MTC Indoor Cycling Sessions
Although it would be great to be able to train outdoors on your bike all year round, living in England makes this difficult. During the winter dark nights / cold weather make it safer to train indoors. Some session are also easier to do on a turbo trainer or spin bike, where you don't need to worry about cars, traffic lights, pot-holes, roundabouts..........! We use interval training based on perceived effort (how hard it feels), heart rate, cadence (how fast you are turning the pedals), resistance/gear ratios or power to create a wide variety of sessions so there's no chance of getting bored. Training in the company of others also makes it easier to motivate yourself to work hard. Having a coach around to observe during the session means that any obvious issues with bike set-up and cycling position, pedaling technique or choice of cadence can be quickly and easily identified. Like all our club training the sessions will be structured arounf our Annual Training Plan to make sure you are ready for race season.
What's a turbo trainer? It's a special stand onto which you can put your bike which hold's it steady and provides resistance so you can ride indoors. As you can ride on your own bike then it's more specific than using a spin bike or an exercise bike in the gym.
Do I need to bring a turbo trainer and my bike to the training sessions? If you are planning on attending our indoor cycling session on a tuesday evening at Moss Side Leisure Centre then yes you will need to bring your own turbo trainer and bike. However there are spin bike and Watt Bike available at our sessions at Stretford Leisure Centre on a Monday morning and Friday evening.
When do the indoor cycling sessions take place? An overview of all our weekly training programme can be found on the main Session page. We keep our training calendar upto date with the latest information about session incase of cancellations or changes to start times. Please check it frequently!
What will be provided?
- Coach
- Session Plan
- HR / RPE tables to help judge intensity
- Music (where available)
- Fans (where available)
- Spin Bike are available for use at the Monday AM and Friday PM session at Stretford
- Exercise mats to raise the front wheel of the bike, stretching and core exercises
What do you need to bring?
- Turbo trainer (preferably fluid or mechanical) *
- Bike with slick tires *
- Cycling shoes *
- 2 x Towel to mop up sweat from you and bike/floor!
- 1 x 750ml drink (as a minimum)
- Optional: Heart rate monitor, Bike computer and rear wheel mounted speed cadence sensor or power meter!
- Ideal: Knowledge of your maximum heart rate achieve whilst cycling, maximum power achieve during final minute of a ramp test, CP5/20/30, etc
* Spin bike are available for use at the Monday AM and Friday PM session at Stretford so these items are optional
What should you wear?
- Cycling / Tri-Short (lycra with a degree of padding)
- Cycling top, running vest or t-shirt - you will sweat a lot!
- Cycling shoes
Etiquette
- Turn up 10 minutes before the start of the session so you can begin setting up as quickly as possible. At Moss Side Sessions we have arranged the room for 5 mins before and 5 mins after the 60 minute session so be sure to set-up and dismantle your equipment quickly. At Stretford we have the room for 90 minutes so things are a little more relaxed.
- It is your responsibility to safely set-up your turbo trainer and bike although the coach can be asked for advice.
- Practice setting up your turbo at home before coming to the session to make sure it is in working order.
- Make sure you have an appropriate rear skewer that fits your turbo attachment.
- Make sure tires are properly inflated.
- Bring your own tools and spare to make any required adjustments. These will not be provided by the coach.
- Your bike should be 'reasonably clean' so as not to leave mud/dirt all over the facility floor.
- As well as a towel to 'mop your brow' bring a second towel to wipe down your bike and the floor after the session.