I'm No Longer A Flywheel Virgin

I've come here in this safe space of my blog to reveal that I am no longer a virgin. Oh wait let me reread that sentence.

Oops! Let's try that again!

I am no longer a FLYWHEEL virgin.

;)

I have finally experienced what so many of my friends have been telling me for months ... Flywheel is freakin' awesome!

 

Photo Courtesy SarahFit.com

Did you know that your first Flywheel class is FREE? I knew this, but it still took me MONTHS to finally take advantage.

It was worth the wait.

As I plugged the address (800 Boylston St) into my GPS - just to make sure I knew which part of the street it was on, I paced up and down Boylston as I couldn't spot 800. I figured it was inside the Prudential Center, but I couldn't find it. I had 15 minutes to get there in time. If you don't sign-in in time, you forfeit your bike.

No no. Not on my watch.

So I popped into the Lululemon and was given quick directions to the studio. Yes it was inside the Prudential Center, but just not in an obvious location. Yes, maybe I should've done better research before I left the house, but that's in the past. ;)

I made it in time.

Flywheel allows you to reserve your bike and bike shoes online in advance. Once I got the studio, I used one of the laptops above to check in and officially claim my bike. I had picked #30 just because. I looked below the laptops to find my official Flywheel shoes in the cubby marked #30. Talk about service. Now you can bring your own Spin shoes if you want, but I wanted the full experience.

With moments to spare, I shoved my crap in one of the free lockers, which have keypad locks on them so no lock needs to be remembered. I said hi to my friend and Tedy's Team teammate Melinda, who was the instructor for the class, hit the bathroom, grabbed my towels and wandered into the Spin studio.

Photo courtesy GlutenFreeBostonGirl.com

Stadium style seating makes sure there isn't a bad seat in the Studio.

There were two Flywheel employees in the Studio to help participants set up their bikes correctly.

I was locked in and ready to go. I was attending Melinda's Throwback Thursday class and was pumped for some great 90s tunes during the ride.

Now what sets Flywheel apart is the Torqboard.

Every Flywheel studio features two Torqboards - large screens that display leaderboards a few times during each class. So if you're at all competitive, you may opt in to participate in our Torqboards and find out how you rank against other riders.

For every ride you take, we capture a list of performance metrics that we post in your private account on our website. It's real data in real time. Which means, as soon as class is over, you can log on and see your stats, like how fast and how strong you rode, along with how this compares to your previous rides and how you rank against other riders. You'll see metrics for RPM's, Torq, Speed, Power, Distance and even Calories Burned. This allows you to set your own goals and measure your performance over time.

Now you know I had to take part in the Torqboard. I was still nursing the sore left hammy, but I was willing to give the class all I had.

And that I did.

Melinda was NOT joking around. She did a great job keeping the group motivated and sweating.

She leads the cues not only by position on the bike - 1st, 2nd, 3rd - but by resistance (aka Torq) and RPMs.

For example, we warmed up looking for a Torq of 15-20 and RPM around 80. There is a little screen on your bike where you can watch your Torq, RPMs and overall point total for the class.

The lights were off and I was focused right on Melinda and her movements.

But when girl told me to push it, I gaveit 110% because at any time she could light up that Torqboard and reveal our rankings.

I learned early on that I was battling near the top ... and the competitive side kicked in.

Shocking I know.

As we battled through sprints, jumps and hills, the sweat poured.

Halfway through the 45 minute class I was holding down the #1 spot amongst the ladies. The person in second was 9 points behind me and I wanted to keep it that way.

With about 10-15 minutes left in class, it was time to work the arms with weighted bars. Biceps, triceps, etc it all got worked, while the legs kept spinning.

And before I knew it we were on the last song and I made sure to give it all I had left. I wasn't about to lose the top spot at the end of the class.

And I didn't! :)

It's fascinating how adding a board to my Spin workout upped my game. I need to bring this intensity to all my Spin workouts - board or no board.

Hello calorie burn. It was a whole body workout for sure. At no point did I try to check my watch to see how much longer the class was. I was present, motivated and in the moment the entire time.

The energy was great. The song choice outstanding.

Thank you Melinda for an awesome ride.

Afterwards, I collected my stuff from the free locker, turned in my shoes, dropped my towels and left with a huge smile on my face.

So I challenge you to find the Flywheel near you and take advantage of the free class!!

***

Have you battled the Torqboard before?