10 Spinning Benefits And Disadvantages To Consider Before Doing Spin

Whether you are a spinning fanatic or maybe you have never even step foot on a stationary bike, either way this craze is something everyone should try at least once, whether it is for fitness purposes or whether you just want to try something new. Before you try it consider the pros and cons of spinning.

Pros:

Burn Those Calories

Spinning is a great way to burn calories quickly, as a class is usually around 45 minutes, and in that time you can burn up to 500 calories. Obviously, that all depends on how you work, so the higher the intensity of the workout the more calories you burn. it doesn’t exactly take a brain surgeon to figure out that the harder you work the greater your results.

Tone It Up

A 45-minute spinning session could lead to a very toned bum, abs, legs, and maybe even arms depending on the workout, again if you work hard. As you can increase the intensity on the bike, you have the power to get as toned as you want, especially on your bum and legs but to work the abs and arms some instructors incorporate sit ups on the bikes, as well as introducing some weights. All of this getting you one step closer to your ideal bikini body.

Low impact Exercise

Although spinning can be a high intensity workout it is actually classed as a low-impact exercise, so it won’t put much pressure on your joints the way normal running exercises do. So even if you have a knee injury, you can still do a spin class without worrying about making the injury worse.

Relieve Your Stress

Of course any sort of exercise is a stress reliever, but spinning classes are even better as they allow you meet other people in the class and socialise, especially if you go to the same weekly class. Spinning classes also involve a lot of great entertainment include upbeat music and also motivation from the instructor, helping you push harder and feel better about yourself.

Track your progress

In most spinning classes your bike will have a monitor, which helps you track your progress, usually showing how many calories you are burning and your speed. Instructors usually incorporate these monitors in to classes by giving you a target speed to reach, so you will able to see your progress week by week, and establish how much progress you have made.

Cons:

The Back Pain

During a cycling workout you tend to hunch your back especially when reaching high speeds on the machine, this can be extremely painful and may lead to strains or even worse conditions especially in the lower back. If you feel any back pain try to inform your instructor and they can show you the correct posture to hold during your workout so you can prevent future pain or injury.

Ignoring the Upper Body  

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Taking a spinning class is perfect if you want to focus on your legs, bum and core but tends to ignore the upper body, unless your instructor incorporates weights in your spinning session or introduces press-ups during the workout so you can get a full body workout instead of just toning the lower body.

Pushing Too Far

A spinning class is a continuous workout, which means no intermittent breaks unlike interval training which offers you short breaks in between exercises. As you are usually moving for 45 minutes straight you are bound to push yourself hard, as many people believe this will make the workout quicker. This is not the case, as overdoing it usually just results in you pushing yourself too hard, and overworking your body, leading to early fatigue and possibly causing you to burnout, and you may not be able to last until the end of the workout. Fortunately, as it is a low impact exercise there will not be too much strain on the muscles, which is why many people find continuous spinning classes fairly doable.

Uncomfortable Spinning

Spinning is not exactly the most comfortable of workouts, as many people complain of sore pelvic bones and coccyx, as the seats are not exactly fluffy cushions. You can try to avoid this pain by making sure your bike is adjusted so you are at the correct height and distance to the handlebars. You could also purchase padded bike shorts, but only if you are truly invested in cycling, and you have a low tolerance for pain.

Prevents Your Progress

If you take a spinning class a couple of times a week, your body becomes used to it, and you may even begin to find the classes easy. If this is the case then you are preventing progress by doing the same workouts all the time, as you are only focusing on specific muscles, more so the lower body. Continue to take spinning classes, but think about trying other workouts like Hot HIIT or even yoga, so you can train other parts of the body, and keep it interesting.

Overall, spinning is a great exercise as long as you remember to mix it up, fix your posture, and listen to your body, you will be a spin queen (or king) in no time.

What do you think of the pros and cons of spinning? Let us know in the comments below.

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