What would happen if tomorrow you showed up for your Indoor Cycling class wearing street clothes, carrying a stopwatch and clipboard, then simply coached the class?
I know a lot of us (including me) have reservations about teaching off the bike.
The note on my cue sheet at 23:30 says – get off the bike and walk around for two minutes.
What will I do?
What will I say?
Will my actions seem contrived?
Many of us battle the constant stress of being entertaining during our classes. We're tempted to get off the bike, but feel safe up on our podium, or at least comforted by the separation/distance we have between us and our students. What would happen if you decided to forget about playing the actor on stage and occasionally played the part of a coach, complete with clipboard and stopwatch?
What will I do?
What will I say?
Will my class accept me as a coach?
I can't answer the third question, but I have found a resource that I'm hoping to use to learn what to do and say; coached training videos. Videos from coach Troy Jacobson of Spinervals fame are hugely popular with cyclists training in their basements. No music, no scenic videos, just coach Troy walking around with his stopwatch and clipboard, coaching the group through a structured workout.
Part of the fun of posting here is that my enthusiasm for using structured cycling videos in my classes isn't a secret. Through the power of Google search, the producers of cycle training dvds find my posts and then contact me to review their videos. There is a new series of training videos that feature World Champion Mark Cavendish and his “mates” from the Manx cycling team from the Isle of Mann. They're produced by Three Legs cycling – 3lc.tv – and feature Professional Cycling Coach Peter Kennaugh Snr, his son – Professional Cyclist Peter Jr (Team Sky) and other riders on the Manx team.
The focus of these training videos is cadence, not heart rate or power, so I feel the profile coach Kennaugh uses will apply well to one of our classes.
Today is about “tongue in cheek” fun on a climb. At 63 rpm’s, it is versatile enough to use for a seated or standing climb. It also has the perfect feel for “lifts” while simulating getting out of the saddle for pretend potholes in the road. You could even tell a little story about riding with John and Amy on springtime roads in Minnesota after a horribly cold (is there any other kind here?) winter. The potholes here are legendary! Quick reflexes out of the saddle are necessary and much appreciated. We use high load and bring workload to AT by the end of the song at 3:19. Enjoy “Sway”, the bonus track from The Pussycat Dolls album:
Why do we have two versions? It's actually my fault 🙁
Jim Karanas is very passionate about endurance cycling and teaching endurance classes. My job as the producer is to keep the Talent (in this case Jim) focused and on track. Except while we were recording this Audio PROfile, Jim's enthusiasm kicked in and he started to stray from his prepared copy. I wasn't going to stop him while he was on a roll… so I let him continue until he was finished.
Then we recorded the shorter version.
Either way I hope you find this as helpful as I have. 6 classes so far following this PROfile and nothing but positive comments. I even used it during a lunch-time class where the participants are used to a HIT type interval profile.
Let's kick off a fabulous 2012 indoor season with ZENDURANCE – our latest Audio PROfile from Master Instructor Jim Karanas!
The difference between “just riding” and training is that, when training, you recognize that every workout has a purpose. This is easy to forget when coaching an endurance class. Many riders and fitness enthusiasts look forward to this time of year as a time when we can enjoy lower intensity — more relaxed workouts without the stress of high intensity. However, there is much more to an endurance class than “just riding”. Like any other workout, an endurance ride can serve a specific purpose but, if done incorrectly, will be of little training value.
Jim and I recorded two versions of this Audio PROfile. This one is the shorter/condensed version that we kept to 20 minutes. Look for the expanded version later this week where Jim goes into more detail about how you can bring a more “Zen like” experience to your class.
Here is a nice inspirational tune from a band out of Aurora, Colorado to use coming out of, or leading into a climb, with rpm’s of 73. There is some nice points where you could add your voice to coach and guide your class, with inspirational cueing or storytelling, to bring them to a strong finish. Check out Tyler Ward and his band The CO's “Keep It Together” from their Keep It Together EP. Happy New Year and wishing you all a fabulous 2012!!!!!
Here is the official version of Keep it Together (this version is 76rpm) for your free track! Click the little down arrow on the right 🙂 Keep It Together by The CO
Happy New Year and wishing you all a fabulous 2012!!!!!
Then Instructor Gregory Ortiz sent me a link for this BlueTooth Music Receiver that's only $20.00 and I ordered one as a Christmas present for myself – I have very simple needs 🙂 The total with shipping was a very reasonable $21.69.
I used it for the first time this morning in class and it worked flawlessly. I don't use any other BlueTooth devises with my iPhone (my previous experience with BlueTooth was with a very finicky BlackBerry) but it was very easy to pair. After a reassuring beep that signaled the receiver was paired to my phone, I fired up Spotify and like magic the music began to play. I ran around the 45 bike room to check if it would lose the connection – it worked everywhere 🙂
Then I remembered; airplane mode, John!
Unless you are interested in having your class interrupted by a call, airplane mode is mandatory when you use a smartphone… but then will BlueTooth still work? It turned out that on an iPhone the BlueTooth setting is separate and functions in airplane mode – I'll check to confirm if this is true on an Android ASAP – Yes it is.
I really like this BlueTooth Music Receiver because it doesn't use batteries. You just plug it in and connect the sound system's cord that would normally plug into your device. With BlueTooth on every smart phone, I see this as a must have accessory for any Instructor who would prefer the option of riding with their class, while keeping control of your music.
Today is about “tongue in cheek” fun on a climb. At 63 rpm’s, it is versatile enough to use for a seated or standing climb. It also has the perfect feel for “lifts” while simulating getting out of the saddle for pretend potholes in the road. You could even tell a little story about riding with John and Amy on springtime roads in Minnesota after a horribly cold (is there any other kind here?) winter. The potholes here are legendary! Quick reflexes out of the saddle are necessary and much appreciated. We use high load and bring workload to AT by the end of the song at 3:19. Enjoy “Sway”, the bonus track from The Pussycat Dolls album:
