How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bike
3:25 PM
Spinning can be really intimidating. It moves quickly, the choreography can be challenging, and it's kind of embarrassing when you can't unclip your shoes from the pedals. When I started spinning a couple of years ago I felt like a fool but two years later, I'm steadier and stronger on the bike and rocking the choreography with the best of them. But I still have two fears... 1. Falling off the bike and 2. Smacking my face on the handle bars during crunches.
Well, I (literally) faced one of those fears last year... I'm riding in the front row and I'm soooo into it! The music is on point, I'm sweaty AF, and we start crunching on the bike in third (up on the bike, reaching forward, booty back) and I lost my focus for a second... Next thing I know, my mouth meets the handle bars and I've got a busted lip. Thankfully, it was dark and hopefully no one noticed as I tried to regain my composure and catch the beat while holding my towel to my mouth to see if I was bleeding. I could have stopped and left class (okay, I probably should have done this), I could have sworn off spin, or quit working as hard and challenging myself but I didn't.
I don't know if it's cause I was just feeling that good during class, or just that spin has really changed how I approach challenges and setbacks. Riding has shown me that you can continue to challenge yourself and make changes, or you can be complacent and wait for change. Weeks later, I still had a lump in my upper lip that hadn't quite disappeared but I was still riding! I'm a bit more careful to keep my focus while crunching and crunch with my torso, not my face; but like they say, "if it doesn't challenge you, it doesn't change you!"
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