• Do I need to bring my bike?

No. The CycleOps Indoor Cycle is a complete cycling device and it allows you to exactly mimic your own bike set-up, but without the hassle of having to lug your bike to and fro and set it up each time.

• What kind of pedals do you use?

SPD, the small diamond-shaped cleat on one side, cage and strap on the other.

• Is this training enough on its own or must I do other training?

We have seen individuals improve their performance by 20% doing this alone, but this is exceptional. We do recommend additional training and we will help you by providing additional training ideas that you can choose from depending on your time availability, who you will be riding with, etc...

• Is it possible to use regtular running shoes?

Yes, but we recommend the use of a proper cycling shoe.

• What do I do for my first class?

Arrive 10min early in order that we can help you with bike set-up and orientation.

• Are there beverages available?

Yes. There are a variety of drinks available for purchase.

• What do you recommend for parking?

Parking outside Cadence CPC is very easy. There is also ample parking in the basement directly below the centre.

• How do Cadence CPC's CycleOps indoor cycles and sessions compare to standard spin fare?

Spin bikes provide no measurement of work output, your primary fitness variable. Most do not even have cadence counters. Standard spin bikes seats tend to be oversized and squishy.

I have always been amazed that the “Spin World” in all these years has neglected the two most important workout factors in a spinning or cycling class: work output (watts) and cadence.

Only at Cadence CPC do riders have the technology that allows them to address the critical factors in properly organizing a workout – measured work output (watts) and cadence.

Comfort is another critical area where the CycleOps bikes are a vast improvement over standard spin bikes. The CycleOps can be micro-adjusted to match your body, or to exactly replicate your outdoor bike position. Seat and stem allow you to adjust height and reach independently.

Classes at Cadence CPC are organized around an individual’s fitness, and which can be measured with the CycleOps Indoor Cycle. There is no inane jumping up and down, doing pushups, or any of the other silliness that seems to populate the Spin world. In short, classes are not a random exercise experience.

Riders will be able to see their fitness grow as they generate higher power all within the context of a varied 50-60min class. My experience is that riders of every ability enjoy seeing tangible fitness gains.

In order to instruct at Cadence CPC, instructors will have been trained by Cadence – standard spin certifications do not sufficiently qualify an instructor to teach at Cadence CPC.

• How are classes at Cadence different that a computrainer class?

CycleOps versus Computrainer is a more appropriate comparison than to a spin bike. Cadence CPC was a pioneer in using power meter equipped indoor cycles for performance training. With the advent of the CycleOps 400Pro and Joule 3.0 computer, we can now offer a rider the access to superior technology and a better workout experience. Cadence CPC chose the CycleOps for its riders because of its advantages in these areas:

• Convenience

• Accuracy in Measurement

• Uniformity from one Indoor Cycle to another

• Same technology = Consistent data indoors and outdoors

• Resistance and pedaling feel

Convenience

With the micro-adjustability of the CycleOps allowing a rider to exactly replicate any position, there is no need to go through the hassle of any of these bike logistics.

In essence, with Cadence CPC’s CycleOps Indoor Cycles, you can effectively ride your own bike or the precise position of your choosing.

Accuracy in Measurement

For science and data enthusiasts, the CycleOps is the most accurate measurement device available.

The CycleOps Powertap hub features 8 strain gauges that precisely measure the torque and resulting power being generated by the rider, accurate to +/- 1.5% - Computrainer relies instead on an algorithm to calculate wattage.

Although the Computrainer is reasonably accurate, Cadence prefers very accurate, as in the CycleOps.

Uniformity and Accuracy from one Indoor Cycle to another

Where the CycleOps technology directly measures the work output, a rider can ride on any CycleOps Indoor Cycle and be assured that the primary fitness variable (work output = watts) is accurate and consistent from one device to another.

On the other hand, a single Computrainer unit will generally be consistent from one workout to the next, but will often vary considerably from one unit to another.

In a home environment where one rides the same device each time, this variability of rider data is perhaps not an issue – data might not be accurate but it is at least consistent.

However, in a group class environment where one often rides different devices, one is left wondering if increases or decreases in wattage are accurate, and whether one is truly gaining (or losing) fitness.

Taking Power to the Roads - Consistency and Accuracy in Measurement

For the rider that wants to take training to the next level and train with power on the roads, CycleOps uses the exact same technology and device, the Powertap hub.

Once again, with the CycleOps you have accuracy and consistency in measurement. Thus, the wattage that you see in your indoor cycling class will be the precise wattage that is measured on the roads, and vice versa.

Resistance Mode and Pedaling feel

Riders will quickly discover that the pedal stroke on the CycleOps has a much smoother feel than that of riding on the computrainer. The weighted flywheel gives one the sense of cruising down a freshly-paved road.

Cadence CPC believes that a rider realizes greater training benefit by practicing with CycleOps’ more natural resistance where cadence and smoothness of pedal stroke are directly related to work effort – just as on the road.

• How long do classes last?

Classes generally last 50-70 minutes.

The vast majority of riders can better improve their fitness by sharpening their effort to fit within a one hour time frame. It is always interesting to see the 2-3hr epic spin sessions, where much of the time is random movement with little resistance - punching air so to speak.

Were these riders able to measure their work effort as at Cadence CPC (average wattage, kilojoules), their sense of workout heroism would be largely deflated, and they might better consider how to accomplish the same amount of work in a fraction of the time.

• What about using HR for training?

Use of Heart Rate monitoring can be an interesting reference on training effort, but it is important to note that it is an indirect measurement, and thus of secondary relevance.

In the absence of the technology that now exists on the CycleOps Indoor Cycle to measure work output, HR-based training was the next best way to try and understand work effort.

While an interesting reference, there are important limitations to making HR-based training an effective training tool. Examples of these limitations are the following:

** HR can be affected by things other than your work effort – heat, hydration, stress, quality of sleep, and duration of work effort.

** HR measurement does not immediately reflect one’s effort – thus HR monitoring provides limited or no usefulness for shorter intervals where there is considerable delay in HR response to a particular effort.

** The relevance of HR in increasingly diminished as the duration of exercise increases. Athletes will observe that HR will simply drift up over time, even though RPE will not necessarily have changed.

** Steady HR > Diminishing Work Output
Athletes of all abilities can appreciate that an optimal work effort is one that is sustainable. However, trying to practice an even and sustainable effort by riding at a steady HR will see the contrary – you might maintain an even HR, but your work output will gradually diminish for this same HR.

Of course, a rider can begin at a lower HR in anticipation this rising and thus attempt to better effect a sustainable pace/effort. Yet, it is plain to see that it would be far more effective to directly measure the task at hand - work output in watts - thus eliminating guess-work and extraneous variables.

** Establishing Useful (credible) HR training zones
Finally, if HR training is to have relevance to the task at hand, zones must be defined on the basis of the individual, the sport, and a workout or test that indicates maximum sustainable HR.

HR training that involves arbitrary numbers (220, 180 minus age, etc.) might be methods, but they have little to do with determining an optimal training course. It is bewildering to see a group of folks out on the roads practicing “HR restricted” rides, where they all must observe the same artificial HR ceiling.