Fighting monotony and boredom is the biggest deterrent in fitness. Trainers insist that we need to keep changing our routine frequently to stay motivated and get the best results. Staying fit is also about having fun and those who’ve done a bit of treadmill, elliptical cross trainers and the works have discovered another method to shed calories — spinning. Like most fitness routines, spinning became popular in the West before it caught on in India. Ozone, Latitudes and Gold’s gym in Hyderabad have dedicated spinning studios and instructors.
Spinning is done in group workout sessions in a studio done up with psychedelic lights. Following instructions, you spin first at slow to moderate speed and step up intensity according to the fast-paced music. Varying degrees of intensities challenge the spinner — from low intensity routines on a flat surface to settings that let you pedal uphill. Cycling up the hill calls for effort and helps to burn more calories. “To cycle uphill, you raise from the seat of the bike. The exercise works your quadriceps. Spinning is a good exercise to tone up thigh and leg muscles,” says trainer Faiyaz Ali Khan.
Spinning bikes are different from traditional stationary found in many personal gyms. “It’s more like a racing bike, with a fly wheel in front and options for higher resistance on the hill mode,” says Faiyaz. All that pedalling helps you burn up to 600 calories in a 40-minute session, which is much higher than a swimming session of the same time. Keep a towel and a water sipper handy as you’ll sweat profusely. Spinning is low impact, safer for your knee and back than the treadmill. But do check with your doctor if you have ankle/knee/back injuries.
On the flip side, spinning isn’t a complete workout. You need different exercises for an upper body workout.
If spinning to music in a gym isn’t your idea of fitness, try bicycling, which our forefathers vouched by. The art of bicycling is returning, thanks to fitness enthusiasts and environmental-friendly thinkers. The Hyderabad Bicycle Club is an association with young and elderly men and women. The group was formed by a group of techies led by Shay Mandel. Members meet up on Wednesdays and Saturdays with their trendy bikes and biking gear. “On Wednesdays, it’s a power ride session to improvise on speed and new techniques. On Saturdays, we do express rides and cycle 70 to 100 kms,” says Sandeep Pathak, an MNC employee and an avid cyclist. There are two groups in this club — one that cycles beyond Gachibowli and the other that cycles in Secunderabad. Cycling on such bad roads? >http://hyderabadbicyclingclub.blogspot.com gives dos and don’ts and how to avoid getting hurt on Hyderabad roads. There are members who’ve incorporated cycling as part of their regular lifestyle. “Unless it’s raining, I don’t take my car while commuting to work,” says Sandeep. The club members vouch that it’s a dream to ride in the outskirts, on roads around Medak and Shankerpally all the way to Vikarabad where the tree-dotted roads are unlike city roads characterised by potholes. The group, started last December, has more than 550 members today.
