Don’t you just love a good cover? It has to be done well, but there is something about great memories, an old tune and current nuances that make for a great addition to our classes and our members really enjoy them. This one makes for a good climb at 57 rpm’s, but it is pretty “chill” as our daughters like to say. I cue my class to add a good amount of load for an out of the saddle climb that will allow them to work without going to threshold. It is good practice for them to get up and out of the saddle with plenty of load, yet keep their heart rates reigned in. (We still have way too much crazy stuff going on in the cycle studio). I hope you like this flashback, from the early ‘70’s as much as I do. It’s Seal, from his Soul 2 album and “I’ll Be Around”. I included the links for the original group, The Spinners, on a Soul Train episode (fun watching!) and a Hall and Oates cover that has a completely different feel. Happy Memorial Day. I hope you can all get some good riding in this weekend.
I would also like to wish my handsome husband happy 51st birthday 🙂
Another great cover from Hall and Oates:
And of course, the original by The Spinners on Soul Train circa 1972:
It's a beautiful sunny Minnesota summer day here and I was enjoying it out on my old mountain bike. One of the reasons Minneapolis is as such a bicycle friendly city are the trails running everywhere. I really enjoy these smooth gravel paths because I can spend a couple hours JRA – Just Riding Along – link to a full descriptionwithout any real conscious effort of watching for cars or the other things that tend to consume you when you're out in traffic.
I used JRA to describe that first ventilatory threshold, VT1. It's the place; above chatty yet below focused effort, communicating the VT1 to the students in my class. It's a wonderful place to spend a few hours and when I'm here, working aerobically, my creative juices really start flowing.
So I'm JRA, when I came upon the sign alerting me that the trail was underwater. “Oh great, now I'm going to get all wet,” I thought. If you spend any time on the road or on a mountain bike, you know that a wet stripe up your back or soaked feet doesn't really add to an enjoyable time outside 🙁
I've ridden this trail for years. I realized that “trail underwater” typically means there's two or 3 inches of water from the surrounding swamp (I refuse to call it a “wet-lands”… it's a swamp), covering the trail. And I was right.
There are two strategies you can use to cross these little mini rivers, while staying as dry as possible; If the water's only a few inches deep the trick is to peddle as slowly as possible, minimizing any spray up your back. A little deeper and you'll be pedaling your feet through water, so you'll sacrifice I wet back to keep your feet dry. This requires a bit more finesse and can challenge your bike handling skills. You accelerate to the speed that you think you're going to need in order to coast all the way to the other edge, keeping your feet level, up and out of the water. Doesn't always work perfectly. You sometimes stall before the end and wind up doing a sort of rocking motion with your feet, engaging the freewheel through a small segment of the circle, hoping to propel your self forward, while keeping your feet out of the water and not falling over – which would defeat the whole exercise.
The challenge is going just slow enough.
After successfully navigating the water hazard and resuming JRA, I was thinking about how we're always talking about the maximum in class; the highest, what's your threshold heart rate, find your FTP, how long can you sustain this, etc. But we rarely try to define the other side of it… how slow or low should you go?
If you've taught for any length of time you've experience the “spinner”. That person who seems to think they're accomplishing something while furiously pedaling with no resistance. Having indoor cycles with power changes that. As part of my initial orientation I give a new student, I'll have them peddle with no resistance and watch the display. On the FreeMotion bikes no resistance equals no power. And it's a wonderful illustration to help people understand the futility of peddling and not really accomplishing anything of value.
[wlm_firstname] I'm not sure that I have the whole answer here so feel free to share your ideas.
I'm a big believer that every minute of class should be of value. Just as there are times outdoors when you have to go slowly, you are being productive… still moving yourself forward.
I try to communicate this need for productivity in every class I teach. I'll frequently lament the fact that I only have them for an hour. 60 min. isn't really that long, so let's not waste our time doing nothing.
How I cue this is easier with power, but the feeling is the same. I'll have everyone start the class with zero resistance. I'll ask everyone to find a comfortable cadence and begin adding resistance. I'll explain that productivity for each of us is different, and yet if were honest with ourselves we understand when we're there. My morning classes are typically a bunch of “A” types and I'll make the comment that busy work is not the same as productive work. “Just going through the motions may give the appearance of work to others, but deep down you understand whether you're truly being productive or not.”
My feelings are that riding “productively” should bring everyone to a HR near to or right at VT1 / base of Zone three in a five Zone system.
I reinforce the need for productivity at the end of the long interval. Recovery should be productive. I'll suggest to everyone that once they have recovered to the point where they feel some calm in their breathing, they need to return to that place of productivity – catching their Heart Rate at VT1 / JRA.
There'll be plenty of time, to fully recover, once we've crossed to the other side.[plulz_social_like width=”350″ send=”false” font=”arial” action=”like” layout=”standard” faces=”false” ]
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By Team ICG® Master Trainer Joan Kent
Lance Armstrong’s strength and conditioning coach, Peter Park, developed a series of core strengthening exercises that he calls Foundation. The focus is on the posterior chain of muscles, such as the glutes, hamstrings and lower back.
Peter Park describes this as “redefining the core” because the emphasis is shifted from the abs to the larger muscles in the back of the body. Because it was developed in this way — and with a world-class cyclist in mind — it’s no surprise that it gets indoor cycling students sitting better on their bikes. The improvement in my students has been remarkable. Their posture is completely different as they cycle.
I learned about this strengthening program from Jim Karanas, who had bought Peter Park’s book but hadn’t yet had time to go through it. I read the book and started doing the exercises. Some of the changes were noticeable right away.
The most fortunate part of this for me occurred in a somewhat unfortunate way. Only weeks after beginning this program, I crashed my bike and broke my pelvis in three places. My doctor told me not to do any type of “crunch” or abdominal exercise. Needless to say, I wasn’t looking forward to skipping my core training and watching my strength in that area deteriorate over the twelve weeks he said it would take to heal.
But I could do these Foundation exercises because they didn’t stress the abs. They kept my core strong throughout the healing — and possibly even shortened the healing time. I was OK in just over five weeks. I continue to do the exercises five to seven times a week and genuinely enjoy the first exercise, the Founder, in particular.
The book is called Foundation by Dr. Eric Goodman and Peter Park. The beginner’s routine consists of five exercises on pages 86 to 107. The entire sequence is short and can be run through two or three times in a row. The book also includes photos and descriptions of a moderate routine and an advanced one. The Founder exercise itself is short enough to fit at the beginning or the end of an indoor cycling class.
Here are the videos of the Founder sequence, taught by Eric Goodman.
I hope the Founder and the other exercises in the routines are helpful for you and your students. If you try them, please let us know how they worked for you.
Ladies and gentlemen; after a week of review and deliberation, we're excited to announce the Top 5 – Ultimate Instructor Class Profiles!
We will be publishing these profiles, as well as recording the Top 3, in the coming weeks.
Here they are:
#5 – Good Better Best by Michele Forrester-Morgan from Waxhaw, NC
Profile Description
My inspiration for this came from riding outdoors working on hill repeats. The goal in putting together this profile is to improve strength and speed, not just for the uphill climb, but also on the flat road, downhill and in/out of the saddle. This profile consists of 3 loops, each focusing on a different cycling skill.
#4 – “The Gate” — Halloween Mixed Ride by Kim Moody from Libertyville, IL
Profile Description
This profile is based on the urban legend, “The Gate,” in Libertyville, IL. One can find more information about the frightening place by going to www.hauntedusa.org/thegate For this Halloween mixed ride, I wanted members to visualize the dark and desolate location so I began the class by retelling excerpts from the article to provide some background information and imagery material.
#3 – Welcome to the Jungle: An Introduction to Tabatas by Krista Leopold from Charleston, SC
Profile Description
The word “tabata” has become quite a phenomenon recently. A google search for “tabata” produces nearly 9 million hits. Given how our riders to turn to the internet for answers to their weight-loss and training questions and given the tendency of the internet to provide less-than-factual information about these topics, it is important that instructors be prepared to counter with evidence and experience.
#2 – Waldo’s Revenge — 30 Minute Time Trial by AmyL. Pillitteri from Belfast, ME
Profile Description
Waldo’s Revenge is adapted from the actual 12.2 mile bike leg of the Waldo County Family Triathlon Course in Belfast, Maine where the beautiful scenic rolling countryside combines with the unforgiving wind to provide a challenging and rewarding bike course.
And the Ultimate Instructor Class Profile is:
Whiteface Mountain – Surrender to Gravity by Allison Santoro from Hampton, NH!
Profile Description
Today we will test the law of gravity…what goes up, must come down. Whiteface Mountain is a very challenging 8-mile climb up to a castle at the summit of the mountain. As you approach the toll-booth at the three-mile mark, you will be mentally preparing for the most challenging part of this ride with 8% to 10% gradients for several miles. As you ascend to the summit, two switchbacks and an ease in grade will provide you with the perfect opportunity to enjoy the rush of powering-through your threshold to the summit. At the summit, you will surrender to gravity…you will be rewarded with an exhilarating 10 minute down-hill recovery.
Congratulations to our Top 5 and a big THANK YOU to everyone who submitted a profile!
We couldn't have done this without all of our generous prize sponsors:
Master Trainer Jim Karanas from Team ICG® joins me on this episode to discuss both Jim's and my concerns that those of you who are heading outdoors this summer, do so safely!
Although it was hard for him to talk about, Jim's wife (and long time riding/training and racing partner) Angela was involved in a horrible accident last Fall. It happened during a large cycling event and together we discuss some strategies you can use to ensure any cycling groups you are leading remain safe and enjoyable! This post offers some additional thoughts on leading outdoor group cycling rides.
We also used this episode to announce that Chuck Cali has joined his ICG® Master Trainer Team – Congratulations Chuck!
Nothing brings me more pleasure than seeing talented Instructors take advantage of the platform we provide here at ICI/PRO 🙂
If you are interested in learning more about the ICG® online Indoor Cycling certification and the free CECs they offer, you can learn more at www.indoorcycling.com
I'll be releasing the winner's names of the Ultimate Instructor Class Profile contest later today… I'm very curious to see where each of these Instructors will be a year from now – stay tuned.
It's one of those happy / sad days here at our house. Tonight is our last High School Prom – our baby Carly is all grown up! And her sister Abby drove away at 7:00 am this morning. Day-one of her “big girl” job at Enterprise Car Rental. But again, that's what kids do.
If you have kids you may relate to this; both Amy and I recognize specific traits, behaviors, attitudes in our kids and we tend to want to claim ownership, at least to the good ones, as coming from us. And of course the negative behaviors are obviously always coming from the other 🙂
But what if your kids could have a perfect mix? A mix of only the best attributes?
It's a fun fantasy and it's a little to late for us… but if you have young kids there's no reason not to start trying!
No, you can't make a perfect mix of kids, but it is possible to create a perfect mix of music. In this case a mashup of these two very entertaining songs.
Start with Set fire to the rain – Adele (that link is a cover in Spotify) and mix it thoroughly with We are young from the band Fun.
And you get this awesome Mashup – listen to it and experience something that you don't hear often; the convergence of two different BPM songs where the tempo adjustment happens a third of the way into the song. Let me know if you can pick out the change!
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