Spin bike for off-season fitness improvement
 

I know y'all are gonna beat me down for even daring to mention this, but I'm
*considering* getting a spin bike.

I know that riding is the first best way to improve bike fitness, but I can
see some definite good reasons for having a spin bike. My reasons really
depend on whether or not a spin bike is a good approximation to riding a
real bike, though.

1) I can ride a spin bike almost anytime I have time; can't do that on a
road bike for a lot of reasons.

2) I can't control the environment in which I ride a road bike, so I can't
really do intervals and work on pedaling technique like I could possibily do
on a spin bike (I've not ridden a spin bike so I'm taking a leap of faith on
that).

3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the spin
bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike inside.

Of course, I'd still ride my road bike as much as I can, but seeing as how
I'd like to focus on weight loss from now until march or so, I think I can
get in a lot more cardio on a spin bike with a TV and iPod to deal with
boredom than i could trying to find time to ride my road bike (weekends are
a sure bet weather permitting - and I do plan for a century in December).

As these spin bikes are very expensive, I'd love to have some discussion on
this either way. I know i can lose weight without a spin bike (I've already
lost 125 lbs) but I want to do it in a way that results in max boost in my
cycling performance (greater than what comes from just weight loss) for next
year. Seems like that dictates a lot of pedaling :)

"Roger Zoul" wrote:

I know y'all are gonna beat me down for even daring to mention this, but I'm
*considering* getting a spin bike.

Take a spin class before buying a bike. There has to be a gym near
you that has a class.

I took one class. It was no substitute for road riding, but it's not
horrible. Better than a trainer, for me at least.
--
terry morse Palo Alto, CA http://bike.terrymorse.com/

"Roger Zoul" wrote in message
...
I know y'all are gonna beat me down for even daring to mention this, but
I'm
*considering* getting a spin bike.

I know that riding is the first best way to improve bike fitness, but I
can
see some definite good reasons for having a spin bike. My reasons really
depend on whether or not a spin bike is a good approximation to riding a
real bike, though.

I've been checking into spinning classes in my area since my gym doesn't
offer them. Winters in southwest Ohio aren't always the best conditions for
biking. I'm just beginning to conquer the hills in a local nature reserve
and I don't want to lose that conditioning over the winter. I'm hoping the
spin classes help. They might be something to check into before investing
the money in a spin bike.

Beverly




1) I can ride a spin bike almost anytime I have time; can't do that on a
road bike for a lot of reasons.

2) I can't control the environment in which I ride a road bike, so I can't
really do intervals and work on pedaling technique like I could possibily
do
on a spin bike (I've not ridden a spin bike so I'm taking a leap of faith
on
that).

3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the spin
bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike inside.

Of course, I'd still ride my road bike as much as I can, but seeing as how
I'd like to focus on weight loss from now until march or so, I think I can
get in a lot more cardio on a spin bike with a TV and iPod to deal with
boredom than i could trying to find time to ride my road bike (weekends
are
a sure bet weather permitting - and I do plan for a century in December).

As these spin bikes are very expensive, I'd love to have some discussion
on
this either way. I know i can lose weight without a spin bike (I've
already
lost 125 lbs) but I want to do it in a way that results in max boost in my
cycling performance (greater than what comes from just weight loss) for
next
year. Seems like that dictates a lot of pedaling :)

"Roger Zoul" wrote in message ...

3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the
spin
bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike inside.


Why? It will be cheaper, take up less room, be fit to you exactly... .
Don't understand why you don't want to bring your road bike inside.

I don't think there is a boredom differential between trainers and
stationary (spin) bikes and the suggestions to try it at a health club
for a while is a good one. Even in years when I did 5,000 miles
indoor training was pure drudgery.

In article ,
"Roger Zoul" writes:

As these spin bikes are very expensive, I'd love to have some discussion on
this either way. I know i can lose weight without a spin bike (I've already
lost 125 lbs) but I want to do it in a way that results in max boost in my
cycling performance (greater than what comes from just weight loss) for next
year. Seems like that dictates a lot of pedaling :)

Not a spin bike, but some folks still like the ol' Schwinn Airdyne
because it provides more of a full-body workout. At least, there's
an upper body component. Comes complete with a human-powered
cooling fan.


cheers,
Tom

--
-- Nothing is safe from me.
Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

Get some Kreitler rollers, you won't be sorry....

Fx199 wrote:
|| Get some Kreitler rollers, you won't be sorry....

Thanks for the tip. I'm looking into this.

"Roger Zoul" wrote

3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the spin
bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike inside.


As these spin bikes are very expensive,

For the price of a spin bike, you could buy another bike and a trainer.

Peter Cole wrote:
:: "Roger Zoul" wrote
:::
::: 3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the
::: spin bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike
::: inside.
:::
:::
::: As these spin bikes are very expensive,
::
:: For the price of a spin bike, you could buy another bike and a
:: trainer.

Do you feel that trainers are any good?

I do have another wheelset that I can use with my road bike.

I'm also looking into rollers.

"Roger Zoul" wrote in message
...
Peter Cole wrote:
:: "Roger Zoul" wrote
:::
::: 3) I don't think a trainer is the good solution. I want to use the
::: spin bike inside and definitely don't want to bring my road bike
::: inside.
:::
:::
::: As these spin bikes are very expensive,
::
:: For the price of a spin bike, you could buy another bike and a
:: trainer.

Do you feel that trainers are any good?

Yeah, they're fine, just really boring. I hardly ever use mine, I prefer to
ride outdoors in whatever weather. I spent a lot of time putting together
the clothing and equipment though, and that's not a trivial effort (or
expense) here in New England.

The only way I can do trainers is to watch TV, for long, low intensity,
periods, or loud music, for short, high intensity, workouts. I only
occasionally resort to the trainer when schedule doesn't permit ouside
riding and my body is craving some work. My wife, on the other hand, uses
it pretty regularly.

My requirements are that a trainer be quiet, and stow away easily and
compactly. Mag trainers fulfill those, and are pretty cheap to boot. Before
investing in more expensive stuff, you might go the low cost route & see if
you will actually use it.

I do have another wheelset that I can use with my road bike.

I don't think you really need a separate set of wheels, it's just one more
thing to have to mess with. Trainers can be tough on tires, but I use
pretty inexpensive ones anyway.

My favorite bike for the trainer is my fixed gear. I give up the ability to
change load with shifting, but I gain the ability to pedal backwards --
which is fun, I don't know why. It also gives you that no-coast, flywheel
effect of a gym stationary bike. I control effort with cadence after
initially setting the resistance level on the unit. For hard workouts, I
choose music tempos. I have made several MP3 lists that have tempo
"profiles", with varying changes in pace. I find that to be a surprisingly
good way to set the level of the workout. My biggest problem with gym
"spin" classes is being burdened with somebody else's taste in music.