I'm a big fan of controlling the energy of a class or set through music. I often look for high energy fast beats per minute songs to help push my riders to higher and higher intensities, but sometimes I like to use lower energy, yet powerful, slower beats per minute songs to force participants to slow down, focus on pedaling technique and power production at slower revolutions per minute.
I live in Denver Colorado and there are some long climbs here, it's not uncommon for a climb to last over an hour. When on these climbs it's important to maintain a "doable" intensity and find a sustainable rhythm. In the great INDOORS we often climb to max effort then recover a few times per class, but in the great OUTDOORS it's important to control the intensity so riders can make it to the top of the climb. I like to bring this controlled rhythmic type of hill simulation indoors from time to time.
This 3 song mix can be used to simulate a slow and steady climb. During the first song I like to stay seated and find a steady rhythm around my threshold wattage or HR. For the second song I like to mix between sitting and standing, I usually sit for 45 seconds and stand for 15 seconds. The third song has a few energy spikes that I like to use as surges to the top of the hill.
Give it a try and let me know if your class likes it.
[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']
This week's mix includes:
- Girl Crush by Little Big Town
- Bad Blood by Taylor Swift
- Fight Song by Rachel Platten
Download this 3 song harmonically mixed track
To download the above media on a Mac:
- Right Click on the blue underlined link
- Select "Download Linked File As"
- Select a download location
- Once file is completely downloaded, find it in the location you selected
- Drag the file into your iTunes or Spotify library OR
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- From the drop down menu select "iTunes" or "Spotify"
- File should begin playing and is now part of your iTunes or Spotify library
To download the above media on a PC:
- Right Click on the blue underlined link
- Select "Save Link As"
- Select a download location
- Once file is completely downloaded, find it in the location you selected
- Drag the file into your iTunes or Spotify library OR
- Right Click on the file and Select "Open With"
- From the drop down menu select "iTunes" or "Spotify"
- File should begin playing and is now part of your iTunes or Spotify library
Click here to watch a video on how to download media files from ICI/Pro.
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