Let me share a secret with you – I hate spinning! I know that there are some of you completely aghast right now. But truly, I have not been able to get in to this spin craze. I keep trying it because I’ve heard nothing but good things about its benefits, especially for cross training as a runner.
Last year around this time, 5 months after my surgery, I tried a spin class taught by a coworker. It didn’t suck as much as my previous attempts. The instructor helped me to understand gear shifting and positions which made it easier to follow along. However my incision wasn’t too happy with being folded over the handlebars of the spin bike. I had to stop halfway through the class because the throbbing was way too much for me. I haven’t been back to a spin class since.
That is, until tonight. A friend of mine from undergrad teaches spin class at a large gym not too far from me. He reached out to a bunch of us to try the class. He even shared his music playlist on Facebook so that we would have a sense of how he rolled (or spun). I decided to take him up on his offer tonight.
For the first time ever, I got through spin class. It was definitely challenging but I was able to push through and hang in there. I don’t know if it is because I am in much better shape than the previous times I tried. Or if it’s because I understand how it works. Or if it’s because the music was really banging. But whatever it was, I made it through the class. Not only that but I followed it up with a 30 minute core workout class! I’m sure that I will be feeling the burn tomorrow but for right now I feel awesome!
Have you ever tried a spin class? What exercise is your least favorite? How did you sweat today?
