Indoor Cycling Trainers

FreeMotion S 11.0 is an alternative to the Cycleops 300 Pro Indoor Cycle for those of you looking for a stationary indoor cycle, with the accuracy of measured power/watts, for home training.

There seems to be some confusion in the marketplace about how this new crop of indoor cycles measure power. I’ve been following all the advancements as the Host of the Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast and feel I have a pretty good understanding on this topic.

People want to know how much work they are actually doing on an indoor trainer and most of the IC manufacturers are building cycles with the option to display Watts, along with RPM and other information that can be calculated like estimated speed, total calories burned, etc…

The first Indoor Cycle with power was the CycleOps and it features their Power Tap hub integrated into the flywheel – which uses strain gauges to measure the force you are creating to display your work output. Excellent system, very accurate and for many who can afford one – the perfect indoor trainer. But the CycleOps was too expensive for health clubs / studios to consider for indoor cycling rooms with 20-30-60 or more bikes.

Enter Keiser and their M3 indoor cycle.
Keiser’s M3 was revolutionary in that it displays a riders wattage at a price point that competes with many commercial bikes like the Spinner NXT. How Keiser could offer Power, while keeping the cost down, was through the use of estimated power. To estimate the amount of power being created by the rider the engineers at Keiser programmed the computer on the M3 with an algorithm that looks at the resistance system’s position (gear position) and the cadence (RPM). The computer sees these two inputs and looks at it’s internal power chart which says; gear 13 at 90 RPM = 240 watts – and then displays it on the screen. This is accurate enough for a group cycle class, but the system is far from the accuracy many training endurance athletes are looking for.
Next Schwinn began offering their AC Performance series of indoor cycles with the same type of estimated power. The Proform TDF bike uses a similar system. All three of these brands offer a reasonably accurate system of displaying your wattage, but they all fall short when it comes to accurately.

FreeMotion and their new S series of indoor cycles are accurate because they measure, not estimate, the force you create.

They do this through a strain gauge in the left crank arm which measures the twisting force you create and the computer applies your cadence and displays the wattage… simple, accurate and without the need for frequent calibration.
I’ve been teaching on FreeMotion s 11.9 bikes for the last 3 months. The 11.9 is the commercial version with an aluminum frame. My understanding is that the S 11.0 has a steel frame but uses the same computer option. I really wish that they would make the drop handle bars standard on all their cycles.

As someone who spends endless hours training indoors (does that describe anyone you know?) I find that my motivation and consistency really depends on having a goal, or objective for all the time I spend on my bike.

Over the past 15 years my goals have evolved; first it was as simple as having the fitness to not get dropped during a local coffee ride… then it progressed to finishing near the front of a Cat 5 crit… enter Triathlon and not drowning or embarrassing myself during the run were high on my list of what continued to drive my training.

But now that I’ve “been there & done that” to the level that my genetics and time allowed, I’m left with just one real motivation – vanity.

Not vanity in the “look at me!” arrogance sense, but rather; can I look in the mirror and truly say - there’s a pretty fit looking 50 year old

OK, feeling comfortable jumping into a beach volleyball game, with a bunch of 20 year old kids, when I’m on vacation in Jamaica isn’t all bad either.

10 years as a group fitness instructor have me thinking I’m not alone. Most of us exercise/workout/train – whatever you call it for the purpose of looking good.

Sure, the competitive stuff is always there and wanting to live a healthful life is important… but looking fit and healthy is very important for me – and I’m going to guess it is for you as well.

This Triathlon coach really understands what motivates people training for a triathlon > they want to look fit, strong, maybe even ripped. Actually this coach is Ben Greenfield. He’s a friend and contributor at www.indoorcycleinstructor.com.

Ben really gets it. If I’m going to do all this work (and I’m really only competing against my PR) then why not look good – no - look ripped as the result of all the hours I’m going to invest training? 

I just found this training software but haven’t had a chance to try it. Here’s the link to check it out.

Cycling Fusion is conducting their first 12 week Winter Training for Cyclists program, starting January 15th. You can train with them live at locations in Pittsburgh, Boston, St. Louis, Denver or Beaumont, TX. You can also train virtually (like I will be) by watching the online simulcast each Saturday from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Click here for details about Cycling Fusion Winter Training
Indoor Cycling Instructor Association

The smart people at LeMond Fitness have a new Indoor Trainer, the LeMond Revolution. I includes a flywheel to give you a more road like feel. Once you have one all you need are a few Indoor Cycling DVD’s and you will be all set for those cold mornings in your basement. Maybe you will want to mix in a few Spinning classes for a little social time

 
Did you see the New Le Tour de France Indoor Cycling bike with power?