Marketers have specific names for people, based on how quickly they purchase new products or embrace new technologies. The people who lined up, days in advance, to buy the first iPhones are described as innovators. Those of us who waited a few weeks for our new phone are early adopters. The few holdouts still using a rotary dial phone fall into the laggards category.
It maybe a “guy” thing, but I love new technology and feel I'm a bit of an innovator. Â I'm very comfortable experimenting with new software, especially if it includes a promise to improve my fitness or help me deliver a better class. For example; the second I saw Spotify I knew I needed to learn how it worked – both for myself, and then be able to help motivate the thousands of Instructors who visit here use it as well.
When it comes to Social Media, I hate to admit, I haven't been very innovative. Closer to a laggard. I've been privately wishing that FaceBook would fade away. You see, ICI/PRO has always been about others. My response to questions; “so, what do you do John?” has always been; “I have a platform to promote smart, talented and passionate people in our industry”.
So after multiple promptings to “get more active on FaceBook” and my realization that it isn't going away any time soon – I have finally decided to do just that… get more active on FaceBook and other platforms. Except I realized that I needed some help.
Enter Social Media expert, blogger and Indoor Cycling Instructor – Courtney Messier Lee đ
Courtney makes her living helping businesses develop their brands, online, using the various social media platforms. She has graciously offered to help me, starting with the creation of a FaceBook fan page.
Courtney joins me to discuss her plans to enhance my social profile and some of her ideas may help you as well.
You can learn more about Courtney and the services she offers, by following the (you guessed it) links to her profiles below.
Chris Hawthorne AKA Chrispins and I had a Skype date yesterday morning, to record our latest Audio Class PROfile – Four Corners. I'll be publishing it later today for all of our ICI/PRO members to enjoy.
Chris is another of the smart, talented people I enjoy promoting here. She has a real wealth of knowledge about music discovery, playlist creation and all things Spotify. With over 1,000 followers, her Spotify profile is one of the first places I go to steal find new music for my classes đ Visit chrispins1.wordpress.com and you'll understand why Chris's blog has become a real go-to place for new music and playlists suggestions for Instructors.
Before we started with Chris's profile, I hit record and we discussed her weekly music discovery tool, some common questions she gets about Spotify from new users and her trick for getting missing iTunes tracks to show up in Spotify – she calls it magic.Â
During the interview I mention a low cost (under $25) bluetooth receiver you can use to connect your iPhone/Android wirelessly to the club's sound system. Here the post for more information.Â
A compendium (plural: compendia) is a concise, yet comprehensive compilation of a body of knowledge. A compendium may summarize a larger work.
Gene Nacey with Cycling Fusion knows Training with Power – indoors and out. The Indoor Cycling Compendium for Power Training is a new ebook resource that Instructors can purchase to be well informed and comfortable communicating the finer points of Power Training into your classes.
Here's an excerpt from Sally Edwards' Forward to Indoor Cycling Compendium for Power TrainingÂ
âPower TrainingââŹâ˘ is the first book to accomplish that goal. Everything else you read is focused on the outdoor rider, but Gene knows that it is the combination of the two that builds fit cyclists. His unique approach targets the IC rider specifically, as he shows you how the principles he uses inside also work outside. Training with power meters was once reserved for only the elite cyclist, but Gene has demystified it, creating a tool and a program that the average recreational rider can easily understand. He accomplishes this feat using an agnostic approach, inviting you to apply the information in this book to every manufacturerââŹâ˘s power meter on every power meterâequipped indoor bike. As long as you have the data from the power meter, you can follow his comprehensive system. YouââŹâ˘ll love the charts and the workout tools in the book â each provides a way to translate the numbers on an IC power-meter bike into something tangible and easy to use for both the IC instructor or you, the rider.
Listen to our discussion below and then leave your thoughts about bringing this level of detailed knowledge into your classes.
Here's the link to pre-order either an iBook or eBook version and save $10.00
Cyclebeat is a beautiful Indoor Cycle Studio located in what was an old English pub in the commercial district of London. I couldn't decide which of these pictures to use, so here's the view as you walk in – fantastic… unless you're actually after a pint đ
Cyclebeat studio owner Greg Allon joins me to celebrate their first completed year in business! During the interview we discuss their “mixed membership model” (combination of monthly and per-ride payments) and the problems that occur when monthly members book a bike, but then don't show for the scheduled class – which prevents them from selling the reserved seat to someone else.
There's typically a “surprise” in every interview – something that catches me and gets my fully attention. When Greg describes the age demographic he sees in his classes (21 to 30), it's easy to understand why Performance IQ has been so helpful to making his studio a success. So successful that they're planning a Cyclebeat #2 for the near future!
Greg is also having success promoting a corporate discount rate… not by soliciting local business directly, but by encouraging the employees of those businesses to bring the information back to where they work. Effectively creating a little army of sales people to promote his studio – very clever!
Listen to the interview below – or you'll find this episode in our.
Dr Jay Alberts discovered the value of cycling as a relief of symptoms for people who suffer with Parkinson's disease, while riding a tandem bicycle in Iowa during the RAGBRAI – the ride across the state of Iowa. Based on his observations of the reduction in symptoms he saw in his tandem partner Cathy Frazier, he began clinical trials to study the affects of what he describes as “forced exercise” on someone suffering from a neurological diseases like Parkinson's.
UPDATE September 2014:
We are now offering an ACE approved ParkinsonââŹâ˘s Cycling Coach training program. To learn if you qualify click here.
Jay Alberts is a native of Sanborn, Iowa and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Exercise Science from Iowa State University in 1994. He completed his neuroscience doctoral training in 2000 at Arizona State University where he worked under Drs. George E. Stelmach and James R. Bloedel in his studies investigating the effects of ParkinsonââŹâ˘s disease on motor performance and learning.
Dr. Alberts is currently an Assistant Staff in the Department of Biomedical Engineering, within the Lerner Research Institute and the Center for Neurological Restoration , Cleveland Clinic , in Cleveland, OH. For more information on his research visit: http://www.lerner.ccf.org/bme/alberts/ . He has more than 25 peer-reviewed scientific publications in journals such as Brain, Experimental Brain Research and other prominent medical journals. Dr. Alberts serves as a reviewer for a number of scientific journals and funding agencies and his professional affiliations include, American Academy of Neurology, Society of Neuroscience and International Graphonomics Society. Dr. Alberts has had continual extramural funding for his research since 1997 in the form of grants from the National Institutes of Health, American ParkinsonââŹâ˘s disease Association and Achievement Rewards for College Scientists Foundation.
Dr. Alberts is married to Janelle and they have two children. Dr. Alberts and his wife are tandem enthusiasts.
Listen to our discussion below to get a more complete understanding of this fascinating topic – or subscribe to our free Podcast in iTunes.
Interested in offering Parkinson's Cycling Classes at your location?
Click here for more information about our ACE approved training for Coaches.
