I love to spin and bike. Spin classes have always been my favorite. I love the music, biking is so much easier on the knees, and you get to strengthen your muscles and burn a lot of calories in 45 mins.
One of my friends talked me into doing a Soul Cycle class at 6:30am. I am not a morning person. Not at all. I set the alarm and keep snoozing till it is time to get the kids ready for school. So I didn’t wake up and didn’t go. I decided to try one class at my time, and if I liked it enough, it would be motivation enough to wake up.
I tried one. OMG!!! It was in a small dark room with loud blaring music. I was not expecting that. So many people love it and swear by it, but I had no idea! They closed the doors, the room felt a bit warm to make people sweat more I guess. I have never done a spin class with clip ons, I just don’t like them. But here that was all they had. So I borrowed a pair. The clip ons had zero arch support so my right foot hurt like hell and I could not do any adjustments. The music was super loud, and the instructor had to speak louder through the mike to be heard. Within 15 minutes I was feeling claustrophobic but didn’t want to quit. So I kept going. I saw two small weights in the bike in front of me. Holy shit! Would they make us do weights on the bike itself?
Anyway, it was hard, very hard. I love spin and didn’t expect it to be this hard. After another 15 minutes I could not take the loud music anymore. I started thinking of how late I had slept the night prior, how I had skipped my lunch and had a smoothie instead, maybe that is why I could not continue. The instructor had a candle by his bike. Already the room felt hot, there was limited oxygen with doors closed and room so dark, now I had to share my oxygen with a candle!!!
I felt the pain in my right foot acutely. Every time the instructor spoke, I thought my ear drums would burst. That is when I decided to walk out. So I struggled to get the clipped shoes out. I had no idea what to do. The instructor asked me to just leave the shoes there and velcro my feet out of them. So I did.
Outside the manager and another employee showed a lot of concern. They were super nice which is such an anomaly in New York. I mentioned how claustrophobic I got and the music was just too loud. My ears would not stop ringing. I had a headache. They credited me for the ride and told me I should use ear buds next time, and all Soul Cycle rooms are dark.
On a positive note, I had class that was a third full. Imagine if I had attended a popular class!!! My calves feel like lead so obviously something worked. My friend is now talking me into going to one class with her, she really likes her instructor. Maybe I will make the trek in the morning and use ear buds this time. Maybe it won’t be so bad on my foot, I will wear compression socks or something. I have that credit to use on my account.
I ended up reading about it after my experience. Many people recommend doing at least three sessions before deciding to stop. But I just cannot work out in a dark room.
After Soul Cycle, I walked outside, it was super hot. I went right into Mercedes Club for a swim. It was such a refreshing change. The club was bright, airy, and open, no dark areas. And the pool had skylight. The gym was cool, pun intended. I felt like I could finally breathe. It was just such a refreshing change from Soul Cycle. I don’t know if I can start my mornings in a warm dark room with blaring music.
New York Fashion and My Rants 