What the Coaches Have To Say About Ride Fit™

Gretchen M. Ashton, CFT, NBFE (AAU world champion hall-of-fame strength athlete), "The narrative instructions and coaching in all of the Ride Fit videos is particularly helpful and integrates without distraction. Cycling indoors is much different than riding on the road. As a training tool, Ride Fit videos also help prepare an individual for the elements of traffic, terrain and team riding before transitioning to outdoor cycling."

Tilda Lofton (triathlete and personal coach), "The structure is very well thought out and they are easy to follow. The combination of resistance setting, RPM, effort and the narrative guidance makes it easy to get a really good workout."

Jamie Sarbacker (Indoor cycling instructor), "The Ride Fit video series delivers challenging workouts that are great for beginners or experienced cyclists looking to push it to the next level."

Learn more about these coaches who have evaluated the Ride Fit series of indoor cycle training videos below. Hear a little about their training philosophy and how the Ride Fit series will help you maximize your workout time.

Gretchen M. Ashton, CFT, NBFE

Born in Rochester, New York my family ventured west while I was quite young. I grew up in Arizona and family outings included camping and hiking all over the state. One summer my mother bought me a 20-volume set of books called "The Ocean World of Jacques Cousteau". An avid reader, I read the entire set, several times. On 110-degree summer days I often looked through the books and imagined myself swimming in the ocean. In 1986, I married and moved to southern California. We immediately began to enjoy the Pacific Ocean learning to sail and kayak. On the recommendation of a friend, scuba diving seemed a natural next step. Along the way, I became a fitness professional and competitive strength athlete setting 21 AAU American and world records. My passion is teaching and motivating others to fitness. The healthier we are the longer we will be able to participate in outdoor activities like scuba diving.

Gretchen M. Ashton, CFT, NBFE, developed ScubaFit®and the FitDiver® program. She is registered with the National Board of Fitness Examiners, is an International Sports Sciences Association personal trainer and fitness therapist, and an AAU world champion hall-of-fame strength athlete. An advanced scuba diver, Gretchen is the co-author and fitness instructor trainer for the PADI ScubaFit® Diver Distinctive Specialty Course, and an Expert Speaker for Los Angeles County Scuba Advanced Diver Program and Underwater Instructor Certification Course. She is the Health and Fitness Contributor for California Diver Magazine, has been published in Alert Diver United States and Asia-Pacific, Divetime.com, Examiner.com, and has appeared on Scuba Radio. She has also been featured in the President's Council of Physical Fitness and Sports newsletter for inspiring and innovative accomplishments in fitness, and in the culinary column of the Margaritaville Key West website.

Cycling is excellent aerobic exercise to maintain cardiorespiratory fitness. The Ride Fit videos cover Beginners through Advanced levels allowing the user to experience a wide variety of workouts with differing benefits. For instance, "Fiesta Island Fun" incorporates the 70% and 80% training heart rate zones I recommend for anyone looking to maintain a good level of general fitness. Divers benefit greatly by training in both zones in the same session and Ride Fit's Fiesta Island Fun title accomplishes just this.

"Three Times Up, Three Ways Down" is a great cycling workout for divers transitioning from foundational to endurance training. It is also ideal for fat burning cardio which, requires a longer aerobic exercise session. This video tour in the shadow of Mt. Baldy incorporates climbing intervals with periods of downhill recovery. Divers can train at their own fitness level and progress at an individual pace. In addition to the digital dashboard, divers may apply the BORG Rate of Perceived Exertion Scale (a subjective measure from 6 to 20 of how difficult exercise feels) in a range of 12 to 14 (moderate to somewhat hard) that translates well to moderate-intensity scuba diving activities. Pushing into the 14 to 16 (hard) range for short and well-tolerated bouts will help improve endurance and create fitness reserve for unexpected or more challenging scuba diving experiences. The music track is motivating and the lyrics meaningful.

Another of my Ride Fit favorites is the Advanced ride "Alpine Challenge". Users who wish to take their training to this level will master it with a goal of performing the entire ride without exceeding their 80% training heart rate zone. This intense climbing tour is an excellent test of a high level of endurance demonstrating good aerobic capacity of the heart and lungs, and efficient utilization of oxygen by the muscles.

The narrative instructions and coaching in all of the Ride Fit videos is particularly helpful and integrates without distraction. Cycling indoors is much different than riding on the road. As a training tool, Ride Fit videos also help prepare an individual for the elements of traffic, terrain and team riding before transitioning to outdoor cycling.

Tilda Loftin

Fitness and wellness has always been a big part of my life. I was born and raised in Sweden. As a child I enjoyed running and cross-country skiing. When I was 12 years old I started triathlon and have been hooked ever since. The beauty of the three different elements is what interested me the most. At age 16 I was accepted into triathlon high school, a school with triathlon practice integrated along with academics. Those three years are among the most important and formative experiences in my life. It taught me the importance of effort, discipline and hard work necessary to achieve my goals. Every year we went to the Spanish mainland or Lanzarote on training camps to escape the Swedish winter. I finished up my senior year with placing third at the Swedish Junior Nationals on Olympic distance.

I have always been driven by the need to challenge myself and to explore opportunities so I moved to California to attend college and continue my triathlon career. I did my first Ironman 2005 and graduated 2006 with a degree in Human performance/Athletic Injury care from Foothill College. In 2007 I qualified for the 70.3 World Championships in Florida while being a part of a Mark Allen coached team.

I'm a certified personal fitness trainer and certified massage therapist. My primary goal with my clients (visit www.vitaleffortfitness.com for more details) is to provide a well planned program with a focus on the client's goals and needs. I'm a strong believer of the importance of goal setting and each training session should have a focus. I have worked as a personal fitness trainer/coach for ten years and based on my experiences as an athlete and coach I strongly recommend you have a training plan. Whether your goal is to lose weight or race a triathlon, a specific training plan is going to help you achieve your goals faster.

As a native Swede, we spend many hours on the spin bike or the trainer to make up for the lack of outdoor riding during the winter. I wish I had had the Ride Fit videos at that time; the videos are great! The structure is very well thought out and they are easy to follow. The combination of resistance setting, RPM, effort and the narrative guidance makes it easy to get a really good workout. Each training video has a focus and goal and as a coach I strongly recommend these videos if you want to get a great workout and get one ride closer to your goal.

Jamie Sarbacker

I am one of the lucky people that gets paid to pursue my passion. I have worked as a personal trainer and group fitness instructor for the past six years. This profession is ideal for me because I love working out and motivating others. I hold several certifications including AFAA Personal Training, Mad Dogg Spinning® and Peak Pilates®, Mat. My weekly workload is considerable, with conditioning, outdoor boot camp, Spin and mat Pilates classes.

Fitness has always been an important part of my adult life. For years I played competitive tennis and ran long distances. Unfortunately, a serious back injury forced me to make changes to my fitness routine. I turned to indoor cycling as a way to stay in shape and find mental well being.

Though I am fond of all types of workouts, Spinning is my favorite. I am passionate about it because I LOVE it. It's one of the best forms of exercise you can do and anyone can do it. With indoor cycling, you get that feeling of well being that is only possible with intense cardio training.

I respect that gyms are not for everyone; they can be expensive and inconvenient. The Ride Fit video series delivers challenging workouts that are great for beginners or experienced cyclists looking to push it to the next level but who can't go to the gym or take it on the road.

The Ride Fit video workouts are entertaining, unique and organized in a way that is a perfect alternative or supplement to a normal cycling routine. The graphics are high quality and the music is inspiring. Creating an effective workout can be time consuming. The Ride Fit series requires zero planning and the best part is that the rides are not only structured but seriously sweat inducing.