Quote:
Originally Posted by dvancleve
There is A LOT about it that is super annoying for an actual cyclist, but (for me) it is 1K calories burned in an hour and a bucket of sweat.
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I taught spin classes and then RPM classes for about 10 years, started just after our son was born, needed to keep active, w/our schedules I couldn’t afford the time to train and race. Figured it was a good way to stay fit. What I learned are the following:
1. Most spin bikes use algorithms to compute calories and power and are completely unreliable. Sorry,it’s highly doubtful anyone is burning 1K calories in an hour long spin class.
2. Most spin instructors are motivators not cyclists and have very little experience teaching/instructing proper bike fit, pedal stroke, cadence, hand position, etc... as it relates to outdoor cycling.
3. Most spin instructors would be hard pressed to finish an outdoor ride lasting more than 1.5-2 hours at an aerobic pace. Forget anything competitive. They simply aren’t that fit, fit for cycling.
4. Guys/gals who think they can instruct spin classes to prepare/train for racing, road/crit, are mistaken.
5. Most who take spin classes are duped into thinking they are in “really” good shape. Doing a structured routine say from TrainerRoad or Zwift is so much more productive to building lasting fitness, but the work needs to be done. A year long episode of doing an average spin class is good exercise, but it ain’t anything close to where you’d be fitness wise if you stuck to real structured training. Of course same is true of outdoor structured training and one learns bike handling skills too.