Spin Class vs. Trainers

BrodieBiker

I was wondering if anyone had an opinion about going to a spin class vs. using a trainer to help maintain a certain level of fitness over the winter months? As you all can see I live in Yellowknife, NT, in northern Canada. Google it if you're not sure where. Winter North of 60 (60 degrees latitude) last for a long time; sucks I know. My only options for exercising my cycling kit between mid October and end of April are spin classes or trainers. Since I don't own a trainer, spin classes have been it for me. Would it be worth it to invest in a trainer or just stick with spinning? My Spin Instructors are cyclist themselves so we tend to do a lot of cycling related drills.

Cheers and Thanks.

explosifpete

Have you thought about rollers?

cougie

As a spin teacher - i'd say go for the classes. (especially if they are run by cyclists and not aerobic teachers)

Its easier to stick to a social activity like a gym class than it is to turbo at home. This may not apply to dedicated sportspeople, but for the majority of the population - its true. If you're anything like me - with spin classes I will be fighting fit on the road for rides up to 45- 50miles from spin along - and after that - you do need to get road miles in.

warrior4life

As a spin instructor myself

i would recomend the indoor trainer, i taught spin at least 3 times a week last summer and i struggled to stay with the pack in cat 4 races.

Ive been using the turbo trainer the last few weeks and im already fitter then last summer.
i dont think the pedaling motion on a spin bike is the same as the turbo.

My legs had more muscle from spinning but personally i think the turbo is better, maybe because when im teaching i cant go anerobic cos i have to be able talk.

Si C

warrior4life wrote:

My legs had more muscle from spinning but personally i think the turbo is better, maybe because when im teaching i cant go anerobic cos i have to be able talk.

Sounds like the reason why?

I've found a local spin class, and I come away each session pretty shattered.
Plus, it's a hell of a lot more fun than the turbo at home.

schweiz

I go spinning once a week. I'm pretty sure it helps with my overall fitness but not with my cycling specific fitness. The instructor has us in and out of the saddle, bouncing up and down and constantly changing cadence and heart rate. However on the plus side, being in a class means that you stick with it for the full hour

On the turbo, I can tailor the session to my needs but it's deathly boring at times. Yesterday, i managed 1hr 6mins (10 mins warm-up, 20 mins hard effort (Lactic Threshold), 10 mins medium effort (Aerobic), 20 mins hard effort and 6 mins warm down. I had planned to do at least 10 mins warm down but I just had to get off the bike!!

However, when possible i.e. no snow and ice, I will still commute as being out on the road is always preferable.

So personally, I would go for mixing it up over the winter, throw in some running, strength workouts, stepping etc. In fact, anything that you fancy just to keep fitness up until the spring.

cougie

I cant see that you'd get any other exercise (bar turbo) that gives you more cycling specific benefits than spinning does. Providing you have a half decent teacher.

warrior4life

I hate it when they get you up and down (jumps) when i taught i kept it like a road session with lots of intervals.

I found spinning build a different kind of power and was great for leg speed, after teaching for a few years i started to come down with injuries (strange ones) i couldnt stabilise my ankles when spinning at a fast speed so my feet became wobbly as hell, this got worse and worse until i had to stop teaching.

There are some great instructors but there are also some ver very poor ones, instead of hiring external instructors most gyms and leisure centres are now training their own staff up to teach it to save money.
Now your getting people teaching spin who really dont want to.
At a David lloyd i worked at we had people teaching while hardly pedalling and actually demonstrating the sprints with their hands.

cougie

Sorry to hear about your injuries.

Yeah - clubs like to do that - freelancers cost so much more than the gym staff - and they get paid anyway whether they are mopping the showers, or teaching a class, or chatting up the pretty girls.

The popcorn jumps are bad - I never use those and never do them when I'm in someone elses class. Some people clearly havent a clue and I've seen some downright dangerous classes.

Worst one is probably the one in the pitch black with the music so loud that you couldnt hear the instructor - and she didnt even have a mike. And they packed about 20 bikes into the space of a squash court - mad !

warrior4life

ive seen other instructors gettin the class to pedal backwards as fast as possible, the spinning in the dark seems quite popular!

Toks

BrodieBiker wrote:

I was wondering if anyone had an opinion about going to a spin class vs. using a trainer to help maintain a certain level of fitness over the winter months? As you all can see I live in Yellowknife, NT, in northern Canada. Google it if you're not sure where. Winter North of 60 (60 degrees latitude) last for a long time; sucks I know. My only options for exercising my cycling kit between mid October and end of April are spin classes or trainers. Since I don't own a trainer, spin classes have been it for me. Would it be worth it to invest in a trainer or just stick with spinning? My Spin Instructors are cyclist themselves so we tend to do a lot of cycling related drills.

Cheers and Thanks.

I think it really depends where you are on the fitness continum. As a newbie or someone who doesn't do much riding a spin class will definitly help your cycling fitness. I used spin classes regularly to train for the etape back in 2004 when I didn't have a trainer. Like others however I found the out of the sadle bopping and one arm/two armed press up stuff on the bars annoying and obviously it wasn't very cycing specific...Five years on however I have a turbo and wouldn't go near a spin class unless my bike went AWOL :shock:
So if a spin class is ya only option go for it - the peer pressure of a spin class will still be better than a 'simply-turning-the-pedals-style-effort' on a turbo

warrior4life

BrodieBiker wrote:
I was wondering if anyone had an opinion about going to a spin class vs. using a trainer to help maintain a certain level of fitness over the winter months? As you all can see I live in Yellowknife, NT, in northern Canada. Google it if you're not sure where. Winter North of 60 (60 degrees latitude) last for a long time; sucks I know. My only options for exercising my cycling kit between mid October and end of April are spin classes or trainers. Since I don't own a trainer, spin classes have been it for me. Would it be worth it to invest in a trainer or just stick with spinning? My Spin Instructors are cyclist themselves so we tend to do a lot of cycling related drills.

Cheers and Thanks.
I think it really depends where you are on the fitness continum. As a newbie or someone who doesn't do much riding a spin class will definitly help your cycling fitness. I used spin classes regularly to train for the etape back in 2004 when I didn't have a trainer. Like others however I found the out of the sadle bopping and one arm/two armed press up stuff on the bars annoying


I agree! well said

lochindaal

I have been doing daily turbo sessions since the start of January.

I don't find them boring but I have got well organised. I have a dailly training plan as I am doing the etape this year which gradually changes to an out door plan as the weather improves. This structure means I am always monitoring my training and keeping it varied. It also means each session on the bike is broken down into smaller workouts which provides some variety and different challenges when on the bike. I think this means mentally you have small goals throughout the total session which takes away from the overall time on the bike and you don't get the boredom factor setting in.

I used the Lance Armstrong Performance Program as a guide as it has an easy to follow 7 week training plan. Other people will recommend other books as being better but for me as a novice cyclist simplicity was key.

I also have a ChaseK cycling DVD which at least feels you are cycling along a route and of course some music going.

choosey

Classes are great for motivation. If you can be motivated enough to go, then you will gain performance quickly.

Worked for me!

BrodieBiker

[/quote]I think it really depends where you are on the fitness continum. As a newbie or someone who doesn't do much riding a spin class will definitly help your cycling fitness. I used spin classes regularly to train for the etape back in 2004 when I didn't have a trainer. Like others however I found the out of the sadle bopping and one arm/two armed press up stuff on the bars annoying and obviously it wasn't very cycing specific...Five years on however I have a turbo and wouldn't go near a spin class unless my bike went AWOL :shock:
So if a spin class is ya only option go for it - the peer pressure of a spin class will still be better than a 'simply-turning-the-pedals-style-effort' on a turbo[/quote]

Toks:

Thanks for your insight. I have been going to spin classes for over three years and I enjoy them a fair bit. However, I agree with you when you say the "bopping up and down stuff is annoying." I never thought it was a very cycling friendly fitness drill. This past October I hired a personal trainer to help me improve my core and back muscles. I just started back to spin classes at the beginning of February. I'm hoping the combination of core workout and spinning will make me a stronger rider? We'll see?

BrodieBiker

cougie wrote:

As a spin teacher - i'd say go for the classes. (especially if they are run by cyclists and not aerobic teachers)

Its easier to stick to a social activity like a gym class than it is to turbo at home. This may not apply to dedicated sportspeople, but for the majority of the population - its true. If you're anything like me - with spin classes I will be fighting fit on the road for rides up to 45- 50miles from spin along - and after that - you do need to get road miles in.

Cougie:

Two of the spin instructors, whose classes I go to, are fair weather cycling mates of mine, so they keep their classes interesting for cyclists. Since they are husband and wife sometimes I get the impression they are trying to out do each other, in a good way, so that in itself keeps it interesting. 8)

Cheers

Mark Alexander

I did spin for over a year before I had rollers. I then stopped when I moved gyms. I always found that I was the only person who had a pool of sweat. The leader of the class was more an aerobics teacher than a cycle specific person so there were weird excersises. She was stunning though

The new gym I go to has had a revamp and I have been to 2 new classes. The new guy definitely focuses more on intervals (as much as you can) and is really tough. I was exhausted after an hour, more than others. Maybe they wern't pushing as hard a resistance. I do find that there is no air in these sessions and over heat.

My rollers are the way forward but mix it up.

thiscocks

Mark Alexander wrote:

I did spin for over a year before I had rollers. I then stopped when I moved gyms. I always found that I was the only person who had a pool of sweat. The leader of the class was more an aerobics teacher than a cycle specific person so there were weird excersises. She was stunning though

The new gym I go to has had a revamp and I have been to 2 new classes. The new guy definitely focuses more on intervals (as much as you can) and is really tough. I was exhausted after an hour, more than others. Maybe they wern't pushing as hard a resistance. I do find that there is no air in these sessions and over heat.

My rollers are the way forward but mix it up.

Glad Im not the only one who is sitting in a pool of sweat at the end of a spinning class! I always seem to be the only one sweating like a ...ermmm very sweaty thing. Perhaps we try too hard.

I think the spinning class is a good base to work on for cycling winter fitness. I do a couple of classes a week, one an hour and one 2hrs. From that you can do some shorter ones on the turbo in the gym, which I do, where you do some threshold stuff for minutes at a time. As I can't ride on the road at the moment I try to do a 2hr + spin session a week. It's harder to get off when you are in a class with women and workmates! Got to keep your pride!

Tim

Mark Alexander

I wish I had a 2hr session!! we hav a 1hr on a Friday and the othrs are 30 mins and 45. once you've warmed up you may as well not bother. So I don't.

bilbo.baggins

I think the big problem is there is such a wide range of spinning instructors and classes. If I had an instructor who suggested doing 'press ups' on the bike I would either ignore them, or more likely avoid the class.

My spin instructor is an ex Cat 1 racer and the difference between him and other instructors at the gym is very noticeable. Every class is very tailored (eg. around interval work, simulated power climbs, etc) and everyone is encouraged to use HRM's and SPD's. Climbs are 'visualised' by comparing to climbs out on the real roads and there's always advice on how bad practice on the spin bike would put you in trouble once out on the road.

So, I'd say, don't join a gym until you find a good teacher, otherwise you are at best wasting your time.