This Indoor Cycling training video will help you learn the Elements of Style
Did anyone teach you how to pedal correctly?
I was lucky to have a mentor when I first started riding outdoors. My friend Eddy not only gently coached me on the finer points of cycling style as we rode together, he demonstrated an impeccable pedaling form. He was so smooth and powerful, that I desperately wanted to emulate how Eddy looked on his bicycle. So over hundreds of miles I watched and listened. Now I'll get an occasional comment about how smooth I am on a bike. I owe it all to Eddy!
So how do you learn if you don't have a friend or mentor with the experience and patience needed? Might I suggest this 40 minute video from the folks at Sufferfest: The Elements of Style – Efficiency and Awareness
https://vimeo.com/thesufferfest/elementsofstyle
I have an interview planned with David McQuillen the creator/producer of these excellent quality HD training videos tomorrow. So for show prep, I checked out what was new and downloaded The Elements of Style. NOTE: Sufferfest videos are only digital downloads > they don't offer DVDS.
Includes a nice “Systems Check” for proper riding position.
Learn to ride with style
I rode along and completed all of the drills included in this video today – fantastic. The recommendations are solid – although they just might conflict with what you've been told by others.
New Instructors should consider using this training to fine tune how they ride an Indoor Cycle. Maybe setting up with a mirror so you can see yourself from the side.
I know, as part of your training you were told a bunch of things about proper pedal technique and position… but have you ever practiced improving how you ride? More importantly, how do you look – when you're up there on the Instructor bike? Are you demonstrating a cycling style that your participants will want to copy?
Can you ride? Really ride? Can you Suffer with style? Make profound Suffering look effortless?
Although it has very little Suffering in it, Elements of Style may just be our most important video ever. Developed together with the expert team at CyclingTips and shot on location in Wanaka, New Zealand, this 39 minute video provides the very foundation upon which all your Suffering must rest.
Over the course of six specific drills, you’ll learn and practice:
An exclusive 9-point ‘Systems Check’ you can use on any ride to get into your optimal position.
A 4-step process for standing up on a climb and generating more power.
How to engage your core, including your glutes, for more stability and power.
The components of a smooth pedal stroke and how to bring them together at both low and high cadences.
How to stay relaxed and efficient under pressure.
Narrated by one of the best cycling commentators in the world, Eurosport’s Carlton Kirby, you’ll get clear instructions about exactly what to do, when and why. We guarantee it will change the way you think about your riding style after doing it JUST ONCE. Do it five times and you’ll automatically adjust your position while out on rides. Do it 10 times and Sufferlandrian angels will burst into tears at the sheer epic beauty of you kicking the crap out of your competition all the while making it look effortless.
*** Download includes a FREE PDF from CyclingTips with further style tips. Look in the .zip folder after download. ***
We were waiting for a long traffic light to change yesterday, when one of our group asked me a question; why do you unclip your left foot? I always unclip my right… personal preference, or is one way better/more correct?
The women who asked this question is a relatively new rider. This is her second year road riding with our outdoor group. Like many who've become passionate cyclists, she has become a student of all the little details involved in cycling. So she's often curious, questioning us about things we do on the road. I remember her asking last year why I would always stop in the center of the righthand lane, rather than staying on the shoulder. She quickly understood when I explained that by claiming the lane, it would hopefully prevent a car from squeezing us into the right hand curb, as we cross the intersection 🙂
Seeing that there are a bunch of Instructors riding outdoors, I thought I would share this with you. For your benefit, and possibly some new rider you have the opportunity to mentor someday.
My view is that unclipping should always be done with your left foot, regardless of which footed you are, because it's safer.
Regular or Goofy Foot?
Lead foot choice on board sports like; Slalom Water Skiing, Wakeboarding, Skateboarding and Snowboarding are designated as;
Left foot forward = Regular Footed
Right foot forward = Goofy Footed
I have no idea when I first heard the term Goofy Foot, but I do know it was waterskiing. I always had my right (Goofy) foot in the forward binding of the ski. I just felt more natural for me, even though all my friends did the opposite. With these sports it's a matter of personal preference.
Why does it matter which foot on a bicycle?
Here are a few reasons I feel it's safer unclipping your left foot during a controlled stop. NOTE: road cyclists should be comfortable unclipping either foot in case of emergency.
#1 That front chain ring is really sharp!
Like a stationary saw blade… ready to slice open your calf!
I didn't want to post the actual picture, but this link shows what can happen when your foot slips off the pedal when you aren't successful clipping in and you're in your small chainring. Ride long enough with slippery road pedals and there'll be a time when you put pressure on an unclipped pedal. Your body weight quickly carries your sliding foot across, and then off, the front of the pedal. Do it with your left foot and you'll just be embarrassed. With your right and there's a chance you'll need stitches from your right calf scraping across those sharp teeth and a tetanus shot – those teeth are not only like little razor blades, they're also really dirty.
This actually happened to my buddy Randy Erwin a few years ago. He had been following Amy and me on our tandem. Amy looked back and saw him stopped, hunched over his bike. Once we rode back we saw all the blood – he did too and nearly passed out from it.
#2 Your right leg is probably stronger
Watch a child or new rider leave from a stop and you'll normally see them repeatedly pushing/pawing off with the unclipped foot – often with the clipped-in pedal in it's lowest position.
Experienced riders start with the clipped in pedal positioned around 2 o'clock. This allows you to power away by driving the clipped foot down, using a normal pedaling motion. The unclipped foot can help push off a little, but it's mainly for balance. This first pedal stroke needs to be powerful – so use your strongest leg! With 90%+ people being righthand dominate, your right leg is typically stronger.
You might need to complete multiple rotations with just one leg, before pausing long enough to get the second foot secured. Another reason you need as much strength as possible.
NOTE: for you “lefties” I still feel the potential danger listed in #1 should have you unclipping your left foot.
#3 Keep your down foot on the high side
This might not apply where you live – and it will be contraindicated (a new use for that term) for our friends in the UK, Oz and other British territories. Roads are often constructed with a “crown” = the center of the road is higher than the shoulders. They do this to speed rainwater runoff and it will naturally cause an initiative/sleeping driver to steer away from oncoming traffic. So for us who drive on the right/correct side, your left foot will be on the “high side” = you may have better balance than reaching down to the low side.
NOTE: for you who drive on the left/wrong side, I still feel the potential danger listed in #1 should have you unclipping your left foot.
#4 Don't get confused
Err… not sure?
After leading group rides for 20 years, it's not uncommon to see a rider who appears confused at a stop – they aren't sure which foot to unclip. As you know, confusion can lead to indecision and indecision on a stopped bicycle frequently leads to someone tipping over. Embarrassing and often painful 🙁 Not to mention any names, but I have a guy… Lee, in the “C” group I lead (my community service) with this problem. More than once a ride I'm seeing him jump out of both pedals and then slide on both feet until he stops!
Decide what you're going to do in advance. Make a conscience decision; “I'm going to go Goofy and unclip my left foot!” as you roll to the stop with your right foot at the bottom.
Texting during exercise could prevent weight loss: Study
Kent State University researchers Jacob Barkley, Ph.D., and Andrew Lepp, Ph.D., as well as Kent State alumni Michael Rebold, Ph.D., and Gabe Sanders, Ph.D., assessed how common smartphone uses — texting and talking — interfere with treadmill exercise.
The researchers, from Kent State’s College of Education, Health and Human Services, found that when individuals use their smartphones during exercise for texting or talking, it causes a reduction in exercise intensity.
“Exercising at a lower intensity has been found to reduce the health benefits of exercise and fitness improvements over time,” Barkley said.
The results of the study and the widespread use of smartphones during exercise help explain the results of a previous study conducted at Kent State by the same researchers, which found a negative relationship between smartphone use and cardiorespiratory fitness.
“These findings are important because poor cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with an increased prevalence of cardiovascular disease risk factors, such as higher cholesterol and blood pressure levels, which could potentially lead to premature mortality,” said Rebold, who worked on the study while at Kent State and now serves as an assistant professor of exercise science at Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania.
Of course you already knew this – nice to know it's supported by science.
I loved watching Monty Python as a kid. One of my favorite bits was during the introduction when they cut to John Cleese, sitting at his desk, in a wholly improbable location – typically in the middle of a field, the ocean shore or behind bars.
On occasion, I enjoy offering up music that's completely different. Often it comes in the form of a unique/interesting remix.[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']
I follow DJ Henry Krinkle on soundcloud and this track (no name, just the symbol å…) could make for a fun 72RPM climb. Let me know if you agree 🙂
https://soundcloud.com/henry-krinkle/fobrmdt9raly
Not only is å… “different”, it's constructed like a short story that would allow you to narrate. Give a listen and with each change, consider what changes in terrain or intensity you'd cue.
And as a bonus free track – this remix of Ellie Goulding's How Long Will I Love You would make for a fun and “different” intro or closing track.
You need to exhale all those fat calories away! Image credit www.wikihow.com/
I'm constantly on the hunt for clever ways to encourage my class to focus (a polite way of saying SHUT UP) and work hard. Over the years my best success has come from equating the work we're doing to weight loss. After all, interest in burning calories is universal – doesn't matter who it is (cyclist, club athlete, new mother, etc..) everyone in my class is interested in either reducing or maintaining their body fat percentage.
I've learned a new one today and can't wait to give it a try:
OK – you two talking in the back. Do you realise you're preventing fat from escaping your body?
It might sound crazy, but it's true. Science has shown that when you burn body fat, after giving up it's energy, fat is converted to CO2 (carbon dioxide) and H2O (Water) and leaves your body when you exhale.
We talk a lot about dieting and burning off fat, but we actually have a lot of misconceptions about weight loss. Some people think fat is converted into energy or heat–a violation of the law of conservation of mass–while others think that the fat is somehow excreted or even converted to muscle. I was told early on that you can never lose your fat cells (adipose) once you gain them…they just shrink if you work it off.
Well, according to Andrew Brown from the University of New South Wales and Australian TV personality (slash former physicist) Ruben Meerman, when you lose weight, you exhale your fat. Their new calculations, based on existing knowledge about biochemistry, were published in the British Medical Journal this week.
A little research on the subject lead me to this excellent video from ABC.net.AU that describes the process of converting Fat to energy in a way that you'll be able to share with your class.
So I might be taking some technical liberties here, by saying that talking is preventing fat calories from escaping. I'm willing to distort the science a little if it gets the larger point across… which is:
If you're talking you're not working as hard as you should and not burning the calories you could!
I'm not a Snoop Dogg fan – but there's some awesome tracks this week on Spotify.
This has become an almost regular habit for me. I'll cue up the New Music Tuesday playlist published by Spotify and then drag promising tracks into my Future To Use folder. Some weeks are near complete washouts. This week has what could be a complete class of songs… Oh, what the heck. Here's a playlist of just songs from today (no Snoop you'll notice) that follows my typical Life Time Fitness 45 minute Evolution Class Format – times are approximate and vary dependent on song length:
5 min Warmup – 90+ RPM
5 min Openers – 4-5 accelerations pushing above threshold (your Edge in Life Time speak)
3 min Reset – fun change of pace, but not a full recovery
4 min Best Effort = maximum sustainable Watts / HR
4 min @ VT1 (Aerobic Threshold or top of zone #2) / Base Watts
7 min Challenge #1
2 min Reset
7 min Challenge #2
2 min Reset
4 min Big Finish = a Best Effort / slightly above threshold final effort
5 min Dedication, cool down & stretch[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']
Why do I choose to follow a templated class profile?
Lots of reasons actually:
The Life Time Fitness 45 minute Evolution Class profile is supposed to follow this template format. One of the rare times in my life that I choose to willfully follow directions 🙂
15+ years of experience has me believing my participants enjoy a consistent, predictable class profile. This is especially true for my early AM “A” types. They need to see that I have a plan and purpose for the class. Sticking to a familiar pattern (they know what to expect) appears to be comforting to them + knowing what's coming has them working harder throughout the class.
It helps keep me creative. Knowing WHAT profile I'm planning frees me to play with music that determines HOW I'll lead each segment. The Best Efforts and Challenges are “open” – meaning, if I want to use a big climb for the first Best Effort I can. Just pick a powerful track with a slower tempo and I'm done with that segment. Challenge #1 and #2 can be speed, endurance, strength, etc… and typically a pair of songs.
Knowing in advance, what I'm doing this week, makes life less stressful. Less stress allows me to concentrate on delivering a better class presentation.
Simplifies creating fresh playlists. Because I already know the profile, I can quickly assemble a playlist. Contrast that with not knowing either the profile or playlist. I would have twice the work. No thanks.
[/wlm_private]I'll be using this playlist and profile on Thursday. I'll let you know what their response is!
