Spinning is a great way to stay in good cycling shape in the winter, when the weather keeps you indoors, or when you’re looking to shake up your routine and supplement your outdoor riding. With no traffic lights, cars, or coasting downhill, spinning is a fun and safe way to get in great shape for outdoor cycling. Here are four tips to make sure your time on the spin bike will translate to maximal gains on the road or trails.
Spend More Time Sitting Down
Spin classes emphasize standing, “running”, and “jumps” (going from sitting to standing and back to sitting in quick succession). These practices are great for keeping the class interesting and matching routines to the music, but don’t best simulate outdoor cycling where you spend most of your time sitting down. For example, if you were attempt to ride your bike in what the spinning world calls “first position” (standing, with your hands as close to the center of the handlebars as possible), you would probably lose your balance and fall under a passing school bus. To strengthen your glutes and hamstrings for faster riding (and to look better in your bike shorts), you’re better off staying seated.
Give Yourself a Goal for Every Workout
Don’t just blindly go through your workout doing what your spin instructor tells you to do. You aren’t a robot. Instead, take an active roll in your workouts. Every day give yourself a concrete goal. For example, “Today I’m going to push as hard as I can on the hills and the sprints,” “Today I’m going to win the sweat puddle contest,” or “Today I won’t turn down the resistance until the instructor tells me to.” If you set yourself a small but achievable goal each session, you will feel a sense of accomplishment after your workout, and the time will probably fly by too. When you get back on the road, you’ll be the one flying by your competitors or training partners.
Don’t Be Afraid to Ignore the Instructor
Instructors are trying to meet a whole range of needs in their classes: from those who just want to lose weight, to the folks whose social life is spinning, to the masochists there to suffer and suffer hard. If what the instructor is having you do doesn’t match your goal for the workout, then don’t be afraid to stand up, stay seated, add or remove resistance, cut your rests short, or get off your bike early. Hey, it’s your class, you should get out of it what you need.
Don’t Forget Why You’re There
Remember that you started spinning to get in shape for the road or trails. If spinning is threatening to kill your love of cycling, don’t be afraid to try something else to keep you fresh in the off season. When the sun comes back out and the roads are clear, don’t feel bad leaving your friends and instructor in spin class for the summer. Better yet, invite them out for a ride with you. They’ll probably be asking you how you got so fast doing the same spin classes they were doing!
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