Hi to all, I teach Indoor Cycle Classes and make my own tapes. Music taste is such an emotive subject! Below are the guidelines I use,
I use music with very few vocals for teaching purposes because I have to give instruction, for the at-home stuff however that will be of little consequence.
For the Warm-up I use a motivating song, perhaps something that builds a little.
Being a budding drummer and wishing to have control of the work-out I then base the rest of my class around BPM (beats per minute).
I use from 40/80 bpm (remember you can count with one foot on the beat or either) through to a max of 140 bpm counted on one foot.
Confused? ZZ Top La Grange around 160 bpm from memory. 160 bpm too fast for Cycling protocols in general but count it on both feet and you have 80 bpm (left-right = one-two) This speed can simulate somewhere around Time-Trial intensity, Hill sprints etc etc.
Lance Armstrong T/T cadence 110, Bjarne Riis average TDF winning (96) cadence 85.5. There's obviously no hard and fast rule!
So count the beats and vary your workout accordingly....GOOD LUCK!
Regards Clive in Oz...Surf's been ok water over 23 and air up to 37 on the Sydney Coast...Loving Oz! Ok I'm rubbing it in all that snow you guys keep reporting :-)