Thursday, September 29, 2011

Spinning to the Music

In my last post I was discussing gym hopping but I'm happy to announce that after a long search, I chose a gym...then left it and joined another when I learned of a great groupon offer. Hey, what can I say, I'm indecisive. Currently, I am with Gold's Gym for 3 months. It's funny how I've come full circle considering my first trial was with Gold's Gym. I must say, I really like this gym and it lucks out that it was on groupon at the right time.
It's been about 1 month since I offically joined and only recently did I begin to explore the world of spinning. Now, in the past I thought I would never try spinning; I thought it was going to be super hard and only pleasurable for the hard core gym freaks fanatics. I was either wrong, or I myself have turned into one of these fanatics.
I was really nervous for my first class and was convinced my legs were going to peddle away from me. The minute I stepped into the studio the instructor, Cliff, waved me down to make sure I signed up. He immediately reminded me of Stanley Tucci. He was full of energy and incredibly witty. He introduced me to the spinning bike and showed me the emergency break should I feel like my eyes were going to pop out during the class. Upon hearing this, I laughed awkwardly and hesitated before getting on the bike.
Once the class officially started, I fell in love. Not because I have some undying love for working out or sweating, but because of the music! Every upbeat, Billboard top 100 song you can thing of was immediately blaring through the speakers and guiding what speed we took with the bike. I suddenly got this cheesy grin on my face and starting mouthing the words to songs as I rode. In contrast to the music was Cliff's screams of encouragement. Actually no, it wasn't in contrast, it was in addition too because he really does make the class. He has so much energy and just screams for 45 minutes that you don't have to wonder whether he's passionate about his work or not.
After that 1 class, I found myself itching to go back. The more I go, the more I want to keep going and I realized in class today that it's not for the pure joy of working out...it's for the music. Does this make me a poser? I'm getting a workout because I like the music?? Well who cares because for 45 minutes I am rocking out and getting my sweat on! I think the other reason the class is do-able is because of the constant switch from fast peddling/no resistance and slow peddling/lots of resistance. It helps to keep you moving but also gives you time to breathe without stopping. Which, by the way, is another thing. You don't stop peddling, ever. That may sound impossible, but it's not and that's because of the fluctuation in resistance.
I think I'm going to up my spinning classes to 2-3 times a week. I'm hoping it won't backfire on me and I'll become bored. I doubt it since the music is so good that I just can't get enough! Here's a list of some of the songs we use,
Party Rock Anthem- LMFAO
Cheers- Rihanna
Moves Like Jagger- Maroon 5 ft. Christina Augilera
Without You- David Guetta/Usher
You Make Me Feel..- Cobra Star Ship ft. Sabi
Give Me Everything- Pitbull ft. Neyo
With music like this, there is no way I can pass up a spinning class. I'll admit I'm hesitant to try another teacher's class just in case it's not as fun!

The only problem I seem to have is the seat. Majority of the time, during my first class I kept fidgeting in an attempt to find a comfortable position. What's that about? It's gotten better but jeez, that's the 1 thing I find as a major annoyance. The best part overall is the end because there is such a feeling of accomplishment. It's almost surprising when the class ends because I feel like I've just reached that level where I could go on for longer. Better to end on a high rather than a low, though.