by Dennis Mellon | Sep 27, 2017 | Master Instructor Blog, Music, Training With Power
Have you ever felt the “Power of 3”?
If you were to do a quick web search you would see that 3 is a very special number. It’s a favorite of storytellers; the three pigs, the the three blind mice, Goldilocks and the three bears and the Three Musketeers. It’s used in faith; the Father, Son and Holy Spirit as well as Mindy, Body, Spirit. You have the 3 olympic medals; gold, silver and bronze. In geometry the three sided triangle is considered the most stable shape. Photographers, artists and designers use the rule of thirds.
In strength training, many believe, three sets are optimal for strength gains. When participating in an indoor cycling class there are only three riding positions; seated with a fast cadence, seated with a slower cadence and standing. Numerous studies have shown that the brain responds to 3 in a positive way.
When writing my class profiles I like to take advantage of the “Power of 3”. I often use 3 song sets, the 3 riding positions and repeat intervals 3 times. I find the “Power of 3” to be, a POWERFUL technique.
[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']
Attached to this post is:
A detailed set profile to print
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.
Recording of me teaching this 3 song set in a class.
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download
by Joey Stabile | Sep 22, 2017 | Best Practices, Instructor Training, Music
Welcome to week four of Music to Mention. This week's music to mention is one of my newest favorite songs for muscular endurance work: Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man. Muscular endurance is always a challenge for the instructor as there are 3-4 minute sections of the ride, some back to back, where the rider is in the saddle and maintaining a specific cadence and exertion level to achieve the development of muscular endurance. While this is understood by the cyclists in your group, the average fitness person that is looking for as much entertainment as workout they may find this work boring. That is where we step forward as instructors and use this time to educate our riders, work on form and allow them to listen to and enjoy the music. Have fun with this and use the longer sections to connect with your class and educate them on training.
There is no real timing for this song as the entire piece falls into a perfect 80 cadence. This is short work (2:40ish) so have your riders go hard. I usually cue this as the highest gear they can maintain at 80 rpm or “Hard, but sustainable.” In order for them to get the fitness gains from muscular endurance work, they need to be in HeartZones of High Zone Three to High Zone Four.
Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man:
Apple Music
Spotify
Have fun with this song and enjoy your ride.
Ride Hard, Ride Well and Ride Often……Joey
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by Joey Stabile | Sep 19, 2017 | Best Practices, Creativity Indoor Classes, Instructor Training, Music
Welcome to the The Weekly Ride by Cycling Fusion:
No more hunting for new music or counting out cues. Here is your ready to ride document, that can be displayed from your phone, or printed out onto cue cards. This ride is timed out, down to the second, to make your life as easy as possible!
(more…)
by Joey Stabile | Sep 14, 2017 | Best Practices, Creativity Indoor Classes, Instructor Training, Music
Welcome to the The Weekly Ride by Cycling Fusion:
No more hunting for new music or counting out cues. Here is your ready to ride document, that can be displayed from your phone, or printed out onto cue cards. This ride is timed out, down to the second, to make your life as easy as possible!
(more…)
by Joey Stabile | Sep 5, 2017 | Best Practices, Instructor Training, Music
Welcome to week three of Music to Mention. This week's music to mention is one of my standby songs for cadence work: Devil Drums by Scooter. We primarily do cadence work for two reasons: 1) To build our cadence (foot speed); and 2) To build muscular coordination. I begin with the first round using a range for the cadence (ie 85-90) and then in the second round I use exact numbers. Tension on these drills should be moderate which I find to be 0.8-1.8 watts per pound of body weight of the rider, but of course that will vary by class and by rider. Some of the riders may find this work a little fast, so I may give two start points to the class depending on the riders (ie 80-85 or 90-95). This can end up with some additional cueing, but it can really help out the riders.
The timing for this song is:
Get the PDF Here: Devil Drums
Devil Drums by Scooter:
Apple Music
Spotify
Have fun with this song and enjoy the ride.
Ride Hard, Ride Well and Ride Often……Joey
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by Christine Hawthorne | Sep 3, 2017 | Instructor Training, KEEPING IT FUN, Music
This week's Favorite Track makes a great “finisher”. Clocking in at around 6 minutes, it lends itself really well to 90 second interval sets and will take an already great class over the top! Here's how my class likes to use this one:
30 seconds-easy pedal (this is going to be your recovery as we get into the interval sets)
30 seconds-pick up the intensity (not a sprint, but definitely a working effort)
30 seconds-sprint (all out effort)
*go through this sequence 4 times.
I've used this drill with other 6 minutes songs, and it just wasn't the same. My classes always ask me to come back to this one! I hope you (and your classes) enjoy it!
Insomnia 2.0 iTunes link
