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Excel in cycling class

PETE GLADDEN
Pete’s World

Published: December 11, 2017

Well, the time is here…and honestly…I’m not too jazzed about it. No, I’m not taking about an upcoming Ugly Christmas Sweater party. I’m lamenting about the three grueling month’s worth of winter indoor cycling classes looming in my future.

Now you’d think that as a coach I’d be gnawing at the bit to get back in there to lead all those cyclists through new realms of indoor suffering but unfortunately that’s not the case. This time of year has always been a tough transition for me, going from the rhapsody of full-on outdoor freedom to the torment of full-in indoor confinement. And I have to admit that most of the cyclists who do my seasonal indoor classes share those sentiments.

Yup, it’s bittersweet making such a changeover but I know in my gut it’s right and proper. Here in Ohio, December’s the perfect time to once again begin to tackle that nitty-gritty technique stuff associated with cycling, which from an outward appearance manifests itself as nothing more than tough, brain-numbing, repetitious tedium.

But quite honestly, such irksome indoor curriculums are needed since most of us have gotten a bit sloppy after all those glorious miles of outdoor cycling. That’s why I view indoor bike training as a very necessary evil, a way to bring back those lost vestiges of form and technique.

All of which brings me to this sneaky little piece of self promotion, Excel In Cycling, is an indoor cycling program I've developed, tweaked and enhanced over the past 13 years. With a firm foundation in sports-science-based training (neuromuscular, cardiovascular and strength/power), my EIC program is a 3-month series of classes that gradually channel cyclists through increasingly more complex exercises, drills and intensity levels in preparation for the outdoor season.

As opposed to the plethora of indoor spin bike classes, where the endgame is simply getting a good workout, EIC is a program that consists of a definite means to an end, and that endgame entails becoming a more proficient outdoor cyclist.

Because the EIC classes are constructed to accommodate six different ability level groups, everyone can train together––road cyclists, duathletes, triathletes, mountain bikers and recreational riders––no matter the skill level.

All right, I’ve kind of painted this whole EIC thing with platitudes and superlatives, so let me also offer this dose of reality to would-be participants: These workouts are not the "feel good” nor “trendy" indoor cycling sessions you might find in spin studios, whose syllabuses do not include regimes which help one master the skills of road cycling.

Productive indoor road cycling workouts are mentally as well as physically demanding, because quite honestly, developing great technique in anything is darned tough work. Period. So if you aspire to ride like a smooth, technically proficient road cyclist, you must train like one, which means performing a sometimes mind-numbing assemblage of form, cadence, technique and efficiency drills - ad nauseam.

Let me finish with the specifics. The 2017 - 2018 EIC indoor season started Dec. 2 and runs through Feb. 28. Wednesday classes start promptly at 6 p.m. and end promptly at 8 p.m. and Saturday classes start promptly at 8 a.m. and end promptly at 10 a.m. Cost of a single workout is $10, and multi-day passes (good for 12 workouts) cost $100. Windtrainer rental is $5/workout and requires a reservation made at least 24-hours ahead of time.

EIC workouts take place in Hudson at the LifeCenter Plus fitness facility situated on 5133 Darrow Rd.

Workouts are held at the back of the facility in a large conference room.

To get to the workout venue use Norton Road and take LifeCenter’s rear entryway drive adjacent to Conrad’s Tire Express Center, which is two blocks east of Rt 91. Follow the drive to the far back of the facility where there’s a large parking lot and an alternative entrance/exit area. Enter through a set of double doors at the facade. Inside the facility you’ll have access to a large locker area with showers.

Got questions? Email them to me at pjgladd@aol.com. Come on down and join the party. Let’s suffer through those pangs of winter indoor cycling together.


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