As the days get shorter, a 7 a.m. jog or bike ride looks pretty dark and frigid. For many Americans, it’s time to take the cardio indoors. Stationary bikes are a regular fixture in most gyms and offer a low impact, convenient way get a solid cardio workout, if you use them correctly.
But if you are new to stationary bikes, it can be hard to know how to get the most out of them. With just a few tips on body positioning and designing an effective workout, you can tailor indoor cycling to your preferences, time constraints and fitness level.
“The barrier for entry is virtually nonexistent,” said Phillip Kessel, a spin instructor and vice president of athletics in El Segundo, Calif.
After that, you can keep challenging yourself by adding more resistance and experimenting with intervals. Here’s how to get comfortable — and work hard — on a stationary bike.
Set up your bike.
Before you start pedaling, make sure your stationary bike is set up correctly. The most important adjustment — to prevent injury and enhance performance — is seat height.
The best place to start is at a level where your knee is slightly bent — around 25 to 30 degrees — at the bottom of your pedal stroke, said Suzy McCulloch, a spin instructor from Columbia, Md. For most people, that means setting the saddle at about hip height when standing. If you get it wrong, your knees will either come up uncomfortably high or extend too far.
Next, consider how far your seat is from the handlebars. Proper positioning will help avoid straining your back. To find the right position, stand next to the bike with your elbow on the tip of the saddle, holding your forearm flat. Your fingertips should barely touch the handlebars, Mr. Kessel said.
Once you’re on the bike, keep your back straight and not arched. Rest your hands on the handlebars, and avoid over-gripping to help relax your upper body, Ms. McCulloch said. “You should be able to take your hands off the bike and keep riding.”
Master the basics.
Getting comfortable with the resistance knob — or lever, depending on the bike — is crucial for the indoor cyclist. Ms. McCulloch recommends spending a couple 20-minute sessions simply playing with the resistance settings, spinning your legs at varying speeds and practicing standing up out of the saddle.
While still learning to bike, start with a lighter level of resistance, but make sure it doesn’t feel effortless. You should feel challenged, but in control, Mr. Kessel said. “Your pedal stroke should always be smooth and deliberate to avoid stressing your joints.”
You should also practice riding with your bottom out of the seat, which requires you to produce more power and works different muscles.
“When you stand up out of the saddle, you engage your glutes more than seated,” Ms. Evans explained.
If your body is bouncing up and down or swinging side to side, “that’s a sign you’ve got the setting too light,” said Rachel Evans, an exercise physiologist and spin instructor in Pike Creek, Del.
Most stationary bikes have a screen that displays your rotations per minute, or RPMs, which measures your cadence. In general, an efficient, smooth pedal stroke on a flat section should stay around 80 rotations per minute, a bit lower than on an outdoor bike, to get the most benefit. If you want to simulate a hill, adjust the knob until your cadence drops to 50 or 60 RPMs.
“Remember that what might feel easy at the beginning of the workout could feel hard at the end,” Ms. McCulloch said.
Try to alternate between sitting and standing — one minute each, five times through, for example. Don’t forget to turn up the resistance when you’re out of the saddle, otherwise you’ll find yourself bouncing, which can be hard on your joints.
Break into a sweat.
Once you feel comfortable, aim for at least a 30-minute workout. If you’re not using a preset course, begin with five minutes of easier spinning — at 80 to 90 RPMs — then start some interval work.
Start with five intervals with three-minute pushes at a slightly heavier resistance, followed by three-minutes easier spins, Ms. McCulloch said. This will combine aerobic conditioning with hill workouts to challenge your muscular endurance.
For a more serious hill workout, make the resistance harder — feeling like a seven or eight out of 10 difficulty — for four minutes, recover for four minutes at a lighter resistance, then repeat three more times. Progress your workout by adding 30 seconds or a minute to the harder sections or increasing the resistance.
Remember that cycling is primarily an aerobic activity. To build muscle, plan for separate, dedicated strength training sessions, instead of using the small hand-held weights that come with some bikes.
They aren’t heavy enough to provide much benefit, Mr. Kessel said, and the bike is far from the ideal platform for lifting them.
Lastly, avoid long, high cadence sessions that don’t really tax your cardio system. “If you’re just sitting there for an hour cycling with no or very light resistance, you’re not getting anything out of your time,” Mr. Kessel said.
The post A Beginner’s Guide to Indoor Cycling appeared first on New York Times.
