How To Do HIIT Workouts On Your Indoor Bike

By Robbie Ferri CPT

CPT & Indoor Cycling Instructor

Indoor cycling doesn’t have to be boring. You can make it incredibly exciting by doing different types of workouts. You could focus on long endurance workouts, do a ramp session, or even an FTP test. One of the best and most popular ways to spice up a workout is HIIT training. 

Not only does it push you to the absolute limit, but it can boost that fitness to the next level very quickly. In this article, were going to be telling you everything you need to know when it comes to doing HIIT workouts on your indoor bike by discussing:

• What Is A HIIT Workout?
• How To Do A HIIT Workout On A Bike

What Is A HIIT Workout?

HIIT stands for High-Intensity Interval Training. The concept of HIIT is to take your body to very high levels of intensity for a short period of time, then recover and repeat the process. Not only are HIIT training workouts great for improving fitness quickly, but they are also a huge amount of fun. 

Benefits Of A HIIT Workout?

HIIT workouts have a huge amount of benefits compared to a traditional workout. Here are a few reasons why we highly recommend them:

Time Efficient 

HIIT workouts can be as short as 20 minutes or as long as an hour, and in this time, you can burn a huge amount of calories and help improve your fitness very quickly. Many people choose HIIT because it’s quick and efficient. 

High-Calorie Burn

HIIT Workouts have an amazing ability to burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time. The body also requires a fair amount of recovery after burning even more calories. 

They’re Fun

Training endurance can be quite boring, being at the same intensity for a long period. When HIIT workouts are up and down, and really keep you on your toes at all times. They are so much more dynamic and fun. 

Improved Fitness

Not only do HIIT workouts help improve cardiovascular fitness, but they also are amazing when it comes to growing muscular strength too. They are excellent for overall fitness gains and can get you in amazing shape. 

How To Do A HIIT Workout On A Bike

So now you know the benefits of a HIIT workout, how do you go about doing one? Surprisingly, you probably have done something similar in a spin class. 

Step One: Warm Up

The first thing you need to do is warm up. Five minutes of riding at a light pace and slowly build in resistance until you feel ready to go. 

Step Two: Interval Sets

Now it’s time to do some sets of intervals. These can be whatever you want them to be. It could be a 1-minute hard sprint and 2 minutes easy rest spin; it could be a 10-second sprint and 50 seconds rest. We call this an interval set.

An interval set can come in many different forms, but what we’re looking for is a period of high-intensity work and a rest period. Obviously, it needs to be realistic. You couldn’t have a 2-minute flat-out sprint and 2 seconds rest. 

We recommend repeating this interval set multiple times, once after the other, to make the workout last between 20 minutes to 60 minutes long. The shorter the workout, the tougher you can make it. The longer the workout, the less aggressive you need to be.

It’s also worth mentioning that intervals can be many different things. Then don’t just refer to intensity, but they can refer to cadence (RPM), or you could even do intervals sitting and standing. Here’s an example of a HIIT workout I put together:

Step Three: Cool Down

Finally, the last thing you need to do is have a cool down. I recommend 5 minutes of riding at a low intensity and then finish with some basic stretches. 

A Final Note

HIIT training is a great way to stay in shape and quickly improve your fitness. We highly recommend it to anyone, especially when it comes to indoor cycling. Thanks for taking the time to check out our article. Ensure to check the video on the Girl Bike Love YouTube channel.