Review: Flywheel Sports
While I’ve mostly been using ClassPass for Mile High Run Club, I also want to use it to try new things, so when my schedule for last week shifted and I found myself with an exercise-free day on Wednesday, I decided to see what was available. According to ClassPass, the only studio near me that was open was Flywheel Sports, so I decided to finally try my first spin class. I was a little hesitant about the 12 credits, but then I remembered that Flywheel does a “first class free” offer, so I signed up for that and booked the class through their website instead.
I wasn’t entirely sure where this place was, so I got an approximate location from Google (I had the address but didn't know the cross streets) and scoped it out the day before (I was in the area running an errand). On Wednesday morning, I left my apartment about 35 minutes before class (20 minute walk + arrive 15 minutes early) and walked over to the doors I had found the day before. I saw someone else going in and followed him, which was good, because there were more doors and I might have gotten confused.
After I finally got to where Flywheel is located, someone checked me in, got me shoes, and told me where to change (I was wearing my class clothes, but was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt on top … the jeans confused the staff until I told them I had capris underneath). I also met my instructor, Megan, who was very warm and welcoming.
Once I changed, I dumped my boots and coat (spoiler alert: I could have left them in the room with the lockers), and someone (Courtney) got me set up with a locker for my stuff, showed me where the towels and water bottles are (because of their setup, they can’t have a water filtration system set up, so they use disposable bottles), and took me to my bike. Courtney adjusted the bike for me (stupidly, I didn’t pay attention to the settings), helped me get clipped in, gave me a quick overview of the class and the positions I needed to know, and made sure I was ready to go.
Class itself was a series of intervals. We played around with positions (on the saddle, standing up, leaning forward … I’m probably describing these really badly), resistance, speed. The intervals were all pretty quick, so there really was a lot of variety. I had a hard time maintaining a speed, and anytime I wasn’t in the saddle (is that the right term?) I kept accidentally hitting the resistance knob and unintentionally adjusting my resistance, and I was definitely going slower than everyone else. But I was enjoying myself and I thought it was a good class (although my legs hurt early, and I realized I probably should have warmed up first). I heard Megan yell out “you’re doing great, Sarah” or “you look good, Sarah” a few times, which was nice to hear.
About halfway through class I started to feel nauseated. I knew right away that it was an electrolyte issue (it has happened to me before, both on runs and in other classes), but I didn’t have anything with me to help with that. I tried to ease up a bit (without stopping) until it passed, but it didn’t seem like it was going to, so I stopped for a few minutes. Once I felt a bit better, I started pedaling again slowly, and I was able to mostly participate in the last 7-10 minutes of class. The good thing is, I knew exactly what the issue was, so I know how to correct it for next time.
My final stats
At the end of the class, I extracted my feet from my shoes (Courtney told me I could do that - it was easier than trying to get the shoes out of the clips) and stretched a bit. As soon as I got back to the locker area, I grabbed a bottle of water (I had finished mine) and a banana, and I ate the banana and drank some water before I did anything else. Once I was done with my snack, I changed back into my street clothing and chatted a bit with the staff before heading home (stopping for donuts on my way).
Assorted Thoughts:
- The class was definitely too advanced for me, but I figured out how to modify it, so I still enjoyed it
- For this class, I chose not to participate in the leaderboard (it’s optional). I don’t know if I would in the future. It was a small class, so I probably would have come in 3rd Female (there were only two women on the board), but I don’t know how I’d feel if I was going to come in 15th female.
- I definitely should have eaten a full breakfast before class (I only had a snack, and I think that’s why I got sick). Next class I would also probably bring sport beans with me in case I feel nauseated during class.
- I think my form probably needs some work, so that’s something to think about for next class. I also think I was wearing the wrong size shoes, so next class I’d size down.
- I knew most of the songs, but wasn’t really singing along. I liked the music, but I’m not 100% sure that it was as motivating as I wanted it to be.
- Definitely a good workout, and different than anything else I do.
Would I Go Back?
Yes. Maybe not super regularly, but I’d add it as a special workout once every month or two. If I have the ClassPass credits for it.
FlyWheel also has a barre class, FlyBarre, which I want to try because I think it would be a nice change from my usual barre class. When I was speaking with Courtney after class she gave me her card and told me that she’d guest me in when I’m ready to try it out, so I’m hoping to try that at some point in January. I gotta figure out when works for me.