toes from going numb. The Pearl iZumi Lobster Glove pictured above must be 15 years old and did a great job (when they were a bit newer) keeping all ten fingers functioning. I burned out completely on winter a few years ago – more recently they're only used for shoveling snow.
Thinking I'm going to try these as the lobsters don't work as well with the SRAM shifters on my VeloVie road bike.
Annual ICI/PRO Platinum members get access to this 40% discount PRO purchase program. Everything Pearl makes and sells for women & men is available. Learn program details here at shop.pearlizumi.com/icipro/
If you'd like to join you can .
