20-minute spin workout: Short, sharp efforts with Conor Dunne
Follow Conor on this quick but intense indoor cycling workout. Perfect for building sprint power and burning calories
James Howell-Jones
Junior Writer
Conor leads a 20-minute indoor cycling workout focused on short, sharp efforts. After a 5-minute warm-up, the hard efforts come thick and fast. This is a great at-home training session when you’re short on time!
For this session, you'll need an indoor bike, whether that's a smart trainer, spin bike or exercise bike. Keep a water bottle and a towel within reach so you can stay hydrated and catch any sweat.
Read more: Turbo trainer vs exercise bike: Which is best for indoor cycling?
Are quick interval training sessions a good workout for burning fat?
High-intensity training is a really time-efficient way to burn calories. Sprint intervals will burn more calories in a shorter period of time than steady-state exercises, so if you want to squeeze fat-burning exercise into your busy schedule, HIIT training sessions like this one are a good idea. To learn more about how high-intensity exercise helps with fat loss, have a look at this study.
Read more: Zwift training challenge: How fit can you get using a turbo trainer?
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Warm up on your smart trainer or spin bike for five minutes
We'll start with a gradual warm-up. Following Conor's lead, slowly ramp up from 3/10 to 5/10, before bringing the intensity right down to 2/10 to get your breath back. You should be feeling fresh and warmed up, ready for the tough efforts to come.
Sprint intervals: follow Conor's lead as we gradually increase the intensity
This session alternates between high-intensity efforts and low-intensity recovery periods. Keep listening out for Conor's instructions, as every effort is slightly different. This session consists of two 'ramps' – two sets of efforts that gradually get harder, starting at 7/10 and finishing on 9/10.
Top Tip
This session is only 20 minutes, so keep pushing right the way through these efforts. It'll be over before you know it!
Cool down on your bike by spinning out your legs
With the session over, all that's left is to spin out the legs. As this session is crammed into 20 minutes, we've given it a short cool-down period, but if you want to keep spinning until you feel you've flushed out all that lactic acid, keep turning your legs gradually for a few minutes longer.
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