8 second intervals on the road

This week in Baltimore we had record high temperatures- reaching 70°F yesterday. So I needed to get out on the roads and do some bicycle riding. The 20 min interval session of 8 seconds of work, 12 seconds of recovery works well indoors on a trainer. I was faced with how to push the intensity in a similar way on the bike.

On a quiet stretch of road, I was able to keep an eye on the elapsed time readout of the Garmin 305, but it’s not a reasonable way to ride. Eventually, I figured out that it was about 12 full pedal strokes in 8 seconds, so I pushed for 12 and then let up. On a short ride, I got into a rhythm of pushing 12, resting for about the same, driving my heart rate up to the same zone that I did on the trainer for a 20 minute session. On a longer ride, I just threw in 8 second intervals keep my heart rate up during a longer 90 minute extensive ride.

Author: James Vornov

I'm an MD, PhD Neurologist who left a successful academic career on the Faculty of The Johns Hopkins Medical School to develop new treatments in Biotech and Pharma. I became fascinated with how people actually make decisions based on the science of decision theory and emerging understanding of how the brain works to make decisions. My passion now is this deep explanation of what has been the realm of philosophy, psychology and self help but is now understood as brain function. By understanding our brains, I believe we can become happier, more successful people. View all posts by James Vornov