Well, its free, so this fits my requirement for keeping it cheap in the city. Did I feel bad because this was an event aimed at getting new members? No, not really. They wouldn't be so open if they didn't expect people who were just looking for a free workout.
To back up a few minutes... or weeks... Cameron and I made a deal that if he went to a yoga class with me, I'd try a spin class with him. (See "Oops! I did it again") He has taken 2 yoga classes with me, so I definitely owe him a spin class. We've been trying for weeks to get into the SoulCycle Community Class on Fridays, but you have to sign up as soon as the class opens up, and right now I haven't figured out when that is! Regular classes at SoulCycle are $32 for a single class, and FlyWheel is $30 for a single class, so those are definitely cost prohibitive. No one really offers a Spinning to the People class with accessible rates probably because it is expensive to have spin equipment!
Cameron's latest suggestion was for me to rent a bike and go bike riding with him along the Hudson River. I think that sounds like a great idea, except I actually have a fear of bicycles. To be honest, I did learn to ride a bike later than most children, but I was fine riding bikes as a kid/teenager. Then when I was about 20... Cameron and I went for a bike ride around my parent's neighborhood and I had a panic attack. An actual panic attack - this isn't like when most people say they nearly had a panic attack or freaked out. I had Panic Attack Disorder at the time, and suffered from poorly timed panic attacks. One was on a bicycle. I haven't been back on a bicycle since. Honestly, it doesn't bother me like 95% of the time, except that cycling is one of my fiancee's favorite hobbies and I cannot participate in that with him. When he presented that as an option, I was suddenly very determined to find a spin class! I am most definitely not ready to get back on a bicycle in the middle of NYC where cars, people and other bicycles will get in my way and make me nervous.
Fortunately, that suggestion coincided with viewing the schedule for the 92Y event. They offered spin classes! Yay! I can stay on a safe indoor bike.
I got to the Y first because I also took an Absolute Ab class before hand. I kind of loved the Y. It reminded me of the Montclair Y I used to go to with my friends in high school (back when it costs $135 for a year if you were a student) for Tae-bo classes. I loved that there was a track overlooking the gym and that there was a pool. It all felt very oddly suburban in the middle of the UES.
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| The 92nd Street Y Mack Gym - looks like a high school gym!! |
The Absolute Abs class was okay. The instructor was a male trainer, and I was surprised that I liked him. At first it felt like he was a drill sergeant, but I warmed up to him quickly as I felt like he knew what he was doing. We did some great lower ab exercises - raising and lifting your legs with control, which was very very hard for me. Clearly my lower abs are weaker than I thought, so I really pushed myself through these exercises because I really need them. The class was in the middle of what looked like a high school gym (with a track above it) which was nostalgic also.
After that, I met up with Cameron and we went to the spinning class. It was me, Cameron and about 6 other people total. The instructor spent 15 minutes teaching us how to set up our bikes and taking us through terms you'd normally hear during a spin class. After that, she conducted a 30 minute spin class. It was hard! I have to say that I mostly feel cycling in my legs, which indicates to me that I have weak legs, but I'm not entirely sure.
The instructor apparently studied music, so she kept getting distracted and would play songs to see if we recognized them. She was peppy and energetic, but after a while, the music thing got a little old. Although, looking back, it did distract me from cycling because I was listening to see what the next song would be.
I have never taken a spin class, so I really have nothing to compare it to, but as an exercise class... I think I'd try spin again. I liked that you control the resistance so while we're all doing the same thing, we can adjust it for our own levels.
When we got out of the spin class, I was pumped for my free 16 Handles... only to discover they had cleaned that up and finished!! Considering they still had classes going on at the time, shouldn't they have continue the 16 Handles until all the classes had finished? Who wants ice cream before they go exercise?!
Have you tried spinning? Do you prefer cycling or running?
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