I have heard the question: can indoor cycling classes get you in shape? People ask this all the time. They wonder how it’s possible to get in shape while you sit there on a bike simply pedaling around and around. Well most of those people have no respect for the bike in the first place. Whether it’s indoor or or not. Some people think of a bike as a child’s toy and not as one of the most efficient pieces of equipment for getting in shape.

Group cycling classes are brutal…or not. It all depends on what you want to get out of the workout. If you follow the instructor you will get in shape and work extremely hard. Indoor cycling classes can be very exhausting. You just have to decide how hard you want to work.

A new person going to an indoor cycling class should go at their own pace. Find their own rhyth. At least for the first couple of weeks. And they should not be intimidated because of the speed that the regulars are riding. I was in a class a couple of weeks ago and a couple of new spring break gym bunnies came into class for the first time. Granted the instructor did not tell them to ride at their own pace, so they tried to keep up with the intensity of the class. They left after 15 minutes. Now group indoor cycling classes are hard but you shouldn’t give up. If things get too hard, so down, catch your breath and try to recover. Over time you will figure out how hard to go to give yourself a good workout. You always want to make yourself work hard but you don’t want to blow yourself up either.

I don’t ride indoors much during warm weather. I use it to stay in shape during the winter months. I like indoor cycling because it doesn’t beat up my body like running. Indoor cycling keeps me in shape and when I need to get back in shape, like after recovering from this awful flu/strep I’ve had, it’s one of the first things I turn to.