After nearly 9 months hiatus, I finally returned to teach my first Spinning class. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to — scheduling just never worked in my favor. I am also fortunate to work in one club where sub requests are snatched up instantly, but the flip side of that is that I have been too slow to pick up extra classes! Eventually (and it was bound to happen sooner or later), the fine gentleman who replaced me in my early morning spot decided to take a vacation, so I stepped in to teach the folks I had the pleasure of leading for almost two years once again. What a great group of folks! They welcomed me back and took away any of the nervousness I was feeling as I got my bike set up. We had a great ride, and, naturally, I want to share it with you!
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Happy National Bicycle to Work Day!! It is May 15, and yes, today is the day that we celebrate by doing something good for our bodies and good for the environment. You did ride your bike to work today, didn’t you? If you are already at work and wondering why nobody told you, rest assured there is still time for you to get in on the fun! Here are some songs about bikes, working, riding, and going to school that you can add into your class mix this afternoon or next week. It’s never too late to encourage your riders to get their bikes out of the shed and get on the roads!

• Metro Station – Shake It (Lenny B Remix)
• Queen – Bicycle Race
• A Tribute to the Beatles – A Hard Day's Night
• 16 Bit Lolitas – Passing Lights
• Coldplay – Viva la Vida
• Mamma Mia! (Soundtrack) – Money, Money, Money
• Donna Summer – She Works Hard for the Money
• Hexes & Ohs – Try So Hard
• Busted – What I Go to School For
• Goldfrapp – Ride a White Horse
• Freezepop – bike thief
• The Pussycat Dolls – When I Grow Up
• Jem – Just a Ride
• Huey Lewis & The News – Workin for a Livin
• Cake – The Distance
• Eagles – Life In the Fast Lane
• Peter Gabriel – Don't Give Up

Have a Happy Bike-to-Work Day!!

Raise your hand if you downloaded the Mamma Mia mix from last week’s Step Choreography post and were totally rocking it out, loving the energy, partying like a rock star and then WHAM!!!  Deafening obnoxious pause as track 1 ended and the CD player waited for track 2 to begin?  ARRRRGH!!!   I imagine that when an elephant trips and falls it feels about the same as having that irritating 2 second lull interrupt your flow.  I can’t stand it in my Spinning or Pilates classes either, which is why I started DJ’ing my music long ago.  You can too!  There are ways to avoid that annoying pause, but beware — it could take a bit of effort.
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Happy Valentine’s Day! 

As a fitness instructor, you are always looking for ways to spice up your next class to make it memorable for your participants. What a more perfect reason to add some themed music to your classes this week and weekend?  No, you don’t have to go crazy and further saturate their ears with notions of cupid and hearts and doilies, but you can give a nod to Hallmark’s greatest accomplishment. If you haven’t already put the finishing touches on your Valentine’s Playlist, check out these suggestions on iTunes and Napster.  There is something here for every style: warm ups, cool downs, step, sculpt, Pilates, yoga, Spinning, boot camp… These lists are not just for my cyclists! You’ll notice there are two separate lists since V-Day is sort of a love it or hate it kind of holiday.    Enjoy the music!
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This is the second in a series of posts of profiles I used for my 3 Weeks of Intervals in January.   The first ride was 1-1 Intervals.  Today, we continue with the “Attack and Sustain” idea, but we double the time spent sustaining.  Much more challenging than Ride #1. 

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