Spin Classes And Indoor Cycling: Get The Maximum Benefit
February 1st, 2008 Posted by: Jim Hofman
Cycling and spin classes are two of the very best low impact cardio workouts. Popularity of indoor cycling, also known as spin classes, has exploded as more and more people recognize its cardiovascular and muscle toning benefits. Let’s talk about a few ways to derive maximum benefit from cycling, either indoors or outdoors.
Whether you’re cycling to stay in shape or to lose weight, your workout should suit your needs in the most optimal manner possible. You’ve probably heard or read about the term “fat burning zone”. If you’re trying to burn fat, you’ll need to understand how your target heart rate impacts the amount of fat you’ll burn off during your workouts.
In cycling, particularly in spin classes, you’ll go through five levels, or zones, of intensity. In order, these intensity zones are warm up, endurance, strength, interval, and race. Most classes will have you move in between the zones at various times in the class to help improve your cardiovascular fitness.
Here’s how to know and understand your heart rate. First, calculate your maximum heart rate, which is the highest heart rate you should safely attain during exercise. Simply subtract your age from 220, and that’s your maximum heart rate. Using myself as an example, I’d subtract 46 (my age) from 220 to find my maximum heart rate is 174.
Going back to the five zones, each zone has a heart rate range assigned to it, including upper and lower percentages. We’ll explain in a minute. Basically, each of the five zones has a heart rate maximum and minimum, give or take a few percentage points. Each of these heart rate ranges are calculated by taking a percentage of your maximum heart rate (the rate we just calculated by subtracting your age from 220).
The first range is the warm up range, which is also the cool down range. During this range (at the beginning and end of class), your heart rate should be 50% to 65% of maximum. Using my maximum heart rate of 174, that means during warm up or cool down my heart rate should be between 87 and 113. Doing the quick math, 50% of 174 is 87, and 65% of 174 is 113. Yes, it’s best to write these numbers down or commit them to memory so you’ll know in an instant if you need to work harder or back off on the intensity during class.
Endurance Range: 65% to 75% of maximum heart range (MHR)
Strength Range: 75% to 85% of MHR
Interval Range: 65% to 92% of MHR
Race (also known as Sprint) Range: 80% to 92%
You’ll work the hardest during the Interval and Race ranges. The endurance range is actually where you’ll spend most of your time during the class. Not so coincidentally, that’s the range where you’ll burn the most fat!
Finally, the best way to check your heart rate while exercising is with a heart rate monitor. If you don’t have one, you can place your index and/or middle finger on your neck artery where you can feel your pulse. Most spin instructors will do a six second heart rate check. Multiply your count by 10, and that’s your heart rate. Compare your heart rate to the range you’re at during the class, and increase or decrease your intensity accordingly. Here’s to a great workout!
