The Danger of Indoor Cycling
In the last few weeks, I keep seeing a TV commercial about Peloton Cycling, and every time I see it I cringe. The ad is so excited to tell the viewer about their training which offers no results, no end, no reward. You just work hard all the time, every day. Isn’t that awesome… NOT!
As a competitive triathlete myself, I say this is not a good thing and as a coach I am rubbed wrong even more.
I was interested to see an email this week when one of my mentors Hunter Allen, of Peaks Coaching. He sent out his newsletter basically stating the danger of these indoor cycling programs. I am Cycling Power certified by Hunter Allen of Peaks Coaching and I respect him as one of the best cycling coaches.
He basically states that plugging in these programs without any sort of plan or program is actually a plan for failure.
To quote Hunter Directly; “With our new indoor training tools, the temptation to just race inside Zwift or ride hard on your Peloton everyday is strong, but this is a mistake. Riding hard or racing 5-6x a week inside a virtual world is a recipe for disaster as not only will you not be training the energy systems correctly, you risk riding poorly when the spring comes and you can ride outdoors. You see, our bodies don’t like continual stress. We need rest, we need a progressive ramp up of intensity and we need the correct combination of volume with intensity, and of course recovery. Just riding as hard as you can indoors everyday is not a plan for success. It’s no plan. If you do not have a plan for success, then you are planning for failure.”
I could not agree more.
So, while there are benefits of these technologies they can also cause problems without using them with guidance. There is also no substitute for specificity of riding your bike outside a few times a week. If you have a goal race in mind, following a custom, periodized plan is the best road to success. If you are interested in learning more about our group rides that help you train for drafting and non drafting races as well as online training plans, please schedule a session using the link below.
Happy riding…
Wishing you well,
Coach Erinne Guthrie
P.S. If your next right step is joining our triathlon, nutrition and holistic lifestyle program, or you are interested in learning more about Full Circle Coaching, call us at 786-586-6057 today or click this link to schedule a complimentary strategy call: http://www.scheduleyou.in/5ZIsVaU
Erinne Guthrie is a USA Triathlon Level II Certified Coach since 1999 and Chief Motivating Officer at Full Circle Coaching, LLC since 2010. She has been training, racing and coaching triathletes since 1997, Member of Team USA and Competed in over 150 races. She is also a CHEK Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 3, USMS Level 2 Master’s Swim Coach, Metabolic Efficiency Expert and Motivational Speaker, Mom, and much much more.
Insightful article and food for thought. Since my accident Erinne I’ve gained 10kg so I’m seriously considering a low fat diet which I’m unsure about as I’m riding my bike and running more as I recover. What would you recommend Erinne?