21 Nov Moving the Exercise Indoors

With fresh snow on the ground today I had to move my exerise indoors. I forgot how intense spinning is!

With the fresh layer of snow on the ground this morning I decided not to cycle outdoors. So back to Silhouette I went for a spinning class. I started spinning about 9 years ago. My sister kept raving about it so I gave it a try and I got hooked. I do prefer the great outdoors for most of my exercise and I love my road bike! I have a few bikes in my garage… even though I can only ride one at a time… However snow on the road or strong wind gusts usually push me indoors.

Today was my first spinning class since last March. Oh how I forgot how tough spinning is! Within the first 15 minutes my quadriceps were on fire and I was sweating profusely. Suddenly the song Piranha comes on and I start thinking, what is this music? Am I that far out of the music scene? I watch X-Factor, you mean that is not enough to keep me current? During this song I suddenly realize that my fast twitch fibers have been awakened and my legs are moving fast, so is my heart. My thoughts then shift to the years when I did a lot of spinning and it all comes flooding back. Yes spinning is like the speed workout that I do not do often when I am out for a run. Running, unless you are doing hill repeats, track work, or fartleks usually engages more of the slow twitch fibers, so today I rediscovered the fast ones. Although my legs were not moving as fast as some of the people on the other bikes, how do people move their legs that fast I wonder. It was a great workout to mix things up a bit. My thoughts shift to: this is really good for me, it will take my legs to a new level and my heart!

The next song comes on and I think we are climbing, oh yes this really hurts… this is good. The song is “Its not over” and I am thinking, really? This needs to be over soon as I am exhausted! So here I am working like a mad women on my schwinn bike and going nowhere fast, but oh how I love this class. The music gives me an opportunity to disassociate with how much my muscles are working. It also gives me a bit of a heads up as to how long I need to work like this. When you are on a road bike outdoors you have to stay more associated with your surroundings and the tension on your gears as you go up and down hills. It is a very different exercise both physically and mentally.

I come to the conclusion that there is definitely a place for both cycling indoors and outdoors. Spinning indoors is big work if you follow the instructor. You can coast in the class if you choose, that choice comes down to your own internal motivations for why you exercise. On the road you are working the entire time, you can coast when going downhill however your mind is fully engaged concentrating on avoiding bumps and pebbles in the road and possible traffic. Physically you are braking and holding a tucked position enjoying the feeling of speed, if you can get that comfortable… As I left my indoor workout today I was thinking about how today`s workout will help me power up the hills with more gusto.

Tomorrow it is running outside and a bit of CrossFit, getting the best of both the indoors and the outdoors.

Balance on my friends.