If you enjoy cycling but can’t face the thought of facing the cold winter weather outdoors, spinning could be the perfect type of exercise for you.
For this very reason, we’re looking at several sensational benefits of spinning in today’s article.
Cycling is one of the most popular types of exercise in existence, and it is a fantastic way to burn calories, lose fat, and get in shape.
The only downside to cycling is the fact that sometimes conditions or surroundings aren’t exactly ideal.
Not everybody is fortunate enough to live near a gorgeous alpine cycling trail and not everybody is lucky enough to live somewhere where the weather is ideal for cycling for much of the year.
Because of this, and because of the fact that it is just so darned good for you, more and more people are signing up to spin classes and/or are focussing much of their workouts on spinning.
Everybody seems to have hopped on the bandwagon from middle-aged people simply looking to improve their fitness levels, to seasoned professionals who are looking to stay in shape and/or prepare for an event, but what is it about spinning that people find so appealing?
Here’s a look at the 17 sensational benefits.
What Is Spinning?
No, we aren’t actually talking about spinning around and around, we’re instead talking about indoor cycling, also known as spinning, which is performed using a specially designed stationary cycle fitted and equipped with a weighted flywheel for added resistance.
Spinning can be done alone with a spin cycle, though over the years spin classes have been found to be particularly popular.
Here, an instructor will lead a class and go through a tough and strenuous workout with participants.
The idea behind spinning is that as opposed to cycling where you can freewheel or “coast” as you cannot do this with a spinning stationary cycle you are always using your muscles for the duration of the workout.
What Are The Health Benefits Of Spinning?
Right, we’ve got the formalities out of the way and have brought you up to speed with what spinning is, so now let us take a look at several sensational benefits.
These include, but are in no way limited to the following:
1. Burn Calories
Perhaps the most obvious benefit is the fact that it enables you to burn calories, like, a lot of calories!
If you want to lose weight, spinning is ideal because you can easily burn upwards of 800 calories in a typical spinning class, if not more.
2. Great For Everybody
Another of the fantastic benefits which we need to celebrate is the fact that spinning is so great for everybody.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re overweight, unfit, and a complete newbie to fitness, or are a professional cyclist looking for ways to stay fit and prepare for races and events, spinning is perfect.
3. Very Adaptable
One of the main reasons why spinning is considered to be so inclusive and so great for everybody is the fact that it is so adaptable.
Thanks to the flywheel, spinning cycles can be adjusted to be as difficult or as hard as you like.
If you’re a newbie to exercise, you can set the resistance to low and gradually increase it as you lose weight and get fitter.
If you’re an experienced and super-fit individual, you can increase the resistance to give yourself a physically demanding workout.
4. Improves Cardiovascular Health
One of the best benefits, at least as far as your health is concerned, is the fact that spinning is so fantastic when it comes to the improvement of your cardiovascular health.
Spinning can be used as an aerobic form of exercise that will help improve your cardiovascular health.
Spinning helps strengthen the heart, reduce blood pressure, improve circulation, increase lung capacity, and a whole lot more besides.
When you consider the fact that heart disease is the world’s biggest killer, the benefits really do become apparent.
5. The Time Doesn’t Drag
Okay, we aren’t ripping on treadmills and if you enjoy doing your cardio on treadmills then that’s all well and good, but you must admit that a steady-state cardio workout performed on a treadmill, lasting upwards of 45-minutes can get boring.
If you spend your cardio workouts watching the clock and waiting for them to be over, spinning is perfect.
Because of the fact that it is so intense, and because in spin classes the tempo is always changing, a spinning workout will pass by very quickly and is considered anything but boring.
6. Great For The Joints
If you’re usually found running or sprinting on hard surfaces for your cardio, don’t be surprised if you suffer from joint issues such as sore knees, sore ankles, painful hips, and other conditions such as shin splints.
If you suffer from painful joints or joint issues, certain forms of high-impact cardio will be off-limits. Thankfully, spinning is not one of those exercises.
Because you are sat down stationary when you take part in a spinning workout, your foot never touches the floor which means that you don’t need to worry about pain or damage to your joints.
7. Your Legs Will Look Amazing
One of the benefits which people never seem to focus on for some reason is the fact that it is so great for building up your legs.
If you thought squats, lunges, and power clean were the only way to tone your leg muscles and sculpt them, you might want to think again after you learn about spinning.
Spinning is great for toning the legs and building muscle, especially when you consider the fact that you can alter the resistance to make your leg muscles work even harder than usual.
8. Less Risk Of Injury
Okay, regardless of the exercise you take part in, there is always the risk of injury, no matter how careful you are or no matter what you do.
With that said, spinning is an example of an exercise that is far safer and less likely to injure you than many others out there.
With spinning, because you’re stationary there is less risk of you pulling a muscle, tearing a muscle, or simply just hurting yourself in general.
9. Great Way To Socialize
Without dwelling too much on past events, it’s safe to say that following 2020, we’re probably all ready to get out of the house, meet new people and start socializing more than usual.
Spinning is a great way to meet new people because spin classes are so popular and are in such high demand.
If you want to meet new people, go ahead and join a spin class and you’ll be able to socialize with others, make new friends, and form new relationships.
10. Finding A Spinning Class Is Easy
If you like the sound of the benefits so far and you’ve decided that you wish to join a spinning class, the good news is that finding a spinning class is a piece of cake.
Spinning classes are very easy to find nearby because they’re so popular.
You can use apps to find classes nearby, or do things the old-fashioned way and ring up and ask.
11. Strengthen The Immune System
Because spinning is considered to be such a healthy and beneficial form of physical exercise and exertion, it has been found to help significantly increase and strengthen the immune system.
Having a strong and healthy immune system is important because that is what is responsible for protecting you against illness and disease.
The stronger and healthier your immune system is, the stronger and healthier you will be.
12. Improve Your Mental Health
Another fantastic benefit is the fact that it is so beneficial for your mental health.
Spinning, and indeed, all other forms of exercise for that matter, have been found to help increase the production of endorphins in the body, which are happy chemicals responsible for feelings of happiness, confidence, and euphoria.
Regular spin classes will work wonders on your mental health and leave you feeling happier and more confident than ever before.
13. Build The Body You Want
Fed up with being overweight and simply not looking the way in which you want to look?
If so, then spinning is ideal.
Spinning is perfect because it helps to burn fat, tone the muscles, and improve your confidence and your appearance in general.
If you take part in spinning classes on a regular basis and try to make an effort to eat right, the improvements which you see in your physique will be remarkable and your confidence will be through the roof.
14. Increase Your Longevity
Another amazing benefit associated with spinning is the fact that it can increase your longevity.
Studies have found that spinning, and indeed, other forms of aerobic exercise have been found to noticeably increase a person’s longevity.
What does this mean in simple terms?
Basically, because spinning is so healthy and beneficial, it can help to increase your chances of living longer.
15. Spinning Is Fun
Another reason why spinning is proving to be such a hugely popular physical activity is due to the fact that it is such a fun and enjoyable pastime.
Yes, spinning is tough, but once you get going and get used to it, you’ll find that you begin having more fun than you could ever have imagined.
Spinning classes are fun because there’s music, an instructor, and other people, and even spinning at home is fun because many spinning cycles are actually equipped with pre-installed programs that you can follow to break up the monotony.
16. Increase Your Stamina And Endurance
If you’re looking to get fitter and healthier and to build up your stamina and your endurance, spinning is ideal.
Spinning is the perfect physical activity to increase lung capacity, boost your VO2 Max levels, increase your stamina, and increase your endurance.
This means that you’ll find it easier to exercise for longer durations of time before you begin to feel tired and out of breath.
Whether you want to just improve your fitness levels slightly, or if you’re in training for a marathon or endurance event, spinning will help you do precisely that.
17. Strengthen Your Core
When talking about the benefits, people often only focus on the benefits to the legs in terms of muscle definition and strength.
In reality, spinning is also a fantastic form of exercise for strengthening one’s core.
Because of your posture when using a spinning cycle, you are engaging your abdominal muscles and your core stabilizer muscles, which in turn will help to build up your abs and strengthen your core.
Okay, you won’t step off your spinning cycle and instantly find you’ve built a six-pack, but if you stick with it, you will notice your core getting stronger and your abs getting more defined, especially as you begin to lose body fat as well.
If you are looking to build a set of abdominal muscles to be proud of, spinning is a great form of exercise to do precisely that.
Final Thoughts On Spinning:
Okay, so now that we’ve looked at several key benefits, what’s the final verdict?
Well, as you can probably tell from the overall tone of today’s article and the numerous benefits of spinning that we’ve listed, we think spinning rocks, and we’re sure that you will too.
It’s fun, it’s safe, it’s great for your fitness, it will improve your physique, it will improve your mind, and plenty more besides.
With that said, if you want to try a new type of exercise, be sure to check out a spinning class the next time you get a chance.
Take it from us, you won’t regret it.
