I found myself in a fitness slump. There was a time when I’d go to Mem Gym several times a week, but recently I couldn’t find the motivation to get myself to any of the gyms on grounds. I told myself that it wasn’t a priority; I could be working on homework or doing another extracurricular activity that would look good on my resume. I forgot just how much sweating like crazy for an hour increases my quality of life.
So since I didn’t want to go to the gym by myself and disinterestedly walking on a treadmill, I looked to group fitness. Group fitness, from what I had heard, has a sense of community that you couldn’t find in a regular gym setting and since most group fitness classes have an instructor guiding you along, I thought it would increase my motivation to work myself as hard as possible.
But which group fitness journey to choose? Charlottesville has plenty of options to choose from based on your preferences, from spin to yoga to Zumba, pilates, and more. I chose to try indoor cycling, also called spinning. I had heard of Soul Cycle and Peloton of course, but I didn’t really know what these classes entailed. I decided to sign up for three classes at Zoom located at Barracks.
Zoom offers multiple types of fitness classes, but they really specialize in spin. If you don’t know (like me) you need special cleats to clip into your bike. They have shoes you can rent (the first three sessions they’re free) and they give you a locker. I was really impressed with Zoom’s interior. It’s super clean and really modernized with two huge restrooms with showers and plenty of deodorant and towels available for their guests. You reserve your own bike so I, naturally, picked the bike in the back row in the corner.
I won’t lie. During my first couple of classes, I wasn’t keeping up with the instructor. I had no idea what increasing resistance meant, where two, three, and four were, or what isolating entailed. It took time and a couple of questions, but in no time, I understood all of the lingo and choreography, even if my legs did turn into jello.
I was a little worried the bright, flashy lights and loud music would be overstimulating and affect the quality of my workout. But I grew to love the bright colors and combination of both the music (usually EDM-style remixes) and the instructor on the mic yelling at everyone “You can do it!” It does feel like a club in a way, but instead of being drunk on overpriced cocktails, you chug water and wipe off a pound of sweat with your towel every five or so minutes. Zoom also includes a weight section to rest your legs.
In conclusion, I am so happy I’ve discovered the world of group fitness, especially spin. After my three sessions, I booked ten more. I can’t yet keep up with the instructor entirely, but I am hopeful I’ll get there.