It was dumb luck. That's the only reason this playlist worked so well with the Epic Wine Country DVD I played last night in my class. I mean, Amy even liked it and for her to approve of my music is a pretty big deal. I hadn't even intended to use that video last night – I'd forgotten the one I planned to use.
But dumb luck may not have the only reason this class worked so well…
It wasn't that I was getting lazy, It's just that I've always preferred longer songs (>4:00) for my playlists. Maybe it came from my iTunes days where I figured that I was getting a better value if I bought a 6:37 song vs. a 2:54 song. Made sense to me. And I'll admit that building an hour long class of 8-10 tracks was a lot less effort than compiling 16 or more.
It was just random chance 🙂
More songs = More transitions = More chances for a song change to match up with a change in the video. I teach using video in nearly all my classes these days. I've wasted spent a lot of time trying to matchup songs to the structure of the video, with a varying level of success. I'd find myself stressing about exactly when I'm to start the music and video so they are “In Sync” – even though I've been suggesting to you the exact opposite in the companion Audio PROfiles I've published.
This playlist has 16 tracks and worked very well – it was almost scary how well it matched the two big climbs that make up the final 20 minutes of effort. I did end up pausing the music for about a minute before The Gap Band — You Dropped The Bomb On Me.
Here's a screenshot if you don't have access to Spotify.
All the confidence in the world and totally clueless.
I actually got myself in a little trouble exposing Myth #2
You (the Instructor) can set yourself up correctly.
It was at the end of an Instructor evaluation, where I was a pretend participant. The Dept Head asked us if we had any comments or suggestions for the Instructor being evaluated. Now I'm not normally comfortable critiquing others publicly, so I sat and pedaled quietly off to one side. A few of the other Instructor/participants offer a few simple suggestions and I felt pressured to say something… and being a guy, finally offered up something I thought would be safe:
“Have you ever had someone evaluate your bike setup?” “Your saddle appears to be too far back.”
Not a good choice.
I couldn't tell if her flushed look was communicating embarrassment or anger. Either way it was the wrong thing to say publicly in a room full of her peers.
“I'm right where I'm supposed to be”, she said rather indignantly as she sighted down across her knee at the left pedal.
But she clearly wasn't. Any experienced cyclist looking at her from the side could see how stretched out her position was and how she looked on the bike would benefit from a few minutes my (or anyone's) observation.
When was the last time (if ever) you've had someone look at your bike setup on the instructor bike at your club? During your initial certification doesn't count.
Instructors are proud people.
We expect others to look to us for stuff like bike fit, direction and guidance. Unfortunately this has us walled off as a sort of island, operating all by ourselves, without the benefit of any constructive criticism.
Our participants are nice = they won't typically say anything, even though they see something not quite right – or even grossly wrong.
I'll never forget a lunch meeting I had with a prospective customer a few years back. He had a spinach salad, I've forgotten what I ate that day. I remember his spinach because at some point during the meal my lunch guest suddenly had one green tooth. Completely green like it was something he paid for from one of those places at the mall where they sell jeweled “grills”. A piece of the spinach had attached itself and neatly covered one of his front teeth. I foolishly said nothing while we sat and talked. The whole time trying not to stare at his new organic dental appliance. We parted and I had forgotten all about it until checking my email later that day; I CAN”T BELIEVE YOU JUST SAT THERE LOOKING AT MY GREEN TOOTH AND NOT SAY ANYTHING! I'm pretty sure that was the last time I communicated with him.
But participants (read cyclists) will judge you based on everything they see
Believe me when I say cyclists will judge you. What do you think we are doing to keep our minds occupied during a 5 hour ride? We notice every detail. Now I'm sure that the Instructor being evaluated really did believe she was properly positioned. She found a bike setting and repeat it every time she taught. Her body got comfortable until it became “right”… even if it wasn't. Alone at home in your basement this isn't a problem. Sitting in front of 10s or 100s of cyclists every week is.
What to do?
I'm guessing you already know the answer to this; ask for help! And it doesn't need to come from another Instructor.
Would you like to make someone's day? In your next class pick out one of the experienced cyclists. Ask them to review your setup on your bike. I know I would have been flattered if someone in authority (you) asked for my help. You could even make a big deal about it during your warm-up. Simply explain how you recognized that you needed a second pair of eyes to really check your bike setup, so you asked Linda to help because you saw her as an experienced cyclist. Then you could continue with how Linda was able to suggest a few small changes and how much better you feel now.
This simple act of humility may have a profound effect on your class. Once other's realize that the Great and Powerful Instructor needs help, they to maybe inclined to ask for help as well.
Back in September Apple was talking about a complete redesign of iTunes for version 11, with a promised release in October 2012 – which is obviously passed. I had made a note to myself to look into this so I could understand any changes and help with any new challenges that those of you still using iTunes may experience.
Now I'm reading that the release of iTunes 11 is imminent, whatever that means.
Here's another disappointment.
One recent addition to iTunes that I haven't discussed (I'd been waiting for iTunes 11) is how iTunes now offers wireless home sharing between devices logged in with the same Apple ID.
In this post I talk about how you can share iTunes music between computers that are using the same wireless network. It works very well in a Two Instructor household 🙂
So when I saw that you can now share between devices I thought I should create a tutorial on how to use it. I figured that it would most likely work the same as Spotify; you can listen to a playlist from your computer – or – transfer all the tracks onto your iPhone (turn on the available Off-Line toggle) so you can use the playlist for your class… turns out you can't. Best as I can tell you can only listen to music from another networked computer. There's no option to transfer a track or playlist to your device.
“I must be missing something here?”, I thought. When would I want to use my iPhone to just listen to music from a computer in my house or office?
But wait! I must be able to drag tracks or playlists from my computer, to my device. That's what iTunes Wi-Fi Sync is for right? Well, no. Not exactly. To use Wi-Fi Sync your computer needs to:
Recognize your device = you must go through the complete setup process if it doesn't.
Be connected to a power source, er… like your computer. So what's the point of Wi-Fi if you have to plug in?
If Spotify is available where you live and you have a wireless enabled portable device, we have a bunch of tutorials (here and here) to help you make the transition away from iTunes.
Gary Hawkins from Ride Fit contacted me last week about a new virtual cycling training video he had produced. Except this video doesn't feature typical cyclists – it's designed for people who train indoors on an ElliptiGO.
If you've never heard of an ElliptiGO you can join the club – it was completely news to me. But they are supposedly getting popular and they even have their own World Championships.
Now why am I asking if this could be the next big thing?
When I first watch the video I have to admit I thought they looked a little goofy to me. An elliptical for the road? Who would want that?
I called Gary and asked him; “who's buying these ElliptiGO things?”
“Mainly runners.” “They really like how low impact they are to ride.”
The indoor/outdoor cyclist in me started to say something snarky about people who choose to punish their bodies because they aren't smart enough to use the wheel… but I caught myself and asked Gary; do you know how many runners there are, compared with cyclists?
“Not sure, probably a lot more.”
So I checked and after a quick search it looks like committed runners out number committed cyclists by something like and an order of magnitude = 10 times as many runners.
Many of us are trying to build our classes by attracting cyclists. What would happen if we offered a group class that appealed to all those runners?
If you watched the free screening of the documentary; I'm Fine, Thanks, you met Steve Kamb. Steve's journey really spoke to me. He went from thinking; my dad's in sales, my mom's in sales, so I should go into sales… to I hate sales. I'm going to do something I'm passionate about (fitness and being a Nerd) > which lead to nerdfitness.com
Hi. My name is Steve.
I’m the rebel leader here at Nerd Fitness. I help desk jockeys, nerds, and average Joes level up their lives.
Maybe you’re here because you’re overweight and frustrated because you haven’t found success quite yet. Maybe you’re here because your doctor told you that you’re in danger of some serious health issues if you don’t make changes. Maybe you’re here because you just had a kid, and the reality that you being unhealthy could make THEIR lives more difficult just hit you like a ton of bricks.
Maybe you just want to wake up, look in the mirror, and feel better about yourself.
Whatever reason you have for being here, thank you.
My goal is to inspire the Hell out of you to make positive changes and live a better life. I want to educate you on how to work out properly, cook a decent meal, and consistently improve your health and well being.
The tagline for this site is “Level up your life, every single day.” If I do my job right, you’ll wake up every day a little healthier than you were yesterday — eat a little better, get a little stronger, run a little faster, and feel a little better about yourself.
