Spinning class - Blade Breakaway SEZ

This ride started off with me listening to tracks from the Blade film trilogy while I was in the French Alps on a triathlon training camp. I found that the aggressive music was an excellent motivator to keep working and run a 10Km loop, especially when I would rather have taken a break after a hard 4-hour ride in the saddle. Almost all of the playlist is from the Blade soundtracks and I call it a breakaway, as the aim is to keep pushing forwards without rest, much like a breakaway trying to keep ahead of the main pack.

I've split the ride into three segments, each made up of a flat road, a fast climb, and a slow heavy climb. Each has a different purpose: the flat road means a high cadence (leg speed); the fast climb is moderate on resistance but relatively quick and out of saddle; the slow climb needs a lot of work from the legs to push against the heavy resistance. Once over the top of the climb, it's back to a fast flat road - no resting! If it looks too long to attack from the start, the first segment can be taken at a controllable 70-75% HRR, the second with more effort at 75-80% HRR and the final one at 80-85% HRR, with the final set of hill sprints taking heart rate up to 90-95% HRR.

A few words about those final sprints: (a) make sure you have climbing resistance - fast legs and no resistance means no work; (b) start on a normal slow climb out of the saddle; (c) for the sprints, increase cadence as much as possible (should not be more than 20-30% extra speed); (d) 30 second all out effort; and (e) recovering for a minute while climbing at normal speed. This requires, as does the rest of the ride, a bit of aggression and determination - grrrrrrrrrrr!!

Warm up - 3 min
Seated flat - 5 min
Fast standing climb - 4 min
Heavy standing climb - 3.5 min
Seated flat - 5 min
Fast standing climb - 3.5 min
Heavy standing climb - 3.5 min
Seated flat - 3 min
Fast standing climb - 4 min
Heavy standing climb - 5 min, including 3x30sec hill sprints
Cool down and stretching - 5.5 min

HR Profile: mine varied slightly but always remained 75-85% HRR for the entire ride.


Playlist:
High priests - Michael Flatley (Feet of Flames)
I against I - Mos Def and Massive Attack
Thirsty - Old Dirty B**tard
Bombs Away - Paris Texas
Weapons of mad distortion - The Crystal Method
Raised in the hood - Volume 10 and Roni Size
Tao of the machine - The Roots and BT
Hard Wax - Manchild
Child of the West - Cypress Hill and Roni Size
Keep hope alive - The Crystal Method
Touched by God - Katcha