What's a cyclist to do as the weather turns colder? Some of us will transfer from road bikes to mountain bikes and continue to ride through snow and cold. More sensible people will opt for indoor riding. But slogging away on a trainer in the basement can be uninspiring, especially as the pools of sweat puddle on the floor.
And the spin classes at your local gym? You get a one-size-fits-all hour long hammer fest. It may get the heart pumping, but I have never seen a spin class that has much to do with cycling. The typical spin class is simply an aerobic work out, like a step class.
But local trainer Giulia Isetti has another option and a brand new facility to boot. Isetti will open Body by G Coaching by G in mid-December at 1120 Chicago Ave., near Harlem and across from the Villager Food Store. She will offer group cycling classes, individualized core training sessions, nutritional advice and more.
For the last several years, Isetti has been doing personal training in her home studio as well as at the West Cook YMCA. She also has an online coaching business and delivers individualized workouts to runners, triathletes and cyclists.
Now she's ready for the big time with her own state-of-the-art studio, but her target is more than die-hard cyclists. Isetti also wants to help train the guy who used to be active but is looking to regain fitness or the woman who has a goal of riding her first century next summer.
Isetti knows what she is talking about and takes a holistic approach to training. That must be why she has a Ph.D. in bio-chemistry and teaches nutrition and food chemistry at Dominican University.
The difference between Isetti and your average trainer? Isetti is a pro. Her science background means she understands the physiology of swimming, cycling, running and training, but also how to fuel and move the body properly.
With a personalized training regime, Isetti transformed one cyclist from a Cat 5 to a Cat 3 racer in one year. This guy had tremendous power but Isetti worked on his form to eliminate side to side movements and increase speed. More importantly, through nutritional counseling, she helped this once overweight rider lose 75 pounds. He now has a chiseled cyclist's body.
Another customer, a former runner, had fallen off the fitness train. Last winter, Isetti had her join the cycling spin classes and added total body conditioning twice a week. Not only was the student's body transformed, but she road five centuries last summer.
In her winter cycling classes, Isetti creates an individual program for each cyclist to fit their wattage and maximum heart rate. While you work your own individual threshold, you are surrounded by cyclists each working their own plan.
Have someone who is hard to shop for this Christmas? How about gift certificates for Isetti's cycling sessions this winter. Or how about certificates for some personal training sessions to jump start a loved one's road back to fitness. You can find out more at g@coachingbyg.com or call 708-267-7173.
