Category Archives: spinning

January 14, 2013

Soul Cycle Cardio Party & Clean Eating

So let me give you all a little update on my workouts. I’ve been doing a ton of strength training for my lower body, I started running again (only max of 3 miles right now to tolerance of my tibia pain, more on this later), and went to a ton of spin classes at my beloved Soul Cycle. I LOVE spin obviously the more spin the better :)

83rd street Soul Cycle

83rd street Soul Cycle lobby

I got lucky this week because Soul Cycle was having a promotion for the show HBO Girls and offered free “Girls” classes. Although getting classes online was incredibly stressful and insane, I ended up getting a to go to several in a few different studios throughout the city. Also, since it was free, a lot of people didn’t stow up to theirs so I was able to get in via waitlists too. Free Soul? Absolutely amazing.

Girls swag

Girls swag

I went to most classes with my usual spin buddy and equally as SOULful Katherine, and also went to one with Alex and my sister (it was both of their first Soul classes ever). I was so happy to bring them, since I love it there so much and think they had a great time. I’m secretly trying to get everyone I know into it as much as I am :) Not so secret anymore!

Alex and I after we got our butts kicked at 83rd street

Alex and I after we got our butts kicked at 83rd street

I’ve been trying to do more strength and cross training, so spin is a great option. I’m also considering the 5 Borough Bike Tour this May which means I need to cycle as much as possible to prepare. Oh, and Soul is a Cardio dance party which makes me super happy. And the HBO Girls swag this week wasn’t too bad either :)

Do you watch Girls? What did you think of the season premiere?

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If you didn’t get the chance to read my last post, check it out! In it, I talked about how I’m achieving my 2013 resolution of clean eating through the Vega program called Thrive Forward. The program is focused on plant-based nutrition and clean eating. It provides a TON of information through videos, reference documents, and tons of recipes. Oh, and did I mention its FREE?

There’s so much great info, but one of the things I plan on trying soon is making my own sprouts with things such as quinoa! I had no idea that was even possible and I also learned about the increased digestive and health benefits when you do so. I’ll keep you updated about this and let you know how it goes.


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This weekend I spent a lot of time going through many of the great videos and printing out some of the reference guides from the Thrive program. Although I don’t plan on going completely plant-based, I plan on going primarily plant-based and see how it goes. I’m also decreasing my dairy intake and am switching to almond or rice milk. It tastes amazing too!


With this program, there is so much information I never knew and I can’t wait to try new foods, recipes, and techniques. I even went grocery shopping this weekend and here’s my first Thrive Forward grocery list!

ThriveFwd list

I also bought a few other items (like dates.. I’m obsessed). I’ll be sharing recipes and more about the program as it goes along, but check it out! I swear its fantastic, especially if you are trying to eat clean this year. Also, tweet about the program using the hashtag #ThriveFWD if you want to join the fun.

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Do you take spin classes? Have you tried Soul Cycle?
Have you checked out the Thrive Forward program yet?

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December 27, 2012

Running Hiatus & Revolve Fitness {Real Ride}

Now I know I’ve said this before, but my body seriously hates me. After my recent ski trip, I came back and went on two runs. The first was fine. But during the end of the second and during recovery I noticed a bad pain in my proximal tibia (area on the tibia below the kneecap). It got worse and that day even walking was painful.

Its been a week since then and while the pain is less, it is still there. Especially when going down stairs. Now, I’m pretty concerned its a stress fracture (symptoms indicate this) from doing too much too soon while skiing, plus I’ve had a stress fracture before so I know my bones just stink. I’m currently loading up on Calcium+Vitamin D and trying to get an appointment with my doc. But until then, I’m sadly on a running hiatus.

Unfortunately, there will be no more of this for a little while…

Last healthy run.

Last healthy run.

*****

After no physical activity for a week straight, I decided to go to a spin class to see how things felt (by the way, they felt okay.. yay!). I am typically a Soul Cycling kind of girl but had the opportunity to try out a new studio called Revolve Fitness. Revolve originally began operations in Washington, DC but recently opened a studio in Union Square. This class was also exciting because it was Karl’s first spin class, and I’m happy to report that he loved it!

The facilities: The first thing I noticed when I walked in was the welcoming staff, the clean environment, and that it was relatively spacious for a boutique spin studio. There were co-ed locker rooms downstairs (with an easy built-in lock system) and small male/female bathrooms with showers. It wasn’t too crowded and was very manageable in terms of space. The studio itself was the normal size for a spin studio, with the instructor in front and the lights dimmed once we started riding.

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*Rendering from Revolve website

The instructor: We chose a “Real Ride” class with Kristin Kenney, a Senior Master Instructor with Revolve Fitness and a kick-butt fitness trainer. She helped create the overall organization of this class (based on ACTUAL road cycle routes) and was incredibly motivating. She had a drawing of the uphills and downhills to expect along with intervals, and she pointed out what point in the course we were at during the 45 minute class. She also helped give corrections in form and checked RPM levels of the riders and I loved the way she communicated what to expect.

The class: The first thing that I noticed at Revolve were the bikes. This studio uses Schwinn bikes with a fancy little screen in front that tells your RPM to help keep on pace. At first I wasn’t sure about this but it was actually helpful for pacing myself, adjusting resistance, and made sense of how much effort is needed at any given time (e.g. “ride at 80 RPM” as opposed to “ride at 75%”).

revolve2png

“Real Ride” was created based on real road routes and this class consisted of 11 hills. In order to help keep people at the same pace, Kristin let us know what RPM we should be riding at and about how much our resistance should be (low-moderate-high). Downhills were at lower resistance and faster RPM while uphills were the opposite. Most of the class was in the saddle, with some intermittent sprints our of the saddle in second and third positions. I didn’t mind this since it reminded me of riding my actual bike, although I’m used to a bit more time out of the saddle.

The class had no upper body component but was 45 minutes of continuous cycling, which allowed me to sweat up a storm like it was nobody’s business. Kristin was very thorough and incorporated resistance with cardio very well. The 45 minutes flew by and I had a ton of fun!

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The verdict: I will definitely be back to this studio! Kristin was a great instructor and I liked the format of the class. I felt like it was a great workout, but a lot of fun. Karl agrees and we will both be back! Maybe I’ll even try the $99 Unlimited Intro month… a great deal.

The Details
Cost: $28 + $2 shoes
Location: Union Square, 52 E. 13th Street
Classes: Real Ride, Body Ride, and RIP Ride
Length: 45min or 60min
Schedule: http://www.revolvefitness.com/newyork/reserve-main.asp

*****

Have you been to Revolve?
What is your favorite place to spin?

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August 22, 2012

Finishing at Finishline & My First Soul Cycle Class

I am officially graduated from physical therapy! Just saying that makes me nervous since I’ve been going for so long.. ah! Going to PT has kept me accountable for doing my lower body strengthening exercises and I also feel like I benefited a lot from the manual therapy (ASTYM and ART). But I’ve run a few higher mileage runs this past month and haven’t had any pain, so my PT decided it was time for me to be finished at Finishline Physical Therapy.

I have to make sure to keep up with my exercises and maintain all the positive things I’ve done to help recover from this stupid IT Band syndrome, but my PT taught me well! I feel that I can continue with what she taught me and hopefully never have this injury again.. its awful. If you live in NYC and need PT, I highly recommend Finishline. They are amazing!

See ya later, PT!

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Tonight I went to my first Soul Cycle spinning class, which is something I’ve been meaning to do for a while now. Katherine asked me to join her so I figured this was my chance to stop talking about going and just get my butt there. They have a few studios throughout the city but the one I went to was in Union Square. Its a small studio but very clean and they actually fit in a lot of people into one class! They make good use of space here.

After dropping my things off in the locker room, I headed upstairs to my bike. All the bikes require you to clip in, so you can either bring or rent shoes to wear (for $3 a class). Since it was my first time I got to rent the shoes for free, yay! I wasn’t entirely sure how to set up the bike or clip in, but the staff was SO nice and helpful with this! They showed me how to correctly measure myself for the bike and how to clip in/out. Loved that extra help.

The class itself was really good, not as challenging at some of Carl Hall’s at Crunch but it was a nice first class to take at a new place! Most of the beginning of the class was similar to other ones I’ve been too (running, push-ups, various positions), butwhat I like about Soul Cycle is that they incorporate upper body more than other places.

Each bike comes with two 2 lb weights, which I laughed a little bit about at first. 2lb seems so low! But let me tell you, it was more than enough and my arms were burning. Keep in mind that I have weak chicken arms though. About 3/4 into the class we did shoulder, bicep, and tricep exercises with the weights, one after the next. I really liked this part of class because this wasn’t part of any other spin class I’ve been too and it was very effective!

The Verdict: I’m addicted.

I can’t wait to take a class here again! I liked spin to begin with but this place made it so much better. I feel that it was a great whole body workout, the music was good, the bikes and shoes were nice, and the facility was super clean. Highly recommended!

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On a totally unrelated note, has anyone ever tried this flavor from Peanut Butter&Co. before?

Not to ruin the surprise if you haven’t tried this yet, but its AMAZING! It also has protein in it like PB so I don’t feel so bad eating it as a PB replacement :) Not sure if that makes any sense but I’m sticking to it. Try this if you already haven’t!

PS. I’m a bit crazy and signed up for my first DUATHALON! Yep, you read that right. Its this weekend on Staten Island and it was really impromptu which is SO unlike me. I’m just doing this for fun and to get my feet wet, not worrying about time at all. Wish me luck.. ah! And any advice is welcomed :)

Do you take spin classes? Where is your favorite class?
Any new food finds lately?
Have you ever gone to PT?

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