Is it the real thing?

When you ride on a Spinning bike do you want it to feel like you are out on the open road? Or do you want an experience that you could not have outdoors?
If you want the authentic bicycle ride then climbing must be a part of it and then removing the resistance as you come down the hill.  If you imagine a race then a sprint near the finish must be integral to the session.  May be the next step would be to wear a helmet even though you are not likely to fall off the bike or hit a car?
Alternatively may be you are hooked on what can be done precisely because you are not on a road bike- the back pedalling, the eyes shut the standing and sitting in time with the music rather than in response to an incline?  Does this give more scope for the imagination or the expense of energy?
Every rider will be different, but the most important factor is whether you enjoy it. Happy Spinning!

Sick as a Spinner?

Our little group convened to spin in our regular slot after a late summer break.  It seemed that everyone had something wrong with him or herself.  From the jet lagged, through to those with backache, the hung over and the injured from other sports we were all there adjusting our bikes and grumbling about our respective ailments.  But think about it for just a minute :isn't it great that with all our plethora of little niggles we can still Spin.  For how many other sports would that be true?
In some to take part in the activity whilst injured or not fully alert would be highly dangerous to one self and to others but with Spinning there is no steering or throwing involved and with careful warm up no risk of further injury.  What a great gift to us and to the well being of our world.  We all found that when we got off the bike we felt strangely better.  So even when one degree under Spinning can improve the quality of life of its participants, to whom would you like to recommend it?

Dreaming or Concentrating?

When you get on a Spinning bike are you in the mood to dream or to concentrate?
If you are a dreamer then does music in your Spinning studio help or hinder?
Or perhaps you prefer to Spin in silence so that you can read whilst on board the bike?
Is it a good idea at all not be focussing on your surroundings? Surely not having to concentrate on the immediate environment or time is one of the big advantages of Spinning over riding on the road.  If as a road rider and  you are not concentrating on your position on the road and the proximity of other road users then this can prove disastrous.  Many accidents are caused through these means.  So Spinning may be a good outlet for those who wish to day dream or read whilst on a bike?  Autumn is coming -how many of us have started dreaming about Christmas??!

Simplicity or Technology?

We live in a world where there is a piece of computer based technology for almost every single task known to human beings.  Do you import this into your Spinning activities with technology to measure the distance you have covered, the calories you have burned, even the sweat you have perspired! Or for you is the joy of Spinning the absence of technology, the freedom to pedal with your eyes shut, to respond to the music you are hearing?
It is a relief to discover that both categories of people can be easily accommodated in Spinning -those who buy bikes with every imaginable meter affixed to them ( and to their own flesh) and bikes that are simply bikes with no frills just handlebars pedals and resistance controls.
What do you hope to get out on your Spinning sessions? Figures and numbers, personal bests or release from the pressures and stresses of a  computer driven world?

Do you hover?

Are you one of those spinners who just likes to go as fast as you can? Or do you prefer to mix things up - jumps, sprints and the like? If you do then no doubt you will have tried hovering.  You slow down to a virtual stand still and come out of the saddle then hover as close to it as possible.  Probably you will feel the effects the next day! At least if you wobble you are unlikely to fall too far. This is not like our road bike colleagues who if hovering as they push up a hill are quite likely to fall off.
The stamina and strength benefits of hovering may be great but that is not the point - it can be good fun especially if done in company and done as part of a medley of jumps, dips and sprints.  It makes Spinning sound almost like swimming? Go on have a try!

En famille

With the sunshine soaking some parts of the UK, at least some of the time, who could be more surprised than the occupants of our Spinning class when a whole family turned up to Spin.  It started with the teenage daughter being dropped off and collected. Then Mum decided to join in a few weeks ago and last week Dad came too.  All left beaming, a triumph for a sport that can be truly intergenerational because everyone can go at their own speed and resistance.
Perhaps we are not doing enough to convey the idea that Spinning is not just for the young or the fit or those too scared to go out on a road bike?  Everyone can join in, it is not necessary even to be able to balance on the bike.  Can you think of a family who would like to start a new hobby?

Sunshine Spinners

Finally the bright sunny days are here and everyone is enjoying the fresh air. So how do we Spinners feel?
Are we tempted to give up the Spinning studio and take to the open road? Initially it might seem that the answer could be yes. But along with the sunshine seems to come a plethora of road works, people already out on bikes, caravans, ramblers and people sitting in pub gardens.  All of these can diminish the experience of riding a road bike even before standard motor vehicles have been considered.
So on a sunny day is it better to Spin , shower and then enjoy the sunshine rather than cycle outside?

Rearranging the bikes?

How do you feel when you turn up for a Spinning class and the arrangement of the bikes has changed?
Are you a Spinner who likes all the bikes neatly in rows or do you favour a more communal approach with the bikes placed in a circle around the room?  How does it affect your reaction to the class?
Do you suddenly start trying to go faster than your neighbour or does the perspiration of the person at the other side of the room put you off?
As Spinners are we liberated from competition with those around us or does the existence of technology that enables us to measure almost every aspect of our bodily output make us just as eager for a personal best as many runners or road cyclists?  Does it help us go faster if the bikes are arranged into team groups as if in a racing group?

Team Spin?

Have you ever had the experience where you have turned up for a Spinning class and found the room divided into colours and then when it has come time to do sprints you have been put into a team?
Does it make you try harder even though you are not going anywhere? Or may be you like looking around at the other Spinners and thinking that you are going faster or perspiring more or wobbling less? What could make Spinning into an Olympic sport? Speed? style? Different postures on the bike?
What strategies do you employ if Spinning alone to make you put 100% into it?  It would not be a real Spin if you were not perhaps? Can there be the Spinning equivalent of a stroll in the park on a summer day?

SPEXIT?

What do you think about Brexit?
Would you consider a SPEXIT- exit from Spinning?
What would  you do instead?
S Spinning is fun
P Practical no mud or flat tyres
E energy consuming and energising at the same time
X A mystery - why different people like it
I In many places around the country and abroad
T Truly a fantastic hobby

Don't give up or exit from Spinning!

New Year Resolutions to Spin or not to Spin?

Welcome back to normal life after the festivities of Christmas and New Year. Or may be Spinning does not seem quite the same as it was before.  The class has grown in size.  Could this be because so to have many people's waistlines in recent weeks? Or is it because we are in the darkest, coldest and most inclement months of the year?  Do you know someone with a New Year's resolution to Spin?
If you do then how will you encourage them?
When it is dark and cold does that make you more delighted to be inside Spinning or less?  The risk of injury compared with road cycling must be less but the bravery and courage or foolhardiness need to get outside on a bike must be greater.  We all know people who are enjoy taking risks. Or may be Spinning is for the risk averse?