Get into the Spin

By WLR STAFF sARAH maSSEY

Today Julie and I ditched the gym for a Spinning class. All exercise classes are inclusive of membership costs at LivingWell, so they really are worth trying out. I had never tried spinning before so was curious as to what it would be like. When we got there, lots of people were already warming up on their bikes and the class instructor helped us to set ours up. There were a real variety of people in the class, from people who looked like ‘pros’ to what seemed to be beginners, like me.

When the class got started, our instructor put on some music to help us get warmed up. We did a ‘hill climb’ to start, which basically means you turn up the resistance on the bike as you go to give the ‘hill’ effect. By the end of the warm up I was actually quite tired and wasn’t sure if I would make it through the whole 45-minute class!

The class continued to a variety of music, pedalling non-stop and standing up and sitting down on the bike. The standing up parts were definitely a test on your thighs. The instructor talks the whole way through to keep the group motivated.

You can turn your resistance up as little or as much as you like and keep to your own pace. It was very much ‘do as much as you can’ kind of class which I liked. This way you don’t feel pressured into keeping up with everyone else if you can’t.

I really enjoyed spinning and would go back. I would suggest to anyone wanting to take it up on a regular a basis that you invest in a gel seat, as the bikes are not the comfiest things to sit on. Apart from that it was a good, fun exercise and doesn’t half burn some calories!