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!
Host of the Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast - the #1 Internet radio show for and about Spinning / Indoor Cycling Instructors and Cycling Studio owners.
John is a member on the AFS (Association of Fitness Studios) Advisory Council.
Holding certifications from; Schwinn, Heart Zones, Team ICG and Life Time Fitness, John's held regularly scheduled cycling classes between 1998 and 2015 when he moved to Florida.
When the weather permits, you'll find him riding and leading outdoor groups by himself or with his Tandem partner (wife) Amy.
John is a member on the AFS (Association of Fitness Studios) Advisory Council.
Holding certifications from; Schwinn, Heart Zones, Team ICG and Life Time Fitness, John's held regularly scheduled cycling classes between 1998 and 2015 when he moved to Florida.
When the weather permits, you'll find him riding and leading outdoor groups by himself or with his Tandem partner (wife) Amy.
Latest posts by John (see all)
- ICI Podcast 238 Meet Nerd Fitness Creator Steve Kamb - April 6, 2024
- ICI/PRO Podcast #113 Explosive Power pt 3 – Video PROfile with Tom Scotto from Stage 5 Cycling - March 31, 2024
- Spinning RideBook of class profiles - March 28, 2024