The women's fitness blog

Studio cycling or ‘spinning’ is a high-energy, studio-based fitness session. It involves loud music and hard work, and improves fitness whilst burning hundreds of calories from your body. Here's a guide to what spinning exercise involves and how it could benefit your own training.


Spinning is essentially a room full of specialised bikes encircling one leader bike. This is reserved for the instructor who will bark commands at you while you all listen to very upbeat music to help maintain a good pace throughout. The idea has been around since the 80’s and is an excellent way to get the old heart beating and significantly improve your fitness.

What spinning exercise involves:
In a group, people work out together for around 45 minutes. The instructor and the people surrounding you motivate you to such extremes that you find yourselves taking your fellow ‘spinners’ on in a sprint or hill climb. You have a resistance dial that you increase and decrease, making the class as hard, or as easy, as you wish. During the class you vary your pace - sometimes pedaling as fast as you can, other times cranking up the tension and pedaling slowly from a standing position. This helps you to focus inwardly and work on your mind as well as your body.

A general good level of fitness is required for these classes. There are often beginners, intermediate and advanced classes in each programme so check when booking that you have the right class for you. It is suggested that you attend a few beginners’ classes first as spinning bikes do take some getting used to.

Why is it so popular?
Spinning burns serious calories (about 450 in 45 minutes) and offers an awesome aerobic workout that makes your heart pump fast. It also tones your quadriceps (front thigh muscles) and outer thigh muscles like nobody's business! Because you stay in one place with the same basic movement throughout, Spinning doesn't involve a lot of coordination; it's easier to concentrate on your form than in other types of aerobic classes. And although you follow the general instructions of the spinning teacher, you are in control when it comes to your pace. You can finish a spin class, regardless of your fitness level, simply by adjusting your pace or the tension knob on the bike.

What should you expect from the Instructor?
The instructor’s role should primarily be motivational and make what is quite a gruelling workout fun! They should also be aware of all the members of the class and be able to spot anyone struggling. Anyone struggling should be instructed to slow down and peddle at a lower level to recover and then join back in again. Whilst it is difficult for the instructor to give each student individual attention they should be aware of everyone and not just go through the motions of the class on autopilot. If you feel that the instructor is not giving the best class find out if there are other classes run by a different instructor.

Hot Tip
Arrive five minutes early for your first class so your instructor can answer any questions and help you with bike adjustments. Make sure you let her know about any injuries that you have so she can help you modify some of the moves. During class, be sure to let your instructor know if you are having trouble with the resistance knob or the general technique. If the class is too intense, just pedal more slowly or take the tension down.

Check your heart rate
Strictly speaking everyone in the class should have a heart rate monitor as the whole idea of spinning is a workout that is based around your very own heart rate which makes it much more personalised.

Adjust your saddle height
Once the class is all there and have been allotted their bikes (don’t hide at the back thinking you won’t be seen as the instructor is trained to watch everyone) you should begin with setting your bike’s saddle up at the correct height for you. This is measured so that when you are sitting on it your leg should be outstretched for the lowest peddle with a slight bend in the knee. If the bend is too much raise the saddle, if your knee is locked straight then lower the saddle. A warm up should follow this which should involve some stretching and limbering up. Next should follow the start of the program which should always commence with a not too intense cycle in a seated position. After about 5 minutes, the class should really kick off.

Increase the resistance
During the class the instructor will inform you of what intensity you should be feeling. They will ask you to increase the resistance on your bike, which you do by turning a dial or knob on the front of the bike, they will also ask you to stand up on the peddles to cycle and change your hand positions. All of these commands help replicate real outdoor cycling where the ground is not always flat and increase the intensity of the workout.

…and finally: cool down and stretch
The classes can last anywhere between 30 minutes to 1 hour and should always include a cool down and a stretch at the end. However if this does not happen it is your responsibility to do so. It is very intense so don’t expect too much from yourself in the first few attempts. Keep persevering though because it can be worth it.

The Benefits
This class is specifically designed for your heart and lungs. It is a cardiovascular workout that is focused on the biggest muscle group in the body and therefore can have some of the biggest gains for weight loss and fitness. It is an intense workout where you have someone in control of what you are doing and it is for this reason that you will get more benefits from this than using one of the regular gym bikes by yourself. Motivation is one of the biggest problems in training but you will have no problems with that in this class.

Drawbacks
Spinning does not work all leg muscles equally, so if you spin without doing some cross training activities, you may develop muscle imbalances. Spinning every day can also be too much of a good thing -- real spin enthusiasts have to watch out for overuse injuries in their knees, hips and lower backs. If Spinning is your main source of exercise, we recommend doing some resistance training workouts that include hamstring (back of thigh), buttock and inner thigh exercises.

Equipment Needed:Other than the bike, here's what you need for a safe, comfortable ride:

• A stiff-soled shoe with good ventilation. (Running and aerobic, which are soft-soled, may leave your feet numb by the end of the class.)
  
  
• Two towels, one for wiping away sweat and one for draping over the handlebars so your hands won't slide out of position.
  
  
• A full water bottle, because you're definitely going to sweat. Most spinning bikes are equipped with a water bottle cage so you can place your H2O within easy reach.

And a Warning… Spinning is a very intense workout and whilst it can be adapted for a range of people if you are new to exercise or have a high heart rate then do not start with this. Get your level of fitness up in the gym first and then build up to a Spinning class. You should definitely have a blood pressure reading of less than 140/90 before you even consider this. I would also avoid this class if you have a heart condition, or any knee or hip injuries. Also give it a miss if you suffer from a bad back. If you are still determined to take it up then please check with your doctor before commencing any new exercise routine, especially one as intense as this and remember to buy and use a heart rate monitor.