Back in 2007, I conducted a windtrainer class. I had a fleet of Minoura Mag-800’s and I hired a hall & had a great group of athletes that would join me once a week for a tough session (similar to Spinervals by Coach Troy Jacobson except I also rode with my athletes and sweated up a storm alongside them). I’ve recently been tidying up some old boxes in the garage and found my old lesson plans and the music to go alongside them. This was the third session I took. Although primarily designed for triathletes this session is great for anyone wanting to boost their FTP (yes, I was training with power back then with the old Polar WIND power meter temperamental as it was).
Each Wednesday I’ll post a Windtrainer Workout that you can do in about 60 minutes to enhance your cycling. See a previous post about training intensity (Levels) to know how hard to work. If you are working directly with Coach Ray he will in most cases prescribe either a Power Zone or Heart Rate Zone to work within if you are training with these tools.
QK WT Class III
- 4min WU Level II;
- 4x 45sec SLD, 15RI;
- 4:30min Level IV Seated Cad <80Rpm, 3:30min Level II RI;
- 3:30min Level IV Cad >100rpm, 3:30min Level II RI;
- 4min Level IV Cad >100rpm;
- 6min Level IV Standing Cad <70rpm, 3min Level II RI;
- 5x 30sec Level V, 30sec Level II RI (only 4x RI – straight into mini Ab circuit after last hard 30sec);
- 10min mini Ab circuit;
- 4min Level II CD;
- 10min Stretching
Start the workout with a four-minute Warm Up (WU) riding at Level II. Keep your cadence between 90 & 100Rpm for the warm-up.
To continue the warm-up there is a set of four, 45-second Single Leg Drills (SLD). A Single Leg Drill (SLD) is where you unclip one leg and pedal with a single leg. Focus on pedalling complete circles. Alternate legs, use one leg for the even-numbered reps and the other leg for the odd-numbered reps. Pedal for 15 seconds with both legs for your Rest Interval (RI).
There are a number of main sets the first one is a single seated hill climb rep. Ride for four and a half minutes at Level IV in a big enough gear so that your cadence is below 80 Rpm (you might find you are gear or two up from what you normally ride in for a Level IV effort). Then ride for three and a half minutes at Level II for a Rest Interval (RI), ensure your cadence is back above 90Rpm for the Rest Interval (RI).
Next up are two High Effort Spins. The first is three and a half minutes long and the second is four minutes long. For these reps ride at Level IV and ensure your cadence is higher than 100Rpm (you might find you are a gear down from what you normally ride in for a Level IV effort). Ride for three and a half minutes at Level II between reps.
After the second High Effort Spin, go straight into a Standing Hill Climb at Level IV. Get up out of your seat and stay up for six minutes and ride in big gear that will ensure your cadence is below 70rpm. Take a three-minute Rest Interval (RI) at Level II after the Standing Hill Climb. Ensure your cadence returns to above 90rpm for the Rest Interval (RI).
The next set is made up of five, 30-second reps at Level V. Between these reps ride for 30 seconds at Level II for your Rest Interval (RI). After the fifth hard rep go straight into the Mini Abs Workout.
You will now get off the bike and straight into a mini-Abdominal circuit. You will do three sets of:
- 45 seconds of holding the Plank (or what is also known as Prone Bridge) position,
- 45 seconds of Partial Curls and
- 45 seconds of Bicycles.
Take 15 seconds to rest and get set up for the next exercise and then take a 30-second Rest Interval (RI) between sets.
Conclude the workout with four minutes of riding at Level II for your Cool Down (CD).
Finish with ten minutes of stretching to assist with your recovery.
If you would like further advice feel free to contact me.
I am the Head Coach & Director of Qwik Kiwi – Endurance Sports Consultant.
I specialise in assisting first-timers and recreational athletes to achieve their sporting goals. I can be contacted at coachray@coachray.nz and 021 348 729. Make sure you sign up for my informative newsletter.
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Download the Garmin (.FIT) and Zwift (.ZWO) files for this workout for FREE
Here is the playlist that I put together for the class. The intervals line up with changes in songs with slower, more gentle songs for the Warm Up and Cool Down, with more up-tempo songs for the higher intensity portions. For the class I had a CD of music, these are the closest in duration I could find on YouTube in 2021, and if you have ads play this will push things out a bit as well and it won’t perfectly line up.
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