Although indoor cycling moves through only one plane of motion -- straight forward -- and contains only one movement -- pedaling -- you can still receive an intense workout by adjusting body position, speed and resistance levels. Indoor cycling is not weather or daylight dependent, so you can ride at any time. Remember to speak with your doctor before beginning any new exercise program.
Visualization
Your indoor cycling workout is guided by visualization. Since you are not riding outside on varying terrains, racing other cyclists or coasting down hills, your imagination is engaged during your indoor cycling workout to guide you through the different intensity levels. At times, your instructor will verbally set the scene for you and other times, your own personal goals will determine whether you are picturing one large hill or a series of hills.
Races
One way to perform an indoor cycling workout is to picture yourself in a race such as the Tour de France. Visualize yourself at the beginning of the race with hundreds of other cyclists. You begin at a comfortable pace, but then realize that you are falling behind the pack. You pick up your pace until you reach the other racers and have to continue at their pace.
Sprints
Fast paced cycling followed by a return to a comfortable pedal pace is another way to structure your indoor cycling workout. You can determine the phases by a set time amount -- for example, 30 seconds of sprinting followed by 30 seconds of recovery pedaling. You can also set your phases by your feelings of exertion. For example, sprint pedal until you cannot continue at that pace because of breathing or heart rate demands and then recover until you feel you are ready to pick up the pace again.
Hills
Indoor cycling bikes have resistance knobs that control how fast the wheel spins. Increasing and decreasing your resistance level to mimic hill climbing and descending is another way to perform your indoor cycling workouts. For example, visualize yourself at the bottom of a hill and then turn your resistance knob tighter for a 30 second increased workload as you climb. When you imagine you have reached the middle of the hill, increase your resistance further and move to a standing climb for 30 seconds. Once you reach the top of the hill, release your resistance to pedal down the hill for 30 seconds. You can immediately follow this hill with another hill climb.
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