Friday Eve 2/28/2013

Thursday night class, it seems to be going in size, that is good.  I have a very hard time working out at night, I am a morning person, but the more I "do" my Thursday night class, the more I like it.  It seems to be a younger crowd and that brings a whole bunch of new energy.  I have began to change my Thursday night class, at least in my head, to be called my Friday Eve class!  It is the beginning of your weekend, the start of the best days of the week.

Paint It Black 3:45 The Rolling Stones
Warm up, deep breaths, get your head in the game, decide how you want to ride this ride
Our Last Night 4:12 Approaching Nirvana
Gradually increase your pace
Let There be Love 3:22 Christina Aguilera
Standing Climb for 2 minutes, get the blood flowing to those legs
One, Two Step 4:26 Power Music
1 minute jumps, 30 second rest, repeat
Alive 4:51 Krewella
Flat Road, breathe, water
Speed Racer 3:48 Moby
sprints, 30 seconds,  start at 30seconds - 1 minute you are sprinting 1- 1:29 rest, 1:30 to 2:30, one minute race pac, 30 second rest
Requiem for a Dream 3:34 Jennifer Thomas
Hill add tension
What You Want 4:04 Boys Noize
Piece of Me 8:25 Britney Spears
One More Night 3:57 Maroon 5 
Four- 4 minute sets, 1 minute up, 2 minutes in saddle, 1 minute of jumps repeat
The Wings 8:44 75% song
When I Was Your Man 3:34 Bruno Mars 
Cool Down
The Approaching Night 6:40 Philip Wesley
Stretches

LITTLE THINGS

Little Things

So much can be said about the little things.....

“I still get wildly enthusiastic about little things... I play with leaves. I skip down the street and run against the wind.” 
― Leo F. Buscaglia

“You need to let the little things that would ordinarily bore you suddenly thrill you.” 
― Andy Warhol

“Sometimes the little opportunities that fly at us each day can have the biggest impact.” 
― Danny Wallace, Yes Man

A little thing can change your whole mind about something or someone.  Just imagine a small tiny pebble in your shoe, it is not noticeable at all until it works it's way under your foot, then you feel it.  The slight pinge that something isn't right, but you keep walking.  Again you feel it and again, now you are paying attention, WHAT is that?  Where is it?  you have to adjust your stride, shake your shoe around, but it is still there.  Finally you need to STOP, take off your shoe, remove your sock and find the little bugger.  Amazing that something so small, so tiny, can STOP you in your tracks........  Little things can be very important. 

Little things..... like breathing in cycle class,  correct foot placement, correct bike set up, a little too much push on the down stroke of a pedal, shoulders pulled in a little too much during an endurance ride, sitting a little to close to the nose of the saddle, your bike seat a little too high.  You get the idea.....What is your little thing?

If it doesn't catch your attention when it is a little pebble, it will become a bigger thing, until you address it.  I find that A LOT of LITTLE things in all aspects of life tend to run this course.   So today, I am just asking you to pay attention to one little thing.......

 for example:  Breathing, feel the air move into your nose, your nostrils flare, the breath hits the back of your throat, your upper chest, upper back, abdomen expand, you can feel your spine elongate, then PURPOSELY push the air out back up your trachea, through your throat, out your nose and mouth... do it again.... grab each breath and follow it into your body and out.....be aware of what it does for you.  Connect with your breathing, with the way your body moves with your inhalation, embrace this LITTLE thing and use it to improve your yourself...

We then can go thru the whole aspect of what breathing does for you, that it will not fail you, that is the great thing about your respiratory system, if you breathe too fast, or too slow, or not at all, inevitable you will pass out and then your body takes over, the perfect, control-alt-delete for your body. 

As you increase your pace, increase your breathing, breathe deeper, exhale with more force,  your oxygen is your fuel, it drives oxygen to your blood, your muscles, your nerves, your brain, if your well-oxygenated, you are calm.

You exertion is low, you perform better physically 

By paying attention to your breathing you can sooth yourself, then you can reach down a bit deeper and expand the limits you have set for yourself.  Make every breath count......BREATHE....

I like to think of your heart as a small scared child that just woke up from a nightmare, your breathe is the parents soothing that small child back to calmness, back to stillness, back to sleep, to security, to comfort........

Now you can use this for multiple rides in the cycle room, you can use the breath example above, or break down the pedal stroke and have a whole class about the principles of pedal skills ( of course don't tell them that!  Just have them concentrate on one body part at a time, breaking down the stroke and describing it, detail by detail, Little thing by little thing)  the possibilities are endless... 

Rolling Hilly Course

Rolling Hilly Course Endurance One

January 25, 2013

I adapted this workout from a book I bought about a year ago.  The book is called

Workouts in a Binder for Indoor Cycling [Spiral-bound] Wes Hobson (Author), Dirk Friel

It has A LOT of useful information in it, if only I could find the time to devote to reading it...

One thing I did grab out of the book was how to calculate the RPMs, Count your leg movments, for example your knee's upward movement, for 15 seconds and multiple by 4, that is your RPM.  I didn't get a chance to use this for my riders in class yet, but it does help me..

Anyway on to the profile

Mother- 5:36 Pink Floyd  easy warm up song, enough tension to feel the road, deep breaths

Every Teardrop is a Waterfall 5:12 Coldplaery Ty- 30 seconds standing, 30 seconds seating 

Sympathy for the Devil 6:28 Rolling Stones - alternate legs, one minute right leg does all the work, second minute left leg does all the work, third minute work both legs, even it out, repeat

Sunshine 6:01 - Rolling hills, one minute on with tension, one minute off  with a faster pace

Do you love me 2:55 - Rest song, easy pace, easy tension( flat road) people can choose to stand during this time

Insomnia 6:45- Rolling hills as above

Let my love open the door 2:45 - Rest song

Howlin 4:16 - progressive slow hill building for this song and next, add tension every 2 minutes

Swamp 5:16 -

Zocalo 8:37 - Nice strong 75% hill, release the tension, flat road, breathe and work, let the muscles move you, drive your legs with your breath. 

No Surrender 6:37 Cool Down

Home 3:29  Stretches

Spinning Routine - Ice Age

It snowed in for 6 days, I almost felt like we were back in colonial days. We were forced to walk outside to get anywhere and actually spend time with our families. Although the best part of the snow of 2011 was the midnight walk with my husband and all four dogs. It was quiet, cold, peaceful and a perfectly clear starry night. You could see the reflection of the street lights upon the snow. It made it a glittery, crystal-like wonderland. It was so serene, and no one, not a soul was outside. If I let myself think about it, I can actually make it into a scary movie......but we don't want to ruin the moment.
Today's ride is actually nothing special, just a basic move your butt, get sweating, and burn some calories. Here we go

Ain't no Mountain High Enough 2:28 Marvin Gaye & Tami Terrell

This song will just stick in your head all day, as a matter of fact, I am singing it right now. It just gets you into a good mood, doesn't it? Admit it, if you are reading this, you are smiling now ") Warm up flat road

Live Like We're Dying 3:33 Kris Allen

Add more tension up to about a 7 out of 10, stand up, loosen up the joints and breathe, roll the head around, explain the next song

Move Your Ass 3:52 Scooter

Increase the tension about a quarter turn more, standing sprints, or preferable accerlations, 30 second standing pulls, and 30 seconds jog, repeat, breathe

Don't Stop the Music 4:27 Rhianna

30 second recovery, don't sit yet, one minute of jumps and one minute of standing jog, make sure you are clear about the "jumps" sometimes referred to as "speed Bumps". the key is to life the butt off the saddle, and then put it back down, "You ate it, you made it, YOU lift It!!"

I just Can't get enough 9:03 Depeche Mode

Rolling hills, one minute at flat road (5 out of 10) and then one minute at an increased tension, all in the saddle. keep the same pace, this should be challenging people.

Insomina 6:45 Faithless

One minute to get water, catch your breathe, and the next five our a standing run, taking off tenison every minute until you are back at your flat road. Everyone should be complaining now about the heavy tension your at, but remind them, it gets easier every minute. Just keep your chin up off your chest, weight over the saddle, and pull the knee to the chin

Restlessness 8:02 Bastien Laval

Seated flat, one minute to get water, and establish a baseline pace, one they can hold for the full 8 minutes. Now every minute at tenison, a good amount at least up to a 7 or 8 and NOW hold the same pace. AAHHH, you feel it...keep going

Struggle for Pleasure 3:51 Minimalistix

Sprint song 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off

Calabra 2006 3:53 Enur feat. Natasha

Jumps again, one minute of jumps, 30 second standing job recovery, repeat
Cue form! I would rather have them sit then make "messy" jumps

Take Me Home 7:59 Phil Collins

Seated Flat, flat road, one pace for the full length of the song, you got it the 75% song, make every pedal stroke count!!

Going Whichever way the wind blows 2:58 Pete Droge

Cool Down, stretches, probably need another cool down song here

Spinning Tip - Teaching The First Time

Butterflies in my stomach, or rather a knot.... why did I say yes, what is wrong with me? I got on my bike, trusted letter "p" adjusted the handle bars, the seat, made sure I had water. I got off my bike went and turned on my ipod after figuring out how to exactly set it up, put the batteries in the microphone, turned the fans on low, turned the lights off. Now I am ready, now I climb onto my bike and clip in my shoes, the music starts and off we go....
That was teaching my first spin class, it was on a Monday in November of 2007, I can hear my first song in my head "days go by" by Dirty Vegas. I have taught many a class since then and feel that I have grown into the role as well as changed the way I ride now. It is more of an experience and a place that I can be myself.