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Rocking a Sub-5-Hr. Ironman Bike Split...

Saturday, 11 March 2017 23:10

By Peter Kadzielawski (teamusa.com)

Initially, cycling indoors wasn’t a deliberate tactic. I was forced to take cycling indoors simply because of the weather conditions. Preparing for a late November race such as IRONMAN Cozumel or Arizona while living in the Chicago area was the main reason why I decided to take a huge chunk of my training indoors.

A late November IRONMAN meant that I would have to do some of my longest (5-6 hour) rides in October and November. And that time of the year in the Midwest can get pretty cold, especially for a long ride....

In 2010 I went out for a 5-plus hour ride in November, and about 3 hours in I was done. It was just way too cold to continue. So I rode to a gym, hopped on a spin bike and finished my session there. READ MORE

I quickly realized the benefits of riding indoors, and from that point on I did up to 85 percent of my cycling workouts indoors. Even in the summer. I designated a small percentage of my cycling to outdoors, making sure I’m maintaining my bike handling skills. Here are five of the benefits of indoor cycling.