Who are you when the Air Bike is downstairs in the back corner?

Equinox West Hollywood (my gym) is an absolute scene. It’s full of actors, models, and parasites influencers....

The upstairs setup resembles a catwalk. Rows of cardio equipment line one side with free weights & machines on the other. Between, a long walkway for beautiful people to strut their stuff in their Sunday best.

OMG who are you wearing!?

What is an Air Bike and why does it suck?

An Air Bike is a torture device mostly used for HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training). It uses a fan to generate resistance and gives you the “opportunity” to engage your upper body, too, as the handles also move. You’re pushing and pulling simultaneously, smoking your entire body at once.

The resistance is controlled by you. The harder you pedal & pump your arms, the more resistance from the fan. The harder you push yourself, the harder it gets. It’s brutal.

I’m not a fan.

What is HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training) and why does it suck?

HIIT is when you alternate between high-intensity effort and low-intensity recovery periods. Basically, push yourself to around 80-90% of your max heart rate for a short amount of time, number of reps, or a distance. Then rest & repeat. Most HIIT workouts have specific work-to-rest ratios depending on your goal or the exercise(s) being used (more on this below).

Aerobic vs. Anaerobic Exercise

Aerobic means ‘with air’ and is when your body produces energy using oxygen. Aerobic training falls in the range of 60-80% of your max heart rate and can be done continuously for prolonged periods of time (think ‘steady state’ cardio).

Aerobic training is good for building endurance and improving your overall fitness, cardio, and respiratory functions. Your heart and lungs get stronger & more efficient, enabling you to train harder and longer.

To improve your aerobic fitness using intervals, I recommend 1:1 or 1:2 work-to-rest ratio (work for 30 seconds:rest for 30 seconds, or work for 30 seconds:rest for 60 seconds) [note: this is not HIIT — it’s more like MIIT]. Choose exercises like brisk walking, swimming, cycling, or jumping rope.

While many exercises can be performed either aerobically or anaerobically, there are better choices for each.

Anaerobic means ‘without air’ and is when your body produces energy without using oxygen (I’ll spare you the scientific explanation). Anaerobic training typically falls between 80-90% of your max heart rate and is done in short bursts (think sprinting).

Anaerobic HIIT involves power, explosiveness, and a close-to-maximal effort, so you need more time for recovery. I recommend a 1:5 work-to-rest ratio (15 seconds:75 seconds, for example). Choose exercises like the air bike, sprinting, certain styles of strength training with dumbbells or kettlebells, pushing/pulling a sled, or weighted jump rope (these exercises have a higher injury risk as they require more skill and proper form, especially as you get tired).

Lately I’ve been finishing my “Push” day training sessions with a few rounds on the Air Bike using a 1:5 work-to-rest ratio… 20 seconds of max effort and 100 seconds of rest (just pedaling as slowly as possible).

At Equinox there are two Air Bikes front & center along the catwalk. When you push hard, the bikes are loud (and borderline obnoxious).

Last week, when I approached the two bikes…

“OUT OF ORDER.”

Both of them.

Welp, looks like I can’t Air Bike today. There’s nothing I can do. It’s out of my control…

I was about to call it a day when a little voice in my head whispered, “There’s a third Air Bike downstairs, you little bitch…”

“Yeah, I know... I know where there's another Air Bike! But... But I'm not going back down there.”

I reluctantly trudged down and, sure enough, there it was… in the back corner… hidden away from the world… not a soul in sight.

My moment of truth.

No one’s around to see if I’m pushing myself— hell, no one would even know if I skipped the bike altogether.

But I fucking know! And that’s all that actually matters. (and now all of you know how awesome I am. Hey, I had to tell you for the sake of this story!)

When you’re upstairs under the bright lights and feel like everyone’s watching—even though no one gives a shit and is busy in their own world—it’s way easier to push yourself.

But who are you when the Air Bike is downstairs in the back corner and no one’s watching?

That’s what matters.

Feel Great

How to feel great (in a nutshell).

Rock a Nice Little Bod

Science, definitions, ratios, percentages… sure, you want to be smart and optimize your plan. But what really matters is the intensity you bring to your workouts. You don’t have to kill yourself every workout (nor should you), but be honest— are you consistently pushing yourself to improve?

Busting your ass in real life > Creating the perfect plan in theory

Enjoy Life

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Thank you for reading.

feel great. rock a nice little bod. enjoy life.

steve