The more I teach the more I find that the simplest profiles are the most popular. I often put together simple profiles and I'm always worried that my participants are going to be bored, but the longer the intervals and the more I repeat each set the more they love it. This gives participants more and more opportunities to understand the set and perfect how they perform it. When you combine a simple set with the science of anchoring time and effort, the shorter the interval the higher the output or the longer the interval the lower the output, it makes for a challenging and very personalized workout. I have also found the if I'm not taking the class on a “journey”, but just doing an interval based class my playlist only needs to be a mix of high energy songs, there is no need to try to match riding position or RPM with the music, just rock it!
This week I'm sharing with you a profile I used this week in most of my classes. It starts with a 5 minute warmup where I increased the intensity, wattage or HR ever minute. After a minute of recovery we did a 6 minute interval where we rode seated with a RPM of 80-110. If we were riding on bikes with wattage we remembered our average wattage at the end of the interval. If wattage wasn't available but participants had HR monitors I had them take note of either their average HR for the interval. If average HR wasn't available I asked them to take their best guess at their average HR. If the only option was perceived exertion I had riders remember the gear or resistance they were were working with and the feelings in their body like their breathing and burning sensation in their legs. After a minute recovery we rode for 4 minutes but this time we rode with an RPM of 60-80 and at a higher wattage, gear, HR and/or perceived exertion. After a 1 minute recovery we rode for 2 minutes while standing at an rpm of 60-80 and an even higher wattage, gear, HR and/or perceived exertion. After a 1 minute recovery we repeated the 6,4,2 minute set again, taking a 1 minute recovery after each interval, but this time we rode the 6 minute interval in a seated position with a RPM of 60-80, the 4 minute interval standing at 60-80rpm and for the 2 minute interval we sat between 80-110prm. After another 1 minute recovery we we rode for 6,4,2 minute interval for a final time. This time the 6 minute interval was ridden in a standing position at 60-80rpm, the 4 minute interval was ridden seated between 80-110prm and the 2 minute interval was ridden seated between 60-80rpm, taking 1 minute off between each interval and trying to increase the wattage, gear, HR and/or perceived exertion with each interval.
Finally I finished with a tabata interval of 8 X 20 seconds at max effort and 10 seconds recovery. If done properly output, wattage, gear and/or rpm will drop throughout the interval. I tell my class the output will drop but effort should not.
New Power of 3 Mix, Right Click > Save As / Save Target As to download on PC or Download Linked File As on Mac. Open in iTunes and then you'll see this in your Spotify Local File folder.
I loved watching Monty Python as a kid. One of my favorite bits was during the introduction when they cut to John Cleese, sitting at his desk, in a wholly improbable location – typically in the middle of a field, the ocean shore or behind bars.
On occasion, I enjoy offering up music that's completely different. Often it comes in the form of a unique/interesting remix.[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']
I follow DJ Henry Krinkle on soundcloud and this track (no name, just the symbol å…) could make for a fun 72RPM climb. Let me know if you agree 🙂
https://soundcloud.com/henry-krinkle/fobrmdt9raly
Not only is å… “different”, it's constructed like a short story that would allow you to narrate. Give a listen and with each change, consider what changes in terrain or intensity you'd cue.
And as a bonus free track – this remix of Ellie Goulding's How Long Will I Love You would make for a fun and “different” intro or closing track.
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!
Love ‘Em or Hate ‘Em, there's no denying that SoulCycle is enormously successful and a driving force that's responsible for much of the excitement our industry. I visited SoulCycle last fall and participated in a few classes. The purpose was to accurately report on this juggernaut of Indoor Cycling.
The bottom line IMO, SoulCycle get's it. They understand their target market precisely– everything they do is directed at female non-cyclists who ride at SoulCycle multiple times a week.
More importantly, these non-cyclist ride year-round!
SoulCycle also understands that their Instructors are what make them so successful. Now that I was able to find and then download, the new SoulCycle iPhone App, it's abundantly clear that promoting each Instructor is the main focus of the App. Not only are they featuring Instructors, they've also added links to the favorite music each Instructor plays in class. Check out the bio page for “Stacey” who I just choose at random >
Each of those album thumbnails link to a sample in iTunes. Why not Spotify? Good question. My guess: everyone with an iPhone can play those tracks. Not everyone (yet) has Spotify. I also wouldn't be surprised if SoulCycle has an advertising agreement with Apple = they might be generating some ad $$$ every time a customer views an Instructor bio.
Improvisation in theatre, comedy or Indoor Cycling is an art that can be improved through trial and practice. Learning to improvise is an important skill that will improve your class presentation and make you a more entertaining Instructor. Disappointedly, I'm just now realizing that we haven't spent much time educating our ICI/PRO members on this important skill.
One of my all-time favorite TV shows was Whose Line Is It Anyway? – In each unscripted episode a troupe of comedians improvise a skit, after being presented with unique/goofy props or are presented with an interesting storyline. The results were often hilarious:
https://youtu.be/mN4paCZXy7M
Why Whose Line Is It Anyway? was, IMO, so entertaining, was how confident the participants were. Theyjust-go-with-it > instantly responding to whatever situation they faced… no matter what it was. Part of this was natural ability, but I'll bet that each member has years of experience reacting to external forces, developing their instincts to the point where they're found to be funny/entertaining.
Instructors need to know how to improvise… to their class and playlist
[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']
In the series Hey Team > How Would You Answer This Question?, we had a bunch of great suggestions on how to connect music to your ride. I didn't share my ideas in the first two parts. I will be tomorrow and it will be geared toward practicing to improvise: adapting your cues, activities and intensity in response to what you're hearing… what the music is prompting you to do.
Depending on your relationship with your riders, you might get away with a running a fully improvisational class. Announce at the beginning that you plan to just-go-with-it and have fun. NOTE: if you're ever surprised to have a DJ show up and plan to control the music in your class > you'll be thankful for this training.
A better option may be to cue up today's free track and ride it by yourself. 40 minutes of constantly changing songs and mashups that will keep you on your toes as you improvise with each change. Give this a try and see where the music takes you. You might discover you have an undiscovered talent 🙂
