My First Time (at Flywheel)

The first thing I do every morning, like any normal human, is check my phone. I roll over and grab it, ready to read what's happened overnight - what imperative news I've missed.  The only way I want to start my day is by assessing how many more likes I got on my late night Instagram post, what my credit card statement is telling me today, and methodically emptying my 100 pieces of junk email. It's rare that anything within my inbox surprises me anymore. Every now and again, I'll see something different, like a piece of "fan" mail or a 20% off offer that actually is worth something to me. But, usually, it's just the same old tired parade of everything I don't care about (I swear I do an "unsubscribe" purge every week, yet...).

But all this changed on April 29, 2014. Upon checking my inbox for the umpteenth time that day, something bright and shiny was staring back at me - an email that actually seemed interesting. The subject read: "Flywheel likes you! Come visit us." My heart fluttered. Flywheel? I thought to myself. As in the Flywheel with indoor cycling and automatic, built-in "Yeah, I indoor cycle like a boss" cool points? The title screamed spam, but I opened it anyway. I couldn't believe my luck! They wanted me, Emma, to come try them out for a month. What. Did they hear through the grapevine how out of shape I had become? Was there a secret indoor cycling society that kept tabs on girls within a certain mileage of their vicinity who needed a wake-up call? Did they have a little-known charity program and I was the chosen charity case for this month?

It was none of those things, obviously. In fact, it couldn't have been farther. They had simply been introduced to my blog, liked it, and wanted to offer me this FREE MONTH-LONG membership to a) maybe try and get in some sort of shape and b) tell anyone who will listen to me about my experiences with Flywheel.

So, as any 20something, broke, sedentary, blogger with a cause would do, I accepted while simultaneously peeing my pants from terror.

I had never done indoor cycling before. Sure, I had heard of it and thought about it and spied on it and maybe even contemplated it for like a half-second one time, but I had never seriously committed to the thought of maybe actually committing to it. But Flywheel had given me the opportunity to not be such a chicken shit, so I took it.

The first day of my first class, I was terrified. I woke up with anxiety, knowing what lie ahead. I hadn't been to the gym in months due to life happening, and the intimidation of jumping back in via indoor cycling was strong enough to tranquilize a small elephant.

I worried the entire day. Each hour that clicked by was one hour closer to my inevitable demise by way of a stationary bike. I second guessed my outfit, my hair style, and the overall act of actually going through with it. Basically, it felt like I was going on a first date that night - one I wasn't mentally prepared for and would royally screw-up. What would I think of them? What would they think of me? Would we hit it off, me and the bike? Would I impress the staff, and maybe even myself? What about the other riders in the room? Would they be able to sniff out my fear and nervous BO from feet away?

6:30. It was time. Like most first dates, the initial greeting is awkward, especially if you've decided on meeting them at the destination and have to do the awkward "look around" to see where they are. But, much to my surprise and delight, I was greeted enthusiastically upon entering Flywheel by the instructor of the hour herself. She helped me setup my bike, clipped me in, and said "You're locked in now. No backing out." My stomach dropped into my butt, and I felt an immediate need to poop, but I was literally trapped since I had no idea how to unclip my shoes (trust me, I tried).

But, y'all. Guess what? I made it. I'm here, alive, writing this. I survived. Did I ride at the exact resistance our instructor told us to? Hell no. More like half of it. Did I go as fast as she wanted us to? Absolutely not, but I tried. I did what I could and I'm here today to tell you - I loved it. And I'm going back for seconds, thirds, fourths, and maybe even fifths if I still have functioning legs.

Oh and, just in case you're interested (which you should be), your first class is free. Because that's just how Flywheel does it at flywheelsports.com.

Hi. I'm Emma and I'm a new Flywheel addict.