By Jonathan Gardner

It would be easy as dedicated, serious cyclist to dismiss spinning as simply a fad, not worthy of consideration or recognition. However, to disregard the activity would be churlish. For there are a number of benefits to this form of cycling that make it an incredibly effective training regime.

What Exactly is It?

Spinning is basically indoor cycling. And that’s not cycling indoors, around a circular race track as you see in the Olympics. On the contrary, spinning is stationary cycling, often performed within a group workout environment, such as a gym. Workouts are intensive and generally last for around 45 minutes a session.

What are the Main Benefits?

Spinning is effective because it adheres to some basic physiological principals. Namely, it causes a prolonged metabolic rate increase. Naturally, when we work out, we push our muscles to the extreme actually causing them to break down and then repair themselves in order to be even stronger. The body has to work much harder in order to deal with this, essentially burning more calories than usual, as it refuels and repairs. This is known as having an increased metabolic rate. In layman’s terms it means making your body fitter. Regardless, the reason why spinning is so effective in promoting these internal processes is that muscles worked out during (thigh area, buttocks, core, rear lower leg) are amongst the biggest and strongest in the body, meaning the metabolic effect is bigger too.

Additional Benefits

The aim of spinning is not merely to overload the muscles, but to do so in a number of different ways. For example; massive resistance in the pedals during a long, steep uphill climb to short, low resistance, to medium pedal resistance pushes the cardio-vascular system to the limit, and surprisingly, often produces far greater results than you might achieve through a long cycling on the road or in the gym. Naturally, the scenery won’t be quite as mesmerising, but the effect on your fitness may be worth that sacrifice.

Strike the Perfect Balance

There is definitely a community of ‘real’ cyclists who view spinning as a bit of a joke. In reality, this is entirely their loss though. Particularly if used alongside a conventional cycling approach, a dedicated spinning regime, with a decent cycle from Fitness Warehouse UK (or another quality distributor) could help you to strike the perfect balance between fitness and pleasure.