Flywheel Spin Studio

Last night I had the opportunity to try out a new spin studio called Flywheel Sports. The girls from Well+Good NYC offered a free class to celebrate the launch of the studio. I am always up for trying a new exercise class!

I was a little nervous about the class because I can’t even tell you the last time I went to spin! I’d say at least 6 months ago? I was going 2 or 3 times a week for a while and just got burnt out. It bothered my knees and was not something I looked forward to doing. I think it is great to do in moderation since it is probably one of the most challenging cardio classes out there. I was pretty excited to try it again because spin always makes me feel amazing afterwards.

A few days before the class, I received an email from the Well+Good girls saying that we could head to their website to request songs for the class. I loved this! I immediately headed to the website and requested 5 of my favorite techno songs:

Tiesto & Sneaky Sound System: “I Will Be Here”

Paul Van Dyke: “No Regrets”

Steve Angello: “Leave the World Behind” or “Show Me Love”

DJ Ricardo: “Infinity”

There is nothing worse than a spin class with crappy music! I checked out what other people requested and was happy to see that there would be a nice playlist. They also said that there would be water and spin shoes provided. This would be my first time trying out spin shoes! I was curious to see if there was a huge difference between spinning with normal sneakers and actual spin shoes.

Last night I met Dori near the studio after work.

We walked in and were greeted by the Well+Good girls. They were incredibly friendly and nice. The studio had an entire wall of spin shoes so I tried a few on before finding the right size for me. We headed over to the changing rooms. I was expecting a big locker room like Core Fusion but there were personal small changing rooms. This is nice for people who like their privacy when getting changed.

The room had a blow dryer, facial wipes, tissues, a mirror, etc. Pretty nice. I changed, grabbed my free water, and sat in the lobby waiting for the class before ours to end. The table in the lobby looked like this:

Not really what I wanted to stare at before exercising! Our class was supposed to start at 7:30 and the class before ours did not leave the studio till about 7:25. This meant a lot of commotion in the lobby with everyone trying to find the right shoes, get changed, enter the studio, etc. I felt like maybe they should have at least 15 minutes in between each class so that there is more time to get situated.

Eventually Dori and I entered the rooom and decided to take spots in the front row. The studio had stadium seating which was pretty cool.

The instructor explained a little bit about the bikes:

 Flywheel has a TorqBoard technology package that allows you to see your rpms, torque, and total power expended while you ride. There are also big screens in the studio where you can see your stats in comparison with other riders.

People that were to come back to the studio could make an account online, reserve their bike, and have the stats show up on the big board. It is a cool concept but I was not crazy about being able to see my stats the entire time. As an example, the instructor would tell us to have our bikes at a torque of 5 and around 100 rpms. This was a really fast speed with a very easy resistance. It was actually too easy for me. I was bouncing. In other spin classes I’ve been to, the instructors tell you to increase your resistance if you find yourself bouncing. Luckily I knew this so I increased it to 10 or 15 and I felt much better. A few times we were told to stand up in our seat at this easy resistance. I’ve always been told to increase my resistance before standing up in the bike.  You can easily injure yourself in 2nd or 3rd position at such an easy resistance. I did not like that the whole class was about the numbers. I found myself staring at my screen the entire time to match whatever number she was calling out. I would rather just go by how I feel and choose the resistance I feel best at. I would rather hear the instructor say, “Increase your resistance until you feel like you are struggling up a hill.” Instead it was more like, “Move to a torque of 35 and get to 70 rpms.” Too many numbers.

Some people may prefer having numbers shouted to them. I think more beginner spinners would like this since they might not be sure what a low or high resistance should feel like. I just prefer to go by how I feel. The class itself was a lot of fun. The instructor had a ton of energy and let us know every time one of the songs was requested. Dori got to here her choice, “Womanizer” and yelled to let the class know. My Tiesto song came on during a steep hill so it was a nice motivator! I do have to mention that the music was way too loud. Yes, I love loud music during spin. I get really annoyed when teachers play the music too soft. This was just blasting a bit too much. I needed earplugs. I could barely hear after. At least I loved every song that was played!

Towards the end of the class, we were instructed to pick up little body bars. I decided to choose the lighter bar just to be safe. I’m happy I did! My arms were burning by the end!

This was my first time every doing weights during a spin class. It was probably the highlight of the class for me. It was almost like a cool down from spinning but burned my arms at the same time. We finished with some nice stretching at the end of class. I was drenched by the end! It was a great workout but I’ve honestly had tougher spin classes. I burned around 350 calories which is about average for a spin class. I was expecting it to be much harder. One of the reasons I say this is because of the prices:

A single ride is $30.00 and a monthly membership is $180.

I’m not sure who would pay $180 just to spin! You could be a member of Equinox for that price with access to tons of spin classes along with a million other great classes! I can tell that the studio is trying to differentiate themselves from other spin classes but I still can’t see spending that. I would rather spend $5 more dollars and head over to a Core Fusion class. I am happy I got to try it though. It was a great workout, I enjoyed wearing real spin shoes, I liked the unlimited bottle water, and they rewarded us with big plates of fruit and organic smoothies!

The fruit was delicious and a nice way to end the class. I hope to start going to at least one spin class a week from now on. I still love the challenge and amazing workout I get from the class. It is always nice to mix up my routine a little. Thank you to the Well+Good girls for giving me the chance to try the studio!

Related posts:

1. Flywheel Spin Class: Round 2
2. Refine Studio Launch Party and Margaritas!
3. Spin for Charity Event!
4. Spin and some Vanilla Coconut Banana Splits!
5. Coo Coo for Coconuts and Spin!