Beth,
I did spin classes during the winter in Atlanta. As the weather gets nicer, enjoy a nice ride on the Silver Comet. I have been xc skiing at 9,000 feet and alpine skiing which has helped me gain arm and leg strength and endurance. I even was able to do a couple 20 mile bike rides inspite of all our snow.
Even though I have been swimming little during the winter I was able to complete 4,000 meters today long course. I will be in Atlanta in May...lets ride and swim! I am wishing all of you the best at Dynamo next week. I always have competed at the meet since day one! I am looking forward to the Colorado State meet in April.
I started spinning classes about four years ago and it's helped my SDK a lot -- gave me another 2-3 body lengths off the walls.
I go to spinning about 3x a week and now that it's not getting dark until 6, I'm slowly folding in a few road rides a week. When I get to the end of my swim races, I know the legs will still be there.
Plus, doing a combination of swimming and cycling means I don't get sick of either one.
As for saddle comfort, I couldn't imagine doing it without padded shorts. It may take a while to find the right pair for you (I'm fond of Pearl Izumi's Microsensor model). Short of that, consider picking up a gel seat cover at your local bike shop.
Also, as soon as you're ready, switch to bike shoes/cleats. You'll be a lot more effective when sprinting and climbing.
You may also have to sample a few different classes to find an instructor whose knowledge/style/music agrees with you. I steer clear of the glorified aerobic teachers and seek out the ones who actually ride bikes outdoors. There's a big difference in their approaches!
I'm another big fan of spin classes.
When we first began the instructor wasn't quite the 'style' we were looking for. In my small town, it was the first spin class, so exciting to find the bikes. But we were looking for more specific trainig type workouts. Now I lead our class, as I coach these swimmers and triathletes .
It's a terrific workout and definitely is beneficial to overall fitness. I follow the season plan we are doing in Swimming so our energy systems are not overloaded. I use heart rate sets and recovery based training ideas. I include wall sits and plyometrics on some workouts. We end with 30 mins core strength and 20 min stretch.
We dubb it the 'super soaker' workout.
When training for my marathons (swim that is) I bike 90 mins to the lake, swim 3 hours and then bike back. The spin class makes my endurance and power much stronger.
Happy spinning and swimming.
Kiwi
