Spin classes

[shaunmac]

So the gym I go to just remodled and added a studio with spin bikes and a computer kiosk thing hooked up to a large projector that has spin classes that have you riding through the mountains, Ireland, yada yada. Instuctor narrates and tells you the cadence, resistance, and to stand up, sit down, ect. I've done a few of these now...........Holy balls it's a good workout! I do my fair share of biking, but these are intense. If you've got an injury and can't run, but can pedal a bike, or just want a good workout give a spin class a try. I'd never done one before a few weeks ago. First time I did one, I couldn't finish it. Now after a couple different workouts, I'm still in a puddle when it's done.

 

[ThomDavid]

As a relatively recent convert to activity-specific cross-training, I'd like to second shaunmac's endorsement of the spin bike and spin classes as a great non-running activity. I took a couple of spin classes to get the feel for how to set up and use a bike on my own, since my gym's classes aren't necessarily convenient. I'm disciplined enough to put myself through the wringer on my own, so once I got the basics, I designed a few spin workouts that I could do on my own, and it's helped my running immensely. When I started, I could barely get beyond a setting of 10 (as a reference for those who've never used one, the gear scale goes from 1 - 24, at least on the spin bikes we use). Now, I have to set it to a minimum of 14 just to get to what would be considered my MAF heart rate, and can crank the thing up to 20 for those "out of the saddle" pushes. Done right, those things really counter running's tendency to over-develop the hamstrings by putting counter effort on the quads. Good stuff.