What it trains
Spinning is mainly cardio, and you control the effort with the resistance and your cadence. The quads do most of the work as each pedal is pushed down, with the glutes, hamstrings and calves helping through the rest of the turn. Heavy resistance at a low cadence is felt more in the muscles, light resistance at a high cadence more in your breathing. Standing up out of the saddle gives your glutes and calves more to do. With no footstrike hitting the ground, spinning usually feels kinder to your feet and knees than running.
Common mistakes
- Saddle too low or too high. A low saddle means deep knee bends on every turn, and a high one has you reaching for the pedal. Set it so your knee is slightly bent with the pedal at its lowest point.
- Hanging on the handlebars. Tired legs make many people lean on their arms. Hold the bars lightly, drop your shoulders and let your trunk carry your upper body.
- Every session becomes a flat-out session. Going all out every time means the hard sessions are rarely truly hard. Mix easy, conversational rides with a few short, tough interval sessions.
Variations and alternatives
- The stationary bike suits long rides at an even pace.
- The assault bike brings your arms in and suits short, brutal intervals.
- Outdoor cycling trains your legs the same way, with hills and wind adding variety.
How to plan your sessions
A steady session might be 30 to 45 minutes at a pace where you can talk in short sentences. For intervals, warm up for ten minutes, then try 6 to 10 hard efforts of 30 seconds with 90 seconds of easy spinning in between. Two to four sessions a week go a long way for most people, and how often should you train helps you fit them around strength work. Many spin bikes have a heavy flywheel that keeps the pedals turning when you stop, so ease off gradually rather than stopping dead.
Build up with a few more minutes, one more interval or a touch more resistance at the same cadence, and log time and distance so your progressive overload is there in black and white. If your knees hurt, rather than your thighs simply feeling heavy, stop and have a doctor or physiotherapist look at it.