Blogging Fitness: Spin it, Burn it, Tone it!

Burn up those quads and try a spinning class.

I like to think of myself as an open-minded fitness enthusiast. If there is some kind of activity that will potentially tighten up those thighs and trim the tummy, I am game!

Moving past the fear of making a fool of myself (that ship sailed long ago) I decided to conquer a new fitness genre.

Now I must preface this with the fact that I am not the best bike rider, mostly because I am afraid I will crash. Also, I was a little late in the “riding a bike without training wheels” game. My parents had to bribe me to take off the training wheels with a gift in second grade.

Suffice it to say, I am not a huge pro at the ol’ bicycle. But, I am a pro at having an opened mind and trying new things when it comes to fitness.

Thus, I decided it was time to take a spinning class, although I am much better on two feet, punching, kicking, hooting and hollering.

From what I heard of these feared spinning classes is that you better not plan on breathing during class or being able to walk the next day. Some of my fitness instructors tried out some local spinning classes and affirmed this notion, claiming it was the most challenging workout they had ever attempted.

Pressure definitely on. No turning back now.

So I waltz into this spinning class with my regular kicks, capris, and an old tank top. I walk into a room packed with cycle enthusiasts, pumping their legs faster than a hamster wheel spins. Some of them have special cycling shoes that attach to the pedals, while I shove my tennis shoes into the slot. They have shiny spandex shorts, perfectly shaping their toned thighs.

Although a little intimidated, I think, “Whatever, this is going to be great!”

The instructor bops on in and is very bubbly. This is always a plus to me when it comes to group fitness classes. No one wants to be greeted by an instructor who appears to be melancholy and blasé – give me some flare, something I can work with! So this spunky little blonde floats up onto her bike and starts blaring this heavy metal music and cues us to kick our gears up a notch. Don’t judge a book by its cover. This girl can rock!

Personally I prefer to jam out to rap tunes when I am sweating it up but I was feeling her musical selection. Within minutes I began to sweat and my quads were burning. I kept looking at the clock and realized I had 50 more minutes of this beating of a workout. I thought to myself, “there’s no way I’m jumping off this bike.” So I hung on for dear life and climbed a hill as I shifted my gear up to the maximum. I could barely push the pedals, but the music pushed me to the top of that hill and then we were instructed to lower our gear as we “descended” down.

These spinning classes are seriously so much better than hopping on a bike and pedaling away for an hour in the gym. The combination of the music pumping and the instructor providing you visual images of your cycling journey offers the ultimate adrenaline rush.

Another positive thing about this class is that you can truly pick your own level of intensity to work out. All the bikes have various gears and you can switch it at any time in the class. If you feel that you have hit your limit and your heart rate is skyrocketing, then you can simply lower your gear.

I hid my gear under a towel! Nearly everyone in the class did the same. However, this could also be a bad thing because you could cheat and not work hard. But why the heck would you bother with that? If you are busy like me and sometimes only have an hour to crank out your workout, you’ve got to get the most bang for your buck!

As with any fitness routine, the more you practice the regime, the better you become. Your endurance increases and you are able to push yourself to the next level. I stuck with this class for two weeks, consistently going every other day. I tried going two days in a row but just starting out, my quads were on fire and needed a bit of a recovery so I stuck with a different workout on the alternate days.

As the two weeks progressed, my rear got more accustomed to the bike seat, my quads didn’t scream quite as loud after each class and I was able to get full breaths through out the whole class. I couldn’t get enough of the natural high. I would leave work on my lunch break to sneak in a class. I felt like I was going through withdrawal without it.

One thing that didn’t slow down was the sweating. If anything, I only sweated more with each progressive class. If you have read my posts before, you know that sweating is an absolute mandatory for my approval of a workout. This one passed the test with flying colors.

I am so grateful I opened my mind and tried this class. It is a new found favorite and definitely gets your rear in gear each time you attend. When you put on your “going out jeans,” you feel extra confident. Who wouldn’t want that feeling? Guys – I am not excluding you on this. You know what I’m talking about.

Your arms also get a great workout as you are holding onto the handles for the majority of the time. And you know I had to mention that core area. As you are leaning over, your abdominals are engaging to support that lower back. My core area felt that it was worked the next day- definitely a total body workout.

So next time you are wanting to spice up your fitness life, hit up a spinning class. There are countless cycling or spinning classes at almost every gym. Check out a schedule, grab a friend, a huge bottle of water and pedal it up!

About the Author

Kimberly Westphall is the author of Blogging Fitness and a regular contributor to Midwest Sports Fans. She is a recent graduate of the University of Kansas where she majored in Journalism. She participated in a podcast with Jerod, which will help you get to know her even better.

While at KU, she was an anchor and online web producer for Jayhawk Sports Talk. Kimberly recently made her MSF debut discussing the fight between Kansas’ basketball and football teams and also had her column about the Dallas Stars Ice Girls featured at Dallas Sports Fans.

She has a passion for fitness and is on the lookout for emerging fitness trends and workouts. Her favorite group exercise format is kickboxing, which she discusses in her first Blogging Fitness post today.

When she’s not hitting up the aerobics studio both as a participant and instructor, Kimberly is training for the 2010 Washington D.C. Marathon with her best friend Jackie.

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* – Spinning fitness class photo credit: CrossroadsMag.eu

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