Class Review: Body Ride with Jason at Revolve

Last week I reviewed Dyan's Rip Ride at Revolve, the newest boutique spin studio in NYC. I enjoyed the class overall, although there were a couple of things that I didn't love (no resistance numbers and a techno-heavy playlist). 

This past Saturday, I headed downtown with Abby to try out a different class at Revolve. We were both really looking forward to checking out Jason's class, which we'd heard great things about. 

Jason Tran
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Turns out the great things were all true! Jason's Body Ride class was a lot of fun and I'm hoping to take his class again. He had great energy, got off the bike to engage with the class a lot, and had the kind of playlist I love -- lots of pop and bouncy beats that I can really get into. Obviously that's personal preference, but for me, Jason's playlist was perfect. 

I also loved how he treated the class almost as if he were conducting it. He'd raise his arms as we went into a heavier resistance interval or started sprinting. I felt really engaged the whole time, which is no small feat in a large class!

The hallway where you wait for class - the locker room is down the stairs.
It can definitely get crowded, which is a minus, but I'm ok with that knowing NYC real estate is pricey.

Now, what exactly is the Body Ride? From Revolve's website:

Cardio...Strength...Flexibility...Everything you need in one complete class. This all-encompassing workout allows you to maximize the time you have to work-out in one place. Start out strong. The ride is cardio-intense and gets the heart rate up and keeps it there. Stay moving while you strengthen and tone the upper body on the bike. Polish it all off with a cool down stretch both on and off the bike. You get it all. You get the complete body!

Basically, the 45-minute class entails roughly 35 minutes of spin, 7-8 minutes of upper body weights, and 2-3 minutes of stretching. That means you really need to push it in the spin portion since it's 35 minutes instead of 45 minutes of cycling (if you go to Flywheel, they do a similar 1-2 song break in the middle or at the end consisting of weights work as well). 

I was still dripping sweat, though, so I felt like I got a good workout.

The classroom, being cleaned up post-sweaty ride

Again, there's still the no-number-for-resistance problem. When I'm told to turn the resistance up or down "a touch," I just have a hard time knowing what that means. A quarter of a turn? A half a turn? But, since I use spin to supplement my running workouts, that's fine with me. It prevents me from being competitive and gunning for a resistance level that I shouldn't try to hit when I have a long run the next day.

LOVE that Revolve encourages sustainability by having a nice water bottle fill station right outside the classroom!

I've now been to Revolve twice and definitely recommend the studio. It's great to have another option besides Soul Cycle and Flywheel! I feel like it's sort of a combination of the two. And for runners, it's definitely a great running supplement!


The Facts
Length - 45 minutes
Cost - $28 (an extra $2 for shoes - currently they have a $99 unlimited intro month special!)
Location - Union Square (52 E 13th St between Broadway and University Place). They also have a location in Washington, DC.
Skill Level - Anyone! The staff is great at helping you set up a bike.

Class Review: Rip Ride with Dyan at Revolve

On Sunday, courtesy of Melissa and Dori, I got to try out a spin class at Revolve, free of charge! The class was a lot of fun and I'm glad I was able to check out the new boutique spin studio.

Revolve has three classes: Rip Ride, Real Ride, and Body Ride. Real Ride is exclusively spinning, Body Ride incorporates upper body work and stretching, and Rip Ride is a total body strength and spinning workout. From Revolve's website:

RIP Ride (NYC only) is Revolve's hardcore training class -- a class dedicated to fitness fanatics and those looking to push themselves to the max. For 60 or 75 minutes, riders will get it all in this challenging athletic training class that alternates cycling intervals using real resistance with upper body sculpting exercises. A class dedicated to anyone looking to push themselves to a ripped level. Resistance. Interval. Performance.

I didn't 100% love the class, but I really liked it and I'm still going back to Revolve to try out more classes.

Dyan
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I really liked Dyan's teaching style. She got off the bike several times to motivate the room and her general personality was upbeat without appearing to be chemically-driven (sometimes you have to wonder, honestly). She just seemed like she genuinely enjoyed being there and teaching the class. I love that kind of energy from an instructor.

The biggest complaint I had was the playlist. I just don't like techno that much, particularly not in spin class when music is the main driver of the activity. I like to be able to sing along and really get into the song because I know it.

Yes, that means I automatically like any spin class that plays mainly music I like and know. I'm basically a dog with a cone on my head who can only see my kind of music (does that metaphor work? Eh, I'm going with it).

I also didn't like that I didn't have a clear resistance level that I was aiming for, like in Flywheel. Instead, Dyan would tell us "a bit" or "a lot" to the right (to increase resistance) or the left (to decrease resistance). I really like knowing the exact numbers to shoot for, but I know that's more of a personal preference and can vary by person.

However, there is RPM on the bike, so when you're given a range of RPM to shoot for, you still have a goal. It's just the resistance that's up to you. And, since I knew I was long running the next day, in a way it was nice to have control over that and not feel like I was slacking, which I do feel if I'm not hitting the exact RPMs at Flywheel. That's not the instructor's fault there, it's just my own personal competitiveness.

I LOVED the Rip Ride concept. The 60 minutes meant that you could get a lot more upper body work into the class, and I could definitely feel my arms burning despite the bags we held only being 3 pounds. Dyan gave plenty of posture tips, so I never felt like I was in danger of harming myself. And because of the extra intervals between riding, the class sped by quickly.


I'll have a more detailed review about the studio itself after I try a different class this weekend. For now, I'll say that it's a big cramped, but that the friendly staff more than make up for that!


The Facts
Length - 60 minutes
Cost - $28 (an extra $2 for shoes - currently they have a $99 unlimited intro month special!)
Location - Union Square (52 E 13th St between Broadway and University Place). They also have a location in Washington, DC.
Skill Level - Anyone! The staff is great at helping you set up a bike.

I'm Lazy

Confession:

An illustrated description of my constant battle with laziness when it comes to working out and running. 

This blog is supposed to be my open journal of fitness and fun. I should be honest about something, then. I'm kind of lazy. I'm not lazy in an "all I ever do is stay in bed and eat doritos all day" kind of way. But I have to expend a lot of mental energy to get myself out the door and running, practicing yoga, or lifting weights at the gym.

This is basically me trying to get out the door to a workout

This is one reason I like to exercise in the morning. I'm just more likely to do something if I'm not putting it off to the end of the day. It's a delicate balance, though, because I'm always hungry in the mornings and skipping a workout to eat can be so tempting.

Excellent question, brain. What about second breakfast?

What do I think makes me lazy? I'm not sure. I don't think I'm naturally inclined to exercise. I love it once I'm out there. Ok, well... I love it 5 minutes after I've started. Sometimes 10 minutes. At the beginning, my body is saying, "what are you doing? why are you doing this to me, you horrible bitch? I want to rest and conserve energy! let's go home and watch bad tv and eat brownies. in bed." (My body is kind of a stoned slacker, apparently.)

My body, in the first 5 minutes of exercising.

Scientifically, our bodies are meant to conserve as much energy as possible because you never know when your next meal is going to be and how much energy you'll need to get it. But in modern-day society, most of us are lucky enough not to have that problem. My next snack will probably be in a couple hours, my next meal an hour or two after that.

Your brain's message to you as you start exercising.

Yet our bodies still don't want to expend energy because they haven't caught up to our modern day lives of (relative) leisure; however, they do want to eat more because they think we might start starving any minute. That's why your body is telling you to stop exercising. You basically have to override those messages, and as you do so it gets easier and easier.

You're (probably) not dying. Really.

I love exercise once I'm doing it, and I love it even more after I finish. That feeling of exhaustion makes me feel so accomplished. So why, after months of proving to myself that I actually love exercise, is it still so hard for me to get out the door for a run?

I think Battier is my body liking exercise and Stoudemire is my brain?
(Really, I just wanted to include this .gif because it's the best thing ever.) 

I have to continually remind myself of how good I feel when I workout and how bad I feel when I don't. Because a day with a workout leaves me feeling good all day, and a day without makes me feel, well, like shit.

Me, without sweating that day. 

This is why I love having workout and run buddies or signing up for a class. If there's a specific time I have to be there, I can't sit around for an hour coming up with things I have to do before I get out the door. Don't get me wrong, I'm still like, "why did I agree to this?"

My brain being angry at its 12-hour-ago self for agreeing to a 6:30 AM run.

But running with friends distracts myself from those painful initial minutes and then it's straight on to the endorphins. I never finish a workout feeling bad. I always feel amazing, and that feeling usually starts soon after I start.

Post-run, post-lifting, post-spinning, post-yoga, post-any-kind-of-exercise

So... what's the point of this post? 

There's really not a point. I just think that sometimes, it seems like people who exercise love it, and if the thought of working out fills you with dread, you should know that someone who works out 5-6 times a week has to push themselves to get out the door.

I write about fitness in such positive terms because I love it. I feel amazing after I work out or go for a run or practice yoga. But it's still really hard for me to get out the door. So if you're someone who feels like you can never make exercise a regular thing because it's so hard to start doing it, take heart. Make exercise dates. Find run buddies (Twitter is a great place to find fun new fitness friends). Join a site where you can track workouts and see progress (I use DailyMile). Figure out what helps you get over that initial hump of dread and on to the sweet, sweaty exercise endorphins.

But whatever you do, keep sweating!!

if not for yourself, then for the good of your husband.

Are you lucky enough to always want to exercise or is it hard for you to motivate yourself, too?

Spinning Interval Workout

Despite the unseasonal warmth New York is currently experiencing, I'm sure we'll soon be back to the cold of a Northeast winter. Although I like running in the cold, it also gets dark earlier, so there are plenty of times when you're just not going to want to run.

Whether for cross-training or as a winter run replacement, here's a spinning workout I suggested to a friend today. What I love about this is that it's very customizable -- it's all about what high and low resistance is for you. My friend is just getting back to cardio after having health problems, so she can do this at the level that is best for her, while a cardio fiend could put the resistance up crazy high and get their sweat on.

Warm Up and Cool-Down -- this should be a level that warms up your body without making it work too hard. For me, I put the resistance at 5-6 for the warm and 1-3 for cool-down.

Low Resistance -- this should be a level that makes you sweat but is something you could keep up for a long, long time. For me, I put the resistance at 7-9.

High Resistance -- the goal is to keep your RPM at the same level through both low and hard resistance. It should be hard to keep up the RPM at this resistance, and you should be breathing a lot harder. For me, I put the resistance at 12-14 here.

Weights -- you can use between 2-8 lb weights for this workout. The goal is to feel burning and barely be able to complete the last rep you do in a minute, but don't sacrifice form to higher weight. I typically use 5 lb weights for the horizontal row and 8 lb weights for the bicep curls and shoulder presses.

Core Work -- be sure to tighten your abs (suck in your belly button) and sit up straight as you do the arm exercises for proper form and to work your core.

Want more? Feel free to double the intervals and make the cool-down a full 5 minutes for a 40 minute workout.

Here's what the arm exercises should look like:

Bicep Curls

(source)

Overhead Shoulder Press

(source)

Horizontal Row

this movement, but using free weights
(source)

Sweat and enjoy!

Do you spin in the winter or for cross-training? Do you take a class or do it on your own?

Class Review: Fly 45 w/ Holly Rilinger at Flywheel Studios

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Saturday I was browsing the Flywheel Sports website (don't you spend your weekends checking out fitness studio websites? No? Never mind...) and I noticed that new students could try a Flywheel and Flybarre class for free. I had already wanted to check out Flywheel, so being able to do so for free? Yep, I'm there.

I checked out Rate Your Burn for instructor reviews to see who I should try. Holly Rilinger had 13 reviews and 4.9 stars. I'd already heard about her awesomeness by reading various NYC fitness blogs, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with a 12:30 lunch class with her.

the gorgeous boutique and lounge area

First, the new Upper West Side Flywheel studio. It is fabulous. Lots of room and a large boutique. Really pretty, light, and airy -- outside the spin room. The spin studio is like a nightclub. I've decided I like dark spin classes, though, since it lets me rock out to what will hopefully be an epic playlist. If you ever catch me in a spin class, chances are I'll be bopping, sweating, and singing along. No hips action, though, because I try not to start sexy times in an exercise class. That would be awkward.


I also love how close Flywheel's new studio is to me. There is nothing else that close! Sure, I could jog down to one of the studios on 72nd Street, but it's over a mile away and when I already walk 2.5 miles round-trip to and from school every day, sometimes I just don't want to do that. So Flywheel being 10 streets closer? That somehow seems amazing to me. Yes, I know, this entire paragraph is about how lazy I am. I'm very lazy when not working out, this is a true fact.

more waiting area -- pretty wood lockers are behind the wall

But back to Flywheel -- one thing I loved was that shoes, water, and towel were all included in the class. You don't have to pay extra to rent shoes or $1-2 for water. It's only $1, but when you're already paying more than $30 for a class, I really appreciate when studios just give you free water (the fact that Uplift Studios gives you both free water and free snacks makes them near and dear to me). It also made a huge difference to be able to clip in -- I just can concentrate on working harder when I'm not trying to keep my shoes in the pedals.

Ok, so what about Holly and the class?

Wow. I am so happy that I tried this class. Holly was incredible and I loved the entire experience. She was incredibly pumped up the entire time without seeming fake in the slightest bit. When an instructor is as obviously excited about teaching you as Holly was, it's impossible not to draw energy from them. And as the whole class becomes energized, you get this wonderful communal energy going (that's dripping with sweat).

Holly being awesomely excited 
(source)

I'm not normally a fan of the, "why are you here, look inside yourself, pull out your best" dialogue in class (I think my grinch heart is two sizes too small...).  Yet somehow, when it was Holly saying it, I was SO into it. Maybe it was her masterful cuing, her incredibly positive energy, or the way she aligned what she said to the song's lyrics, but I was totally with her the whole ride. She made it easy to follow the beat, which also helped me stay in sync with the flow of the class.

My favorite part of class? Holly shouted, "we focus so much on shrinking the outside, let's focus on expanding the inside," followed by intense pedaling with eyes closed. LOVE.

As far as composition, the class had more sprints than hills, but did a good job of mixing up both. Flywheel's bikes tell you the "torq" (AKA resistance) you're on, which is SO helpful as a newbie. I could make sure I was working at the right level rather than guessing at how much a "half-turn" or "full-turn" was supposed to be (that confuses me, guys). 

Partway through we used weighted bars to get in some core and upper body strength work. The class finished with some light stretching. It was a great way to work out the lactic acid build-up from my runs and strength-training over the weekend -- my legs felt way better than they had before the class!

this is basically what the new UWS studio looks like
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How much did I love this class? I've already signed up for next Monday's 12:30 class as well and I can't wait. A few months ago I said to someone that I wasn't sure spinning classes were worth $32, but if they're with instructors as motivating and fun as Holly, I take that back.

Length - 45 minutes
Cost - $32 (free first class, for now)
Location - Upper West Side (466 Columbus Avenue between 82nd and 83rd Streets). There are also locations on the Upper East Side and in Flatiron, in addition to locations around the country.
Skill Level - Anyone! I'm a relative n00b to spin and had no issues.

Have you tried a Flywheel class? Do you like spinning?