Last week I wrote about how my simplest sets and profiles are most often my most popular. I have also found that if I simply progress profiles from week to week, usually in 3 week blocks, my classes enjoy the familiarity of the workout and see progressive improvement.
To add progression to a block of workouts all you need to do is add time to each interval or reduce recovery or increase intensity to each interval set. This allows the body to adapt from workout to workout. Check out this article from Training Peaks about progression, How to Build Workouts.
I inevitably get the response from instructors that their riders like every class to be different or they'll get bored. My response is, “Even class IS different!” I use different playlists and videos from week to week, I may keep similar yet progressive profiles but I'll change around how each set is ridden, for example, seated vs standing or fast rpm vs slower rpm. This makes each week “feel” completely different but is similar enough that the body can adapt from week to week and a progressive training effect can occur.
If you used my profile from last week with your class, progress with this new one below and let me know how it goes.
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Is it possible to create Performance Cycling Classes that are entertaining and compelling, for both endurance athletes and non-cyclists? David McQuillen, with The Sufferfest video series, says you can with entertaining video content – note the emphasis on entertaining 🙂
I've been aware of David's videos for years. Perfect for pounding away in the garage or your basement, but I didn't consider them suitable for group cycling classes. Turns out I may need to adjust my thinking about this… With more than 45 licensed facilities worldwide (they're called Sufferfest Embassies) it sounds like there is a group application for these extremely well produced HD videos.
Listen below as David and I discuss his ideas on expanding your studio's appeal to cyclists through the use of his Sufferfest training videos.
Studio/Club Owners and Managers interested in becoming a licensed Sufferest facility can request a free information package by emailing Kate Patterson Kate@TheSufferfest.com – you'll want to include your studio's name and location.
Please tell Kate you heard this interview on ICI/PRO and she'll send you a pair of these cool Sufferfest Socks, just for saying hello! Limited to responses through June 30th.
As a training tool – running a PTP test/assessment is invaluable!
We had some excellent questions from Studio Owners this past weekend during our Full Psycle/PRO PIQ workshop. Paul Harmeling addressed these two related questions during the Q&A – I wanted to offer my thoughts on it here:
When, or how often, should we be using using the PTP (Personal Threshold Power) mode screen?
What exactly should we have our riders doing, during the PTP (Calc) test/assessment?
First, for those currently not using a Display System in your studio, let me explain what we're talking about. NOTE: I'll focus on Performance IQ because I know it much better – all of this has similar application with Spivi.
On a related note, I learned a little known trick that could potentially save a new studio enough money to pay for PIQ or Spivi – contact me if you're interested in learning more.
The PTP (Personal Threshold Power) mode screen in PIQ offers a quick (just three minutes) and simple tool to give your riders an approximate understanding of their maximum sustainable power wattage. Then through the wonders of technology, PIQ creates 5 power zones and displays them as different colors. The system calculates PTP as 90% of the highest sustainable power each rider can sustain for the length of the three minute test.
Is PTP as accurate as a 20 Threshold assessment? It doesn't matter to ~98.5% of your riders. What is important is that PTP answers the question that I've heard over and over the past 3 years I've been teaching with power: how hard should I be working… when you ask me to work hard?
So on to the questions:
When, or how often, should we be using using the PTP (Personal Threshold Power) mode screen?
Paul and I are in agreement here – we both feel you should be including PTP in most, if not all classes. There are of course exceptions. You may have a teams challenge scheduled or focus on a class that's directed toward handicapping everyone based on watts/pound.
What exactly should we have our riders doing, during the PTP (Calc) test/assessment?
Here's where Paul and I diverge in our thinking. I see this as a time for a focused effort in the saddle with a consistent cadence, where Paul was saying (and he demonstrated during the Master Class) that he's open to varying position and/or cadence. So who's right? I feel we both are 🙂
You see we each teach very different classes. Mine are typically focused efforts in the saddle = how I would run my PTP tests. Paul's classes are much more frenetic, with frequent changes = that's how he conducts his PTP segments.
Here's mine:
Running a PTP test isn't any different from the Best Effort intervals we suggest you use in a power class that doesn't have a Display Training system. Here's one I included in a recent Performance Cycle class.
Track #2 — the first PTP track is important. We’ll use this average wattage for each of the four PTP efforts to follow. Everyone seemed to enjoy Billy Idol — Rebel Yell — 1999 — Remaster — maybe suffered a bit as well. At 4:47 there’s plenty of time to explore PTP.
We use the Stage button to reset the averages at the beginning of what I describe as; Your Best Sustainable Effort. It’s normal for riders to miss-judge where they should be, so I’ll often have everyone make needed adjustments and hit the Stage button again to reset the averages.
My experience is that everyone will benefit from from a few mini (30-60 secs) PTP efforts to figure out where you should be. On any of the magnetic bikes I like to have find a reasonably challenging climb at around 65 RPM and then have riders accelerate to over 80RPM and observe what it feels like (RPE) and the wattage.
Two or three of these short intervals should give your peeps a watts window they can shoot for during the actual 3 minute PTP test.
I ask everyone to stand and walk, without touching the resistance, for a minute recovery.
To start the PTP test, I'll cue up a track like 83RPM Billy Idol — Rebel Yell and cue finding the cadence. Ten seconds to get everyone there and I will click Calc PTP. Encourage everyone to do whatever it takes to complete the assessment and let the technology work it's magic, figuring everyone's training zones.
“Bone Thugs-N-Chili Peppers” by The Melker Project
“Vertigo (Redanka Power Mix” by Peter G ReWerk
As many of you know, I live in Colorado and skiing is one of my family's favorite winter activities. Every year we used to look forward to the release of the latest Warren Miller ski movie as the unofficial start of ski season. It became a family tradition to get tickets to the Friday or Saturday night showing at the Paramount Theater in downtown Denver. The later the show the rowdier the crowd, everyone was so amped to get the ski season started. I also knew that the new release meant fresh ski footage and music for my video cycling class. Over the years the footage has remained top notch, but the music has gotten worse and worse, it has gotten so bad that we stopped attending the show two years ago. That year the music was so bad that I wished I had brought my ear buds so I could have put together my own playlist, on my phone, while watching the movie.
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This got my sons, Seth and Christian, and I thinking that we should start using the awesome ski footage that is available on the internet and put it together with music that people actually listen too. Over the years we have created quite a library of ski videos, many that I use in my indoor cycling classes, that we believe is like Warren Miller, only better. I hope you enjoy the work we have done and let me know what you think.
3 song harmonically mixed track, to download Right Click > Save As / Save Target As to download. Open in iTunes and then you'll see this in your Spotify Local File folder.
“Danny, Dakota and the Wishing Well” by A Silent Film
“Can't Hold Us” by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
“Vertigo” by U2
Last week I wrote about the “Threshold Check” or “Mini-Threshold Test” that I perform at the beginning of every class. This week I want to share how I teach the full 20 minute FTP (Functional Threshold Power) Test. With this post I have also included the playlist and video I use as well as a recording of me teaching an entire FTP class.
[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']If you are lucky enough to be teaching on bikes with power I believe it's important to use this technology and all the available metrics to their fullest capacity. I find the most powerful use of a power meter is in finding one's maximum sustainable wattage or threshold. Threshold is that state of equilibrium between high intensity exercise and the body's ability to buffer and filter the waste products produced by this intensity. With a power meter we can find a wattage number that correlates with this state of equilibrium or your FTP (Functional Threshold Power).
Exercise physiologists have devised many different ways to find one's threshold, but I have found the simplest and cheapest technique is to perform a 20 minute effort at maximum sustainable intensity. At the end of this 20 minute effort take note of the average wattage and multiply it by 95% and this number is your FTP. I'll go into greater detail on how to use this number in later posts, but now let's go over how to perform the FTP Test.
I like to have my riders warm up for a minimum of 15 minutes. I'll have them slowly increase their intensity for 10 minutes then I like to have them perform 3-4 one minute “pickups” increasing their intensity each interval while recovering for one minute after each. After a short, 3-5 minute, active recovery from the pickups I have the class perform a maximum effort 5 minute interval. This effort ensures that the lactate buffering and clearance systems are turned on and ready for the 20 minutes test that follows. I also have class participants remember their average wattage for this 5 minutes, it's a good number to refer back to when doing above threshold intervals. After another recovery, about 10 minutes long, we are ready for the 20 minute FTP test. Make sure all your participants know how to reset the bike console so they can get a new average for the 20 minute interval to come. Tell them that this is a very simple test, you want them to ride at the highest possible wattage for 20 minutes. Your job as the instructor is to motivate, but not to talk too much. Let your riders “settle in” to their maximum sustainable wattage and their most efficient cadence and just let them ride. At the end of the 20 minutes make sure they remember their average wattage, multiply it by 95% and they have their Functional Threshold Power. This “Benchmark” test is also great to see improvement over time, with proper training FTP should continue to improve.
Let me know how it goes, my classes love FTP days! They work so hard every day and once a month they get to see the payoff for all sweat and suffering.
6 song harmonically mixed FTP track , to download Right Click > Save As / Save Target As to download. Open in iTunes and then you'll see this in your Spotify Local File folder.
The Power of 3 – “”My Body Tells Me “NO” But I Won't Quit Cuz I Want More”
“Turn The Levels” by DJ Lobersterdust
“Part of Me” by Katy Perry
“My Body” by Young the Giant
There has been a lot of talk lately about the proper range of RPM (Revolutions Per Minute) in indoor cycling classes. The general range that most indoor cycling certifications recommend is 60-110rpm. That doesn’t mean that going a little faster or slower is going immediately cause injury, it means that this range can be ridden effectively by most people in the population.
When I started teaching with power, about 2 years ago, the first thing I discovered was how a high RPM and lower resistance could elevate the HR (Heart Rate) as well as RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) without the associated increase in power or output. The “fast spinners”, who for years were considered the “stars” of class, were shocked at how low their power numbers were. Many of them complained that the power meters must not be working properly or were broken. I tried to calm them and explained that they were beautifully athletic riders but they may have never trained with the appropriate resistance while riding at a high cadence. I asked them to be patient and to use this new found knowledge and tool to help them reach fitness levels they had only dreamed of. By finding their most efficient cadence, that RPM where the body can produce the most power at the lowest HR or RPE, and progressively increasing cadence and maintaining power, over time, many of these riders are now able to ride at a fast cadence and maintain a high power output.
Interval sets like the one below are how I coach riders to slowly but steadily increase their most efficient cadence over time.
3 song harmonically mixed track, to download Right Click > Save As / Save Target As to download. Open in iTunes and then you'll see this in your Spotify Local File folder.
