— Running Without Music

Spin class, known as 24Cycle, has been one of my weekly habits. Mondays at 7:30pm in the Santa Monica 24 Hour Fitness led by Katyia. It’s pretty much all up to you because the instructor isn’t going to tell you what resistance to put, neither is she going to tell you if you’re going too fast or too slow. It was all about feeling what’s most comfortable but challenging at the same time. I definitely feel the burn each and every class. I can use this kind of training to help improve my leg muscles and conditioning for my running. It’s a tiny bit easier now than the first class, but still very challenging.

What I like most about this class is that the instructor varies the patterns and workouts. What helped me the most was the interval training where we would do intervals of sprints and hills for 5-10 minutes. Sprint as fast as you can, then when you’re done, up the resistance and then repeat. What a workout! I was sweating so much that my shorts got wet from my shirt’s sweat. I know, I know, too much information, but that’s how intense it is. I’m already interested in buying the special shoes for it that clips on to the pedals for a greater leg workout plus more efficient power handling with each stride.

Last week my first spin class, aka 24Cycle, at 24 Hour Fitness in Santa Monica literally kicked my ass! I wasn’t giving up there! Just like my first day at TNT, which I thought was HELL, I was struggling so badly. I know it just takes some dedication and motivation to keep coming back. I always look back at my marathon experiences, thinking to myself, “If I can do 26.2 miles, I can do this!”.

So today after work I returned to the 24Cycle class, very determined to get a great workout, and hoping that I will see (or feel) some kind of improvement. It was a different instructor, so the interval routines were slightly different, but just as challenging. I noticed that we didn’t have to turn up the resistance as much my previous instructor, but focused more on speed bursts and very, very slow controlled movements. I’m not complaining though. It didn’t kick my ass as much as last time, but it was still one great workout. Hydration definitely helped me out (I forgot it last time).

I’m sold. I’m determined to take this class AT LEAST 2x a week, whether it be in the early morning, or after work. I highly recommend this for a high intensity, fat-burning workout!