Spinning Your Way Into Fitness

I have always been jealous of the hardcore runners.

I see the way it has transformed some people’s lives and I have always wanted to be one of those people. But it’s just not me. I recently ran the Finishing that race was one of the most exciting moments because I never thought that I could do it. And I did. But, I just can’t seem to get addicted to running for more than a week or two. My knees start killing me, I am aching all over and it just doesn’t feel right.

But recently, I discovered my own workout passion—spinning.

I had taken a few classes in the past, but now I am fully addicted to this awesome mega calorie-burning workout. I think of spinning as stationary, imaginary bike racing in a room filled with people who are all pushing just as hard as you to get to the finish line. Major perk: your favorite pop and hip-hop beats are blasting as you pedal to the rhythm. So, it’s also like “bike dancing.”

The thing that makes this workout the right one for me is the energy of the entire room. Working out on my own, I knew I wasn’t pushing myself as hard as I could go. I was majorly phoning it in. But now, a variety of different teachers with different styles are there to tell me to go faster, create my own hill, overcome it, push forward. When one of my favorite teachers walked around the room and screamed, “Why did you come here today?!?!?!” in the last five minutes, when all I wanted to do was slow down, I got over my fatigue and sprinted as fast as I could. 

You're surrounded by other people who are actively proving to you that it can be done for those 45 minutes straight. And, well, there’s also the satisfaction after completing a class of hills and climbs that not everyone in the world could get through that. It is so rewarding to walk out knowing you just gave it your all—and you had fun doing it.

If you have never identified yourself as an athlete, but you’re looking for a fun, low-impact workout, or, if you’re looking to shed the last 10 pounds, spinning is for you. You’ll discover that exercising can be a total blast if you just smile, crank up the resistance, face that hill in your mind—and work it.

Find a spinning class near you:

• Downtown YMCA group schedule
• Jewish Community Center—Squirrel Hill group schedule
• Urban Active, Bakery Square schedule
• Keystone Health Club, East Pittsburgh
• Shadyside Spin