It was cold outside, a BURRRRRRR 24 degrees here in GA! Now that is cold, I do believe that my blood has gotten much thinner since I was a Chicago Girl. Today's ride was all about progressive loading, getting your body to accept the tension and power through it, all with steady breathing. Now it is hard to teach a class like this, hard to hold their attention, esp when we are talking about a subtle increase in tension, so subtle in the beginning that you just don't feel it. I compared it to gaining weight, you don't notice the first few pounds, they just creep up on you, right? It is not until you have gained 5 or 10 that you realize, oh boy, I can't button my jeans, or my shirt is too tight. Another visualization I gave them was digging a big deep hole with a shovel. It is easy in the beginning and you can maintain a steady pace, but as you dig deeper and deeper, you begin to hit clay, rocks, and the shovel gets heavier. Form becomes more important, you have to hold the shovel just right or your back will feel it and you become more inefficient with every shovel.
How to Save a Life 4:24 The Fray
Introduction, see above, nice flat road, big deep breathes
Secrets 3:45 One Republic
Standing flat, explain to them that there are no sprints today, no jumps, no intervals, just a steady long tedious climb. NO STANDING if you can help it, that is why I did this song as a Standing Flat so they can stretch their legs and prepare
Schiller 7:04 Schiller
First minute to get settled in the saddle, get water, and let them increase the tension to their maximum tension!! This is the top of the hill, this is where they will end up at when we are at the end of this hill. Let them feel the tension, how many turns up was it? Remind them that in 45mins I want them back to this tension, WE are GRADUALLY building up to this. Release the tension, back to a flat road, gradually add the tension back up. For example, a 1/4 turn up in tension after about 5 minutes into the song, it is barely felt, just breathe and enjoy the ride
Pride 5:42 Syntax
More building, more breathing, SLOW increase, make them concentrate, give them long periods of silence, just breathing and moving. Mention the weight metaphor, the hole metaphor..
Sweet Home Alabama 8:44 Alabama
More subtle increases, explain the breathing, longer on the way out then the way in, chin is up off the chest to allow the windpipe a clear pathway for oxygen exchange, you need oxygen to feed the muscles, to give you energy, digging deeper and deeper into that hole, adding more weight to your waist
Climbatize 6:38 Prodigy
Guess what more tension, breakdown the pedal stroke, explain the mechanics of every step of the stroke, driving the knee forward, pushing the heel down, wiping the foot backwards, and pulling the heel up to the butt. Gradually increase the tension, building and building... Digging, digging,
Lose Yourself 5:22 Eminen
Use the beat of the song to pull that leg up, add more and more tension, they should be at the maximum tension by the end of this song
We will be Strong 4:00 DJ Antione
Last 4 minutes at maximum tension, butt far back in the saddle, all the weight in the sitz bones, upper body relaxed, shoulders down the back, chin off the chest, body hinged slightly at the hip, light grip on the bars, remember that form is most important when you are working hard, like the sholving.... keep using the visualization. THIS IS HOW your body feels with all the extra weight, feel the strain on the legs, breathe, move past it, breathe
New Year's Day 9:42 U2
Release the tension back down to your flat road, breathe, stand if you need a break, enjoy the easy, fluid pedal strokes, you did it! Now climb out of that hole that you dug, nice and easy, breathe, 8 minutes full flat road, 75% song!
Come Home 4:24 One Republic
Now I didn't leave enough time for a proper cool down, and stretches, so I encourage everyone to stretch on their own, once they are off the bike
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