Indoor cycling has graduated from the old-fashioned, chain-and-pedal stationary bicycle workout. Group indoor cycling classes have become common workout options at health-clubs nationwide, and top instructors can help you get a great workout, one that suits your goals and abilities. Solo cycling is another option if you do not wish to join a class. Stationary biking offers several benefits, many of which are shared by its progenitor, outdoor cycling, but it also has important differences, mostly to do with environment and equipment.
Instructor-led Indoor Classes
Indoor cycling classes can help you develop consistency. Unlike outdoor cycling, indoor weather is never a factor, nor do you have to provide your own bike. A good instructor makes a difference, too; he should be a skilled indoor-cyclist, not a borrowed aerobics or yoga instructor, advises Liberty Sports Magazine. He must be able to communicate well, assess each client's basic fitness and be able to provide individual coaching with care and professionalism. Instructors who have outdoor cycling or triathlon expertise can be excellent instructors, having had experience with cycling's benefits and skill sets. Good teachers also structure their class properly, with warm-ups, cool-downs, intervals and steady-state riding.
Differences Between the Bikes
Stationary bikes differ from road bikes in construction and use. Stationary bikes typically have a single, front wheel that is air-, weight- or magnet-controlled for resistance. A stationary bike has a resistance-control feature, such as a button or knob, an adjustable seat, and adjustable handlebars between which computer panels are commonly placed. Unlike outdoor bikes, the stationary bike has no brakes, and the pedals perpetually rotate with pressure, so if you find you must suddenly stop pedaling for some reason, you must either remove your feet from the pedals or manually ratchet down the resistance -- extremely important skills to perfect prior to a class.
Indoor Air Resistance And Hills
Outdoors, wind gusts and hills can provide significant resistance, but indoors, neither air nor hills hinder you. The only resistance during indoor cycling comes from your bike's setting, and your own body weight. One major indoor cycling feature is that you can create "hills" by increasing the wheel resistance to as high or low a setting as you can handle. Hill-work can help novice riders gain experience with different intensities and it can help experienced riders gain superior fitness by allowing them immediate control of intensity and timing. Hills are usually part of "interval training," identified by Cycling Performance Tips as sequences of hard and easy efforts that allow for maximum work output and sufficient recovery.
Environment Encourages Skill Differentiation
Indoor cycling is a different sport from outdoor cycling. The scenery does not change; there are no cars or pedestrians; there is an instructor and music; and each cyclist has a fixed location. Indoor cycling is not optimal for developing pack-riding skills which, outdoors, develop agility and pacing skills. Indoor cycling does not require you to move laterally or to steer around other moving obstacles, so if you have spent some time indoor cycling and desire to train outdoors, be aware of your different equipment and your different environments.
Considerations
The benefits indoor cycling shares with outdoor cycling make it an ideal substitute if you are unable or unwilling to train outdoors. Depending on your schedule, your fitness goals and your previous experience with indoor and outdoor cycling, you may decide that indoor cycling is one of the best exercise options available.
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