Spinning Indoor Cycling Class Videos

Selling for typically 1/3 the cost of DVDs, digital downloads are becoming more popular every day. Especially if you are using these for training at home and watch using your laptop. With the process of connecting your computer to a big screen TV or projector simple plug and play many are seeing no reason to purchase expensive DVDs that could be damaged.
I recently rode to Miramar Lake Loops, a beginner level training video from Ride Fit. They are new this year and their videos feature bike mounted cameras and some very entertaining group riding. Ride Fit has cycling videos in three catagories; Beginners/Recovery, Intermediate and Advanced. What changes is the intensity and amount of climbing involved.

Here’s a sample and you can see more at Ride-Fit.com
 

Amy and I taught our Thanksgiving day class to Epic Redwing, the latest Indoor Cycling DVD from Epic Planet!  - which was kind of weird actually… teaching a class of 50 while riding to a video of ourselves… at least we knew the profile

But the class loved it and you will too, especially at a 50% discount if you purchase it today.

You can use coupon code DEAL at checkout today and receive a 50% off the DVD, digital download or both.

But this isn’t just for Black Friday – we are planning to feature a special PRO/Deal of the Week every Friday! Much like Groupon for Indoor Cycling Instructor’s, our PRO/Deal of the Week will feature a different product or service, at a substantial discount, every Friday!

Look for more later this weekend…

Epic Red Wing

The Twin Cities area of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, and the neighboring Wisconsin countryside is nationally known for its cycling-friendliness. Now, you can take a virtual tandem training ride in this beautiful area with John and Amy Macgowan and friends, of the internationally renowned Indoor Cycle Instructor Podcast and Indoor Cycle Instructor Pro Website.

Take a 50-mile ride along the scenic banks of the Mississippi River and Lake Pepin, separating Minnesota and Wisconsin, on a warm July morning. What better remedy for those cold-weather blues!

This ride has it all—two climbing segments, one endurance segment and one rolling country segment—and offers a balanced workout for indoor cycling classes and home trainers.

Includes our new “Just the Ride” menu option which gives indoor trainers, coaches and instructors a choice of 60 minute and 45 minute versions of the ride to fit their training or class requirements.

OK, a disclaimer for my review of Epic Red Wing Indoor Cycling DVD is needed here. My wife Amy and I are featured in what has to be the very first Indoor cycling training video featuring tandem bicycles:) It was actually a lot of fun to film this with our friends and tandem pilots, Jean and Tony. I feel this video features the best of the Mid-West; a fun ride along the Mississippi river. We start in Red Wing, MN and cross over the river to ride south down along the Wisconsin side. The ride profile includes a long climb right after the warmup, a long endurance section where you can pre-fatigue your legs before the steep climb up to the top of the bluff over looking the river valley.

Here’s an early review from a customer;

Overall Rating: Five Stars – Fantastic! ★★★★★

What you like best: Great video as always. It was more moderate intensity than the last couple of ones which is nice for those days when you want to relax a bit more. The scenery is beautiful. I liked the short hill climb at first and then the last climb really ended it on the right now. Beautiful area, excellent ride. Excellent quality!

What we can improve: Nothing you can do to improve. It just gets better.

Other Comments: Great product, great company. Thanks for making an indoor ride fun!

I love it when I get an email that could save me money :
Endurance Films is having a Buy Two get one FREE sale on all of their training DVDs:

You can choose from 20 of their best; Triathlon, Indoor Cycling, Running and Performance Videos and the sale runs until the end of the year.

Available titles are:
Triathlon:
Triathlon: Through the Eyes of the Elite
Triathlon: Racing Faster
USAT Series – Triathlon: Getting Started
Open Water Swimming
Triathlon: Transitions
Four Keys to Long Course Triathlon
XTerra Off Road Triathlon

Performance:
Athlete’s Guide to Yoga
Endurance Core
Performance Stretching
USAT Series – Triathlon: Strength Training
Endurance Nutrition

Running:
Evolution Running
Jeff Galloway Marathon Training
USAT Series – Triathlon: The Run

Indoor Cycling:
RIDES: The Rockies
RIDES: Las Vegas
RIDES: Southern California
RIDES: North Carolina
RIDES: Hill Country
RIDES: Texas

Click here for more info

I just got an email about this new series of Indoor Cycling Videos Featuring Mark Cavendish and other cyclists from the Manx cycling team. Very cool as you can train indoors and spin along while he rides alongside his lifelong friends on his home turf – the Isle of Man.

I’m really excited by all of these new spin class videos coming out… just in time for winter. Here’s the trailer for the latest release from Endurance Films; RIDES New York – Assault on Bear Mountain Indoor Cycling DVD
 

Does a DVD – Video Rental for Spinning Indoor Cycling Classes make sense to you? I love teaching my Spin classes using virtual ride DVDs but they tend to get stale after a while. Would a DVD rental service like Netflix be of interest to you?

I could easily see teaching to a video over a weekend, popping it into the mail on Monday and then having something new show up on Friday for the following weekend. I’ve checked around but I can’t find any service with the titles that interest me.

Do you know of any? Please send me an email john (at) indoorcycleinstructor.com

Epic Planet Indoor Cycling DVDs – has just launched a FREE Virtual Cycling Studio Program. One part of the program is access to reduced price replacement DVD when you have one that’s scratch, damaged or for what ever reason won’t play.

Virtual Cycling classes are taking the indoor cycling world by storm with instructors and studios all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe using epicRIDES to bring an exciting new dimension to their classes.

From Southern California to Maine… from Florida to Washington state… from Nova Scotia to British Columbia… and in Europe too… epicRIDES are wowing classes and giving both instructors and studios an exciting new way to differentiate themselves from the competition.

Here’s what some indoor class students said about their virtual ride to Epic California – Mt. Baldy:

“I was really impressed.  I usually close my eyes when I’m spinning, but I kept looking up to see the scenery. I have to admit I took the last climb to my ’10′ and that damn clock on the screen was way too slow!”

“The Mt. Baldy ride was outstanding, as this is a ride I have actually done, so I could really relate to it. I was able to make this ride feel very real, as the video was very well done and made me feel like I was right there, doing this painful ride again. Two thumbs up to you and the producers.”

If you are an instructor or studio owner using or planning to use epicRIDES for your classes, we want to encourage your efforts! To do that, we are launching the Virtual Cycling Studio Program, which will provide member instructors and studios MANY special incentives and benefits, including:

• Discounts on DVDs and downloads
• Disk replacement program
• Discounts on indoor cycling clothing
• More to come…

To become a member, just complete their online signup form. There is no charge or obligation.

Cycling Videos online has a brand new series Climbing for Life! The Tour de Steamboat in Colorado. This 5 DVD collection has 6.75 hours of riding through the gorgeous state of Colorado. Here’s a sample.

I just got an email from Allen Jones announcing his latest Indoor Cycling Video; Epic San Diego – Great Western Loop This new DVD will be perfect for your spin class this winter.
 

Here is a sample of the new spin class video series from Global Ride shot in France.
 

“Other than I can’t see my Heart Rate Monitor… I love watching videos in your Spinning class John!”

I’ve become a huge fan of using video in my classes and using Zone based Heart Rate training to guide intensity.  But a dark room that’s conducive to watching an Epic Planet or Global Ride DVD makes reading a monitor, without a constant back-light, a real hassle.

I never leave home without my Blink

Enter my new favorite fitness toy! A Blink Heart Rate Monitor

It shows three different colors (Blue – Yellow – Red) that correspond to a Two Threshold / Three Zone Heart Rate training system. I have a lot of information about 2T/3Z if you follow that link.

It’s as low tech as you can get… Just the Time, HR and the blinking light so you can see your training zone in complete darkness.

The number of videos for Spin classes just keeps growing. More importantly, the quality of these cycling videos gets better seemingly every month.
I’ve just become aware of Virtual Active and their Advanced Cycle Series Indoor Cycling Videos and DVDs. They offer videos for running, hiking and cycling as DVDs and digital downloads. Here’s a sample and you can find more at http://www.bestindoorcyclingdvds.com/virtual

Northern Rockies Advanced Cycle – Preview from Virtual Active on Vimeo.

These Indoor Cycling class videos from Epic Planet keep getting better and are perfect for any Spin class. Here’s the trailer from Epic California – Mt. Baldy. It’s easy to see how this video can take your class on a virtual training ride along the challenging and beautiful route out of the Los Angles County city of Glendora.

This video traces the route of the grueling last half of this year’s Stage 7 of the Amgen Tour of California held on May 21.

Epic California – Mt. Baldy includes a big climb! It has over 6,000 feet of climbing with a grades between 7 – 10% and maximum grades of 15%. 95 minutes in length, the DVD includes a new “Just the Ride” menu option which gives indoor trainers, coaches and instructors a choice of either 60 minute and 45 minute versions of the ride to fit their training or class requirements.

I think I need to recuse myself from reviewing Epic Wine Country because I wrote the Training Profile for this new video. It’s actually one of my favorites and is laid out like a well organised Spinning class; 20 minutes of fast flats, followed by some great climbing, and finally a high-speed downhill run. The quality of the videography captures the Napa Valley wine country and the on-bike cameras really add to the feel of riding outdoors.

I have been using this Spinning Class Video – Pittsburgh Dirty Dozen Climbing Race in a few of my 90 minute endurance classes. It’s set up perfectly as a series of 13 structured intervals of between 2 and 5 minute climbs, with sufficient recovery in between. Excellent videography, the Pittsburgh Dirty Dozen does a good job demonstrating the incredibly steep grades of each climb. I fast-forward past the opening and have about 80 minutes of usable video for my class to watch.
Order your copy of the Pittsburgh Dirty Dozen Climbing Race Spinning Class Video and $20 of the $25 cost goes to Live Strong Foundation

If you would like more background on this annual event Pittsburgh television station WQED did an extended story on the race.

Rated “I” for Intense!
Indoor Cycling Instructor Association

Epic Planet’s video Epic Acadia is perfect for Threshold based training. The first 30 minutes are a perfect warm up with a number of short climbs I use to bring them to Threshold before we got to the climb. The graphical representation of where you are during the class is the best of any of the DVD creators that I have experienced. If you are planning a field test this maybe the perfect video to use.

Can you handle a 20 minute climbing segment?

I was sent an advance copy of Epic Beartooth Pass, the newest Epic Planet cycling video and have had the chance to play it a number of times in my class. This is an hour long climb that fits my style, as an Indoor Cycling Instructor, very well. My Monday 5:45 am Spin class is typically an Endurance class. I like them to work below threshold with a large emphasis on leg strength and endurance. We start dialing on the load and maintain it for the entire ride. Don’t underestimate the fitness of your students by feeling they will need breaks. Challenge them to make it to the top!

I have used Bike O Vision videos in my Spinning Indoor Cycling class for a number of years. I first started when I became frustrated with how my class became distracted when I played Bicycle Racing videos. I describe it as similar to watching the Indy 500; it’s mostly boring but you feel compelled to watch so you don’t miss a crash.  Bike O Vision DVDs are different in they set a mood for the room, yet I still have the attention of my class. Every DVD is only $16.95 and they offer multi pack discounts. You can find the whole catalog hear at the Bike O Vision Spinning Indoor Cycling DVDs. (Warning: their site is a bit dated but Liz and Jan Hunter are quality people and work very hard to please their customers.)