This is a happy little 64 bpm tune by a London based pop/rock duo founded in 2008. They have an intricate groove created by electric piano and off-beat guitar that works perfectly for lifts. Especially going into spring, my classes like to condition their bodies to get out of the saddle efficiently for quick sprints and the ever present pot holes on Minnesota roads! The album cut is 3:57. It doesn’t hurt that the lead singer for this relatively new band, Jamie Scott, is quite gorgeous either! Here is Graffiti6 with “Stare Into the Sun” from their debut album “Colours”:
I wanted to give a shout out to the excellent people at SportSmith.com to thank them for their continued support of our communities here at indoorcycleinstructor.com and at pedal-on.com. The discounted Indoor Cycle parts they provide help take a bit of the sting out of maintaining the bikes in your studio. They've also done a phenomenal job selling my Red Pedal Tool to Studios around the world!
Newer ICI/PRO members and visitors who've recently discovered indoorcycleinstructor.com may not know our “Genesis Story”… the original idea, back in 2008, that lead to what has become the top Internet resource for Indoor Cycling Instructors and the most listened to Internet radio show for fitness professionals on the planet.
It all began with my frustration with Schwinn Triple Link pedals. Don't get me wrong, I still see them as an excellent choice for any cycling studio and the clubs where I teach have used them since the late 1990s. It's removing those @#$%^& shoe baskets that has me (and hundreds of other Instructors it turns out) cussing and swearing every time a member asks to have them removed so they can use their cycling shoes with LOOK cleats.
Being a sales guy, my next concern was; how would I get the word out (marketing) to Instructors and Club/Studio Owners?
Turned out that the answer was right in front of me 🙂 At the time I was traveling a territory as a sales rep and I was spending a lot of time in my car. Talk Radio can get old awfully quick. So to productively pass the time between sales calls I started to listen to Podcasts about sales, marketing and motivation.
Why couldn't I record and produce my own Podcast?
Other people are creating their own shows and iTunes does a great job making them available to anyone with and iPod… but what would the show be about?
I did some searching on iTunes and found a Podcast about creating your own Podcast. One of the episodes was about choosing your niche – what the show would be about. Their suggestion was to find something you are passionate about and a topic that you have some specific knowledge…
How about a show that featured the experts and personalities in Indoor Cycling? 200+ episodes later and I've enjoyed (nearly) every minute 🙂
There's nothing I enjoy more, than giving voice to up-and-coming stars in our industry.
I love giving others the chance to shine!
Since August of 2008, The Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast has introduced dozens of talented people to thousands of Instructors, club/studio owners/managers and industry leaders around the world.
Many of them have leveraged their exposure to grow/develop successful businesses or advance their personal fitness careers.
I felt it was time to find a few more 🙂
With the help and support of some wonderful sponsors, we've created a fun competition to find and (and then promote) some very special Instructors, The Ultimate Instructor Class Profile Contest!
Can you answer YES, to these questions?
Do you take pride in creating innovative class profiles?
Are your classes designed around a specific training purpose?
Do they include a well designed music playlist?
And then, do you deliver your profile like a polished actor or actress on stage?
If you can then we're looking for you!
The top five Instructors will share in over $4,000 in cash and prizes and the top three will be recorded and published for thousands of other Instructors to enjoy 🙂
Please check it out and consider entering your favorite profile between now and May 14th.
Let me know if you have any questions.
John
P.S. This contest isn't open to Master Instructors or other industry educators – only rank and file Indoor Cycling Instructors who go above and beyond the average and are either ICI/PRO members or active, registered members at Pedal-On.com
Thanksgiving is not just a holiday that comes once a year. Thanks giving can make every day of your life a holiday and you a celebrity!
I will show you how.
The most powerful thing that you can do to make your life (no matter what you are experiencing) the best that it can be, is to be a giver of thanks. The more you give the more you will receive!
Every year celebrities from all over the globe walk the red carpet to receive their rewards. The lights, action, glitz and glamour are all a part of the celebration. Can you imagine what it would be like to put on your best…and have all eyes on you as you are celebrated for being you?
A celebrity is quite simply, “1. the state of being celebrated: RENOWN 2. a celebrated person” (Thank you Merriam-Webster J)
Can you imagine being a celebrity? Then imagine this.
People are lined up outside of your gym as far as your eye can see. There is standing room only in the parking lot! You have to park almost a mile away. You quickly move through the crowd as you head to the front of the line. The cameras are flashing and the people are going wild. The energy is palpable.
Your manager meets you at the door and welcomes you in. “Wow, what is going on?” you ask. He responds, “Your class is about to start. We’ll talk later.”
The entire gym is packed with people. Some you recognize, some you do not. Everyone is looking at you as if they know you. Who are all these people? Where did they come from? Why are all these people here? These are just a few of the questions that are flying through your mind as you are flying through the crowd, desperately trying to get to the studio.
The studio is packed! Every bike is full and people are standing everywhere! “What is going on”, you ask?
The crowd roars, “YOU are going on! We wanted to show up and tell you how awesome you are, how much we love and appreciate you, and we can’t wait to watch you do what you do!”
Can you imagine what that would feel like? Would you prepare for class differently if you knew everyone was going to show up expecting your best class? Of course you would!
But what if you don’t have hundreds of students fighting to get into your class? Well, guess what; YOU DO! They are fighting crowds of depression, obesity, and complacency. They are overwhelmed and under…inspired; under…recognized; under…appreciated. They have lived their life under the radar and they are desperate to SHOW UP!
They may be miles away, and not even know that you are there. They may find their way to your class, or maybe they will not. Regardless, YOU will be there with your best performance when they do! They need YOU to show up! Why?
Because you are one who is celebrated. You are the one they have literally been dying to meet because you celebrate people (this includes YOU). And they know that if they can just get near you, they too will feel significant.
So you may be thinking, “Yeah, right…if I were a celebrity…it would be easy to have a packed class every week, but I am NOT!”
If you go back to the definition of celebrity, you will see that in fact, you can be. Celebrate you and you will be celebrated. Celebrate others and they will celebrate you!
It’s time to see yourself and others as a gift. If you love to instruct, then do it with all your heart. Pour your heart into your class, even if only one or two people show up. Thank them for showing up so you can do what you love to do. A leader needs followers to lead, an instructor needs students to teach, and a celebrity needs to be celebrated to be a celebrity. So are you celebrating YOU, and those around you?
No matter what you or your students are experiencing, there is always something to recognize and celebrate. The more you are grateful for, the more you will have to be grateful for!
Often people will wait until they lose weight to give thanks, or their situation to change before they celebrate. But sadly, this day seems to elude them.
Does losing weight promise great health or is it the expression of the great health that’s within you (or your students)? When you stop trying to get something that you think you do not have, and begin to give thanks for that which you do…everything transforms! Change takes time, but transformation happens the moment we give thanks!
Give thanks!
People think that eating well and exercise are a guarantee of great health. The reality is that they are merely an expression of the great health that lies within them.
You may think that if you do “this” or “that” then you will be the instructor that everyone can’t wait to see. Your reality is merely an expression of the gratitude that lies within you. When was the last time you told how a student how grateful you are to have them in class? When was the last time you sent a hand-written note to someone thanking him or her for being who they are?
Do you remember what it feels like to be in love? Everything seems so perfect. You only see the good (or great) in the person you love. You have so much energy. You feel inspired. And that excess weight just seems to melt away. Why is that? Because when we are in love, we are at our best. Not the other way around.
If you are waiting to love yourself until you lose that extra weight or get that promotion, you may never experience it. If you are waiting to be a celebrity only when your class is full and the line is out the front door, you will miss your moment!
One day I told one of my coaching clients that she looked as though she was in love. She was literally glowing! She looked so radiant and so happy! She quickly responded, “I am! I am in love with me!” For the first time in her life, she had fallen in love with herself. Not because she had lost weight, but because she had gained herself. She had discovered who she really was, and just how loveable she is. That has led to her becoming her natural, healthy weight, and she is now in the best shape of her life! Oh, and let me tell you, just recently she has attracted a wonderful man into her life too. Those who are celebrated are “celebrities”. And people want to be around a celebrity. Love attracts love!
I absolutely love it! This is why I do what I do!
Why do you do what you do? Tap into your passion again! (Look for my next post, Be The Instructor (Inspirer) Your Students Can’t Wait To See Again…A Lesson On Being Passionate coming next week.
Have you ever written yourself a love letter? Why not? Why wait for someone else to write you one? Then if you really want to be a celebrity, stand in front of the mirror and read it out loud! Why should we wait for our funeral to hear our eulogy?
Grateful leads to great-full! That’s right, being full of great! Your classes will be full because you celebrate the great in each and every one of those in the room (you and your students).
If you desire to be the Instructor (Inspirer) your students can’t wait to see again, give thanks for the instructor and be inspired! Can I have your autograph?
“In the field” bike fits can lead to uncomfortable situations like this!
Coming Home
Recently, during a visit to my parents, I had the urge to visit my old High School. Upon arriving, Track was in session, so I took a walk down glory lane as memories of my High and Long Jumping career came rushing back. Surprisingly, all 3 of my track coaches were still there, 20 years post graduation. Before long, I was mentoring up and coming high jumpers from 7th to 12th grade.
Coach Caroll, my head coach, was off at the discus cage working with a special student athlete. Tim recently had a bout with cancer, and though now cancer free, was blind as a result of the cancer medication. It was quite something special to see Coach Caroll verbally instruct to this athlete the technique of throwing the discus. Tim was well humored considering his misfortune, but was also clearly frustrated. After a failed throw he said “I just want to throw like a did before.” Coach didn’t miss a beat and said, “with out form, you got nothing…no speed, no distance, no power.”
Discussing form in cycling, we are usually referring to how we pedal, with force and cadence. But form can also refer to how we are positioned on the bike. In the discus event we can have great power, force and speed with the throw, but if our footprint is off, it won’t matter. In cycling our starting position or “footprint,” determines how we interact with the bike and in-turn (pun intended), improve our ability to have success.
How Class Begins
It is Monday night 5:29, 1 minute before go time. Your pre-class music is playing, there is excitement in the air with student banter, and the room is almost filled to capacity. The regulars are way set up, and have been turning the pedals for 10 minutes, eager to start the best part of their day. You strap on your mic, mount your stead, and one more person sheepishly walks in. They find an open bike and look at it like a foreign object. Then, they find the courage to look up and ask, “can you set me up?
That first 5 minutes is so important as it lays down the groundwork. Yet, this person is a fragile egg. It took everything they had to enter the room for the first time. You have an obligation to keep everyone safe with proper bike fit, and create a positive open environment, not a clique of local fitness heros. If they don’t have a good first experience, they will never come back. Remember regulars were first timers once too.
Though there is no audible sound, you sense the rooms displeasure as you step down. The Hammers are giving you and newbie the evil eye. You pinch yourself between bikes and rush nervously through the fit. Getting knee over pedal is almost impossible without shoving your spandex into some else’s personal space.
As you finish, the dominos start to fall. “Can you set me up too? Yeah me too!” 5 minutes late now and into your second song(which you spent 20 minutes picking out as the perfect progression from intro/warmup), you frantically try to get back on track. Your bike fits were sub par, attitudes are everywhere, and the mojo is gone. We have all been here, pulled in every direction. What can you do to end this tug of war between punctuality, safety, and success?
Empower Your Students!
What we need is a way to empower our students to fit themselves. We need to be just like Coach Caroll and verbally give a set of descriptive, yet simple instructions, so that any one can achieve a solid bike fit without an instructor manually turning knobs, raising and lowering saddles. At Stagesâ„¢ indoor cycling we have this simple, clever, package of verbal instructions called FastFitâ„¢.
Here is one example of our instructions that you can adapt for your own use. “Raise your saddle to the top of your iliac crest. Run your finger across from your navel to your side. Then go straight down until you reach the crest of your hip bone. Bring your saddle to this land mark.”
Will it provide the ideal fit? I can see all of you bike fit gurus scoffing and shaking your heads. I know what you are thinking. Bike fit is sacred ground, there is 3D imaging, plumb bobs, goniometers, and scientists performing this critical component. However, they are not doing this at 5:32PM, in a packed house, with minimal space. Our goal is to get people in a safe range while “in the field.”
Hannah, more than likely needs a more precise “hands on” approach for ideal bike fit.
If you walk into any cycle room it is almost guaranteed that someone will be riding with a saddle too low. However I can also almost guarantee that no one is riding with the saddle too high. Why? First, the rider will feel their foot disconnecting from the pedal at the bottom of the downstroke which is unsettling. Second, without getting too explicit, lets just say the pressure and movement on the saddle in THAT region will rub you the wrong way. Third, the rider will give a look of, “I don’t think so” based on the first two sensations. The iliac crest method, if it is to fail, will set the saddle too high. This is quickly and eagerly remedied by the student and a quick cue of:
“The saddle should be as high as comfortably possible while still allowing a flat foot at the bottom of the pedal stroke, a slight bend in the knee, and minimal hip rocking.”
Will this work for everyone? Our system achieves success with 90% of the population, and I will fully admit the seat height landmark did not work for myself (my iliac crest is mad high). But, I have seen our FastFitâ„¢ 5 step system, designed by Stagesâ„¢ Indoor Cycling and specifically for Freemotionâ„¢ S-series bikes, achieve a safe set up 9 out of 10 times through many trainings.
I encourage instructors to develop their communication skills and design a set of instructions that works for their particular bikes. Can it replace a hands on approach with fitting tools and working space for observation? Of course not. It will however, quickly create an indoor cycle experience, where comfort is king, the fit will allow for safe and effective mechanics, and the room mojo will remain high.
Gil our guinea pig is training for our next EBC (Evidence Based Cycling) project. The problem is his bike is in the shop, so he might just have to sit this one out.
Unless you have a whole team of guinea pigs as talented as Gil, you will have to recruit students or fellow riding buddies to participate in your quest for Evidence Based answers as it relates to cycling and cycling training. Naturally, fellow “data geeks” will be your low hanging fruit. However, since any over-concentration on one type of cycling demographic may skew results to just that population group, you will want to get as broad a representation of your cycling group as possible.
That being said, you can also do EBC that purposefully only applies to a given type or group of riders. For example, you may want to investigate the best ways to get a brand new rider used to the dreaded bike saddle. While opinions and experiences vary, the fact that this is an initial obstacle or deterrent to newbies would be something worth studying. This topic would easily be pertinent to just that type of rider (what we may refer to in the future as a demographic or population group).
Outside of those students that have a penchant for data and understanding the What, Where and Why of their cycling performance, you will need them to have training tools for measurement. While we do not pooh pooh subjective comments and the ever-popular RPE scale (well, maybe a little pooh pooh is justified at times), ultimately we will want to quantify our results. This in turn should lead us to a method of arriving at a more objective conclusion and testable recommendations.
Assuming you’ve identified the glorious geeks among us, you’ve confirmed that they own or have access to training tools, and you’ve got a good cross section represented in your EBC team, you’re ready to get started.
The next step is to select a topic of investigation; an initial project that will get your feet wet and help you and the group begin to learn about and experience the basic Scientific Method. Those fundamentals will be covered in the next post.
Gil our guinea pig is training for our next EBC (Evidence Based Cycling) project. The problem is his bike is in the shop, so he might just have to sit this one out.