Friday, September 9, 2011

Flywheel Friday


So this morning, I attended my first ride at Flywheel.  I found out about this cycling studio through a Vital Juice e-mail (a daily blast of all things health & fitness-subscribe!!).  Because I don't belong to a gym anymore (I use the fitness center in our building), I've been really missing my cycling classes.  I love cycling classes because they burn a ton of calories and each class is something different.  The time always goes by quickly and the instructors usually have a good playlist.

I called Flywheel yesterday to see if I could register for a class today at 6am.  The nice girl on the phone told me that I could register online and answered a few other questions that I had.  I purchased a class via the website and signed up for it.  They have a layout of the studio on their website and you can choose your bike right then and there.  I really liked that I could see where the instructor would be and how many bikes the studio actually had.

When I arrived there, I was told to check in on the computer and then the front desk girl showed me where the lockers are.  I put my stuff in the locker and put on my special cylcing shoes that Flywheel provides for you.  As many times as I've taken spin-like classes, this was my first time with the special shoes and I loved it!  Once I got into the studio, the instructor, Antonia, introduced herself to me and told me a little bit about what to expect in class and that because this was my first time there, just to do what I could handle.  The front desk girl came in and showed me how to set up my bike and how to clip my shoes into the pedals and then I started my warm up.  The 6am class had about 10 people in it.  We went through sprints, upper body work, hill climbs and more sprints.  Flywheel also has a TorqBoard in class which allows you to see how hard you're working compared to the others in the class.  Antonia put it up during the last sprint and man, did it motivate me! I pedaled my way to #1!  Not too shabby for a first timer.   

Pros:
-friendly staff!!
-they provide you with free water & cycling shoes
-an awesome playlist! There have been times where I've taken spin and the class was awful because the music was awful.  Not here.
-there's a small portion of strength training w/the class. Small BUT effective. I loved this because with every other cylcing class I've taken my arms always feel left out of the party.
-energetic & motivating instructor
-If you come in the morning, you can find free street parking-big plus for Chicago.
-you can see your performance online and an estimation of how many calories you burned in class.

Cons 
-No locker room.  My original plan was to come to the 6am class, shower, and go right to work.  Instead I drove there and then drove home and got ready.  Not a big deal!
-The price.  $25 per ride can add up quickly if you're going to visit frequently.  If you're serious about this place, I would definitely get a package.  Luckily bloomspot has a great deal going on right now that I'm definitely going to take advantage of.

Overall, it was a great challenge and an excellent way to start out my morning & weekend.  I will definitely be back to ride again.  

1 comment:

  1. sounds like an awesome class. how long was it? like you, i too cancelled my gym membership recently and am missing my spinning classes. wish they had a location in california!

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