It’s that time of year again, cold, dark, and limited time to play outside. You just had a long day at work and you know exercise will help boost your mood. But you look outside and the trees are leaning and the sun is about to set. What do you do?

You can drag yourself out of bed a little earlier and catch the sunrise before work. But like most people we’re busy and it’s hard to pull the trigger on getting out early. Plus having to deal with sub 35° weather is not that fun if you’re in Albuquerque. Cold hands and feet can make you resistant to doing this consistently every week.

Cycle Indoors

So what are you to do, how do you stay fit during the winter? I wrote an article a few months ago about the benefits of indoor training on the bike, as you may know, I am a big believer in focused training indoors. I prefer to put my bike on the Wahoo Smart Trainer and use Trainer Road as my program of choice. This helps keep me motivated and pushes me forward. I’ve chosen Trainer Road because of its ease of use in the fact that it adapts to the work efforts I put in. I typically choose a low-volume plan which allows freedom to still get out and ride with friends when the time comes. I’m also a fan of Peloton, as I mentioned in the above article, anything to build healthy consistency works for me.

FITT Principle

Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type, is the secret to success. The FITT principle is the foundation of fitness. The more frequently you do something the more adaptations will occur. Intensity can range from difficult to easy and anything in between. For optimal results, it is best to vary your days to make sure your body has time to recover. Time is dictated by what you have available. Even if it is only 30 minutes, make the effort to get on the bike and keep your Frequency up. Type is the mode of exercise you prefer. Since we are talking about cycling, the is the Type, but it can be anything you enjoy.

The FITT principle is also the rank in which you should change your workouts. Starting from the bottom, Type is the easiest to change and the best so you don’t get too bored. Time is the next thing that should be changed, 30, 45, or 60 minutes. Your schedule will help you decide. Intensity is usually what most people change first, the problem with that is we can often injure ourselves by doing too much, too often. Finally, Frequency is the main thing you should try to keep consistent. The more frequent you workout the easier it is for your body to adapt. You will start to build a more robust cardiovascular system with a consistent cardio program as well as a broad range of intensity.

Which Program is Best for You?

This depends on your goals. Your goals will help you decide how frequently you need to work out. Do you want weight loss? You need to work out more often, varying intensities, and vary your methods of training. Do you want to maintain your current fitness level? Then you will not have to work out as often, but varying intensities will help you stay fit.

If you’re like most people who start an exercise program, you want to lose weight. If you own an indoor cycling system you can check out a variety of apps that will get you off on the right track. Here are a few of my favorites:

Home Strong

Find some space and do these simple exercises 3-4x per week, 1-3 sets of 6-15 reps each. Try to commit to getting strong from the ground up. We will have a video posted soon with a Morning Movement Workout. Subscribe to our YouTube Channel to be the first to get it.

• Hinge
• Squat
• Push
• Pull
• Core

I have included this playlist on our YouTube Channel. Spend some time learning what movements you need to master. We deep dive into each topic and teach you how to master each of those movements.

If you need more help with a home strength program, just send us an email at info@theperformanceranch.com

We are here to help you reach your goals.