Confusion during my spinning class (sorry; it's kind of long)

[indysteel]

I'm not sure how they're instructed at my gym or even if they're instructed. I go to two different Ys and each instructor is a little different, but I can ususually get a feel for what they mean in the context of the class. Most of the programs are pretty straightforward.

The instructor that the guy from last night replaced more or less did things by percentage of effort/perceived exertion. I purchased a HRM to use for spinning (I've recently lost my chest strap but have a pretty good idea of where I am now), so I usually had that as a guide in her classes. Even with that instruction, there was some correlation between the resistance level she was recommending to what we were simulating in class, e.g, a sprint or climb. I don't remember her ever asking us to full-out sprint during a climb.

Other instructors, as my first post indicated, correlate their resistance almost exclusively to what we're road condition we're simulating with 1-3 being reserved for recovery. I have some instructors that are competitive cyclists and I sometimes tone things down a bit to account for the difference of abilities. Otherwise, I can generally follow what the instructor is doing. That's why my confusion last night was noteworthy--at least to me.

My other complaint with last night's instructor is that he changes things up too much. We'll spend 30 seconds doing one thing, followed by 30 seconds of another, etc., etc. It's had to get in a groove. I like when they mix it up a bit, but not too much. Of course, now I'm afraid to tell him that for fear of another argument.

I feel kind of sorry for the guy because I purposely started the discussion when it was just the two of us in the room. The other instructor walked back in and interjected herself into the conversation a few minutes into it. To be honest, she and I have butted heads a couple of times before, and that's one of the reasons that I ended up feeling rather miffed. She's young and a little immature and, in my opinion, thinks she knows far more about cycling and training than she does. She turned me off early on because, ironically, on several instances, she criticized another instructor in front of the rest of the class. The criticism was not only unwarranted, but also unprofessional.

Sounds kind of drama-filled for spinning, huh? It's usually not like this. Hopefully, next week will go better.

[Bluetree]

She's young and a little immature and, in my opinion, thinks she knows far more about cycling and training than she does. She turned me off early on because, ironically, on several instances, she criticized another instructor in front of the rest of the class. The criticism was not only unwarranted, but also unprofessional.

Unprofessional behavior towards a client or co-worker is never acceptable and should be reported to the employer immediately. Doesn't matter if it's a spinning instructor, sales clerk, manager, etc. If I was paying dues, I wouldn't have put up cr@p for a second. Just my 2¢.

[indysteel]

Violette, I gauge my workouts on a number of things, but it really comes down to how I'm feeling that day. My heart runs like a bunny and I have a heard time keeping my heartrate low (I've seen it as high as 220 during a hill climb). Assuming I feel good, I generally work at a pretty high intensity. I try to spend a minute here and there doing an active recovery though to get my heartrate back down, no matter what the instructor might otherwise be telling us to do. We don't have cadence monitors on our spin bikes, so that part of it is mostly by feel. If I am feeling tired or overworked, I may drop everything down a few notches and spend the majority of class just spinning a moderate resistance at a moderate rate.

On my bike, I tend to ride long and steady, although I plan on working some intervals into my training this year. I generally stay in a range of gears that allow me to comfortably spin at 90-100 rpm. My heartrate is usually about 75% of max, although that can jump up in a headwind.

My cadence on a hill really just depends on the hill. If it's short and steep, I may just get out of the saddle and power up it. If its longer, I try to find a gear where I can spin about 70-80 rpm. I read once that you should aim for a cadence during a climb that is 85% of your "normal," flatland cadence. That's just a guide though. With each hill, you ideally find the gear that allows you to utilize both your muscle strength and aerobic capacity, without burning out either one of them. That's different for each rider.

[LadyinWhite]

On my bike, I tend to ride long and steady, although I plan on working some intervals into my training this year. I generally stay in a range of gears that allow me to comfortably spin at 90-100 rpm. My heartrate is usually about 75% of max, although that can jump up in a headwind.

My cadence on a hill really just depends on the hill. If it's short and steep, I may just get out of the saddle and power up it. If its longer, I try to find a gear where I can spin about 70-80 rpm. I read once that you should aim for a cadence during a climb that is 85% of your "normal," flatland cadence. That's just a guide though. With each hill, you ideally find the gear that allows you to utilize both your muscle strength and aerobic capacity, without burning out either one of them. That's different for each rider.

After years of using a HRM to monitor my workouts, I know myself well enough now that I don't bother with it unless I'm focusing specifically on a cardio goal. I prefer to focus on cadence these days and I found this post to be interesting and helpful. Thanks!!

[PinkBike]

kate, maybe what he was trying to say was to maintain your "intensity" instead of your tension. you see this in the spinervals and trainright videos, where they have you achieve a certain intensity (like a specific heart rate) and then carry it through different cadences.
i just cant imagine doing a superhigh cadence in the same configuration as a hill climb.

[indysteel]

Pinkbike, that's what I wondered too, which is why I asked him because he I noticed that he did not lower the tension on his bike as he increased his cadence. From what he told me after class, he may have assumed that we'd all kind of "just knew" to lower our resistance to match his cadence, but I think he'd better off specifically instructing us to do that.

I talked to the Wellness Director at the Y last night about it. He's a cyclist and spin instructor too, and he agreed that it sounded a confusing. He said that the instructor is a really, really fast spinner and may need to just tone that bit down a bit to match the abilities of the average person in the class. Interestingly, he told me that the guy is an experienced instructor and has taught at a different Y for a long time. That surprised me because he just seems a little rough around the edges.

In the end, I think my experience with this instructor is a good reminder that what an instructor tells the class to do is just a "suggestion." I may find myself doing my own thing in his class a bit more than usual. Since I'm a spinner on my bike, I prefer to really work on my form during spin class, especially on my pedal stroke. In particular, I like to challenge myself with a long seated climbs to work on my stroke and to develop the mental discipline in takes in stay outside my comfort zone while "climbing" (my weakness outside).

Bluetree, you're absolutely right. I thought about "reporting" her to management, but then didn't and really regret it. If she does it again (although the instructor she criticized is no longer teaching at the Y; she had her own issues with management) or does anything equally boneheaded, I will say something.

Thankfully, with warm weather on its way, I'll be riding outside more and spinning less. I think I could use a break from the politics of the spin room for a bit.

Thanks for all your input! Have a great weekend.

Kate

[KSH]

Well Kate, I'm sorry to hear about your frustration. It sounds like you really care about your spin class and instructor.

For me, I just do what feels like real cycling to me... when I'm a spin class. If I wouldn't do it on the road, I won't do it in a spin class. If I'm going to hurt myself... aka: my knees.. I don't do it.

Let's face it, unless we live where there are huge hills and we don't have a triple... we are RARELY going to mash the pedals with extremely low cadence, sitting down. But, spin instructors tell people to do it all the time

Good luck on getting it all worked out... but I think if you just do what feels right, it will all work itself out.

[Derf]

Let's face it, unless we live where there are huge hills and we don't have a triple... we are RARELY going to mash the pedals with extremely low cadence, sitting down. But, spin instructors tell people to do it all the time

Good point. I've started to ease up on that type of stuff since it's causing me pain in my right knee.

[indysteel]

KSH, I had to laugh at your reply because I am SO analytical and earnest about everything I do. I give everything LOTS of thought and I love to research/learn things so I'm always way more "informed" than I need to be. It's a blessing and a curse! I drive my friends nuts. Since I'm an attorney, I think I picked the right career.

I agree with about not doing anything on the spin bike that doesn't feel like riding outside. I tend to avoid doing "speed bumps" over and over again because of that. When am I ever going to have to get out of the saddle for four counts 20 times in a row?

I do like doing some harder seated "climbs" though because, sadly, the hills in my neck of the woods and in southern Indiana are often really steep (in the 15-20% grade). They're the kind that you have to just grin and bear because they're often too long to just power over out of the saddle but too steep to just spin away. So, working on slower cadenced seated climbs helps me develop the patience and capacity (I hope) to deal with the hard stuff. That said, I avoid resistance levels that are too tough on my knees. I'm still able to spin, just not very fast and not without really paying attention to my form to maximize my hamstrings and glutes. I hated doing it at first, but kind of like it now, which I hope bodes well for this season.

After all this discussion, it occurs to me that I should just get trained to be a spin instructor. Then I can do it my way, right? I would actually do that, but I don't want to commit myself to teaching evenings when I could be outside.

As an aside, can I just say how excited I am that the weather this weekend is finally going to allow me to ride outside again. I haven't since December 30th. I feel like a little kid on Christmas Eve!