In advance of recording her new Audio Profile Beat Down, Instructor Krista Leopold and I discussed her need to take a break from teaching. With a demanding tech job, along with being an active soccer mom, Krista explains why she decided to step away from regularly scheduled Spinning® classes in this episode of the Podcast.
This ties in with my moving to Florida and having to give up my classes at Life Time Fitness. So for the first time in 17 years I don't have a scheduled class next week 🙁 Not sure how I'm going to feel, once this sinks in…
For those of you who are still teaching, we've published Krista's profile Beat Down for our ICI/PRO members. It's going to include a special treat – a fully mixed MP3 of the complete class playlist!
Both of these questions have pretty much the same solution…
Spotify is jumping in Apple's face with this and I find it kind of funny 🙂 Turns out that if you're paying your monthly Spotify subscription through iTunes, you are paying an extra $3.00 a month. Why? Because iTunes charges an extra 30% on top of recurrent subscriptions.
Spotify is trying to raise awareness around the fact that it's cheaper to subscribe on the web instead of through Apple's App Store. The leading subscription music service plans to email iPhone customers the below note encouraging them, if they haven't already, to start paying at Spotify.com and save a few dollars. “In case you didn’t know, the normal Premium price is only $9.99, but Apple charges 30 percent on all payments made through iTunes,” the email blast reads. “You can get the exact same Spotify for only $9.99/month, and it’s super simple.”
The message is followed with a step-by-step tutorial that explains how to shut off auto-renew through iTunes (so Apple won't keep charging you the higher $12.99-per-month rate) and transfer your account to the web – something that can only be done once your current subscription lapses. “Pardon us if you can't do this immediately. Your current plan needs to end first,” Spotify says.
This will only apply if you downloaded and subscribed to Spotify using your iDevice. Most of us (me included) used our computers and subscribed directly with Spotify.
But this got me thinking; how do I cancel my free trial to Apple Music?
Turns out it's easy to cancel any monthly subscriptions.[wlm_private ‘PRO-Platinum|PRO-Monthly|PRO-Gratis|PRO-Seasonal|Platinum-trial|Monthly-trial|PRO-Military|30-Days-of-PRO|90 Day PRO|Stages-Instructor|Schwinn-Instructor|Instructor-Bonus|28 Day Challenge']
Open the Music App on your phone and click the silhouette icon in the top-left corner.
Next choose View Apple ID and Log In.
Then under Subscriptions > Manage
This screen will show your Apple Music and other auto-pay subscriptions, including Spotify if that's how you're subscribed.
NOTE: cancelling won't end your trial early.
Please let me know if you have additional questions. [/wlm_private]
Not sure how I feel about this new show shot in an Indoor Cycling studio in LA. I've had a few regulars mention it to me at the club. One told me that she's excited to learn more about the sex and drama filled life I lead as an Instructor 🙂
Hollywood Cycle episode #1 is tonight on E! Entertainment Television
You may have already seen the trailer
https://youtu.be/e6h3rQlZUzI
Now you can also get some advice on what not to do in a cycling class >
“Hollywood Cycle” stars Nick Hounslow, Nichelle Hines and Aaron Hines give the down-low on what to avoid during their intense spinning sessions. Listen in!
We just completed an update of the ICI/PRO feed to make it more user friendly.
ICI/PRO members get access to a special “Super Secret iTunes Feed” that will deliver a condensed listing of all of our downloadable Audio Profile Podcasts + full class mixed .mp3 playlists to iTunes or the Podcast App on your phone.
This latest update striped out everything but the important bits = now you'll easily find the audio profiles and mixed mp3s in iTunes or your favorite RSS feed reader.
To take advantage of this update you'll want to delete your old ICI/PRO feed and then re-subscribe using the RSS link shown below if you're logged in.
[wlm_loginform]
NOTE: This is a separate Podcast feed from the free Podcast. So you'll want both 🙂
Another way to access this RSS feed is directly through your browser. I know that Firefox will display the feed if you click the RSS link above – not sure about Safari. Chrome will work after you install this free plugin.
Indoor cycling fitness chain SoulCycle Holdings LLC has hired investment banks for a U.S. initial public offering expected to come later this year, according to people familiar with the matter.
SoulCycle's IPO preparations underscore the growing popularity of boutique chains that cater to specific workout methods such as spinning, yoga and barre. The chains, which often charge per class rather than a monthly membership fee, have been taking market share from traditional big-box gyms.
SoulCycle has more than 42 U.S. locations, and plans to open 50 to 60 studios worldwide by next year, according to its website.
So would you purchase shares in SoulCycle?
After watching SoulCycle for years and seeing what a money machine they've become, I'm thinking I will. In fact I'm going to compare them to Starbucks and predict that SoulCycle will make investors a lot of money for the same reason Starbucks has been such a solid investment* > both their customers admit to being addicted to their products.
A few weeks ago, while mindlessly trolling Instagram, something stopped me in my tracks: My friend from high school, Michaela Miller, who is currently working on a master's degree in public administration from NYU, had screenshot her upcoming SoulCycle schedule. “475 rides in 365,” she boasted of her “SOULiversary,” the birthday of her inaugural class. “Stepping it up with an even STRONGER starting lineup.” After gawking at the fact that she was planning a Wednesday triple–as in three, 45-minute classes in a single day–I shamelessly pulled up my calculator app. Some quick math revealed that my friend's dedication to cult-loved $34 spin sessions (before the price of shoe rentals and water) could easily run her $16,000 in a single year.
Despite all the negativeness directed at SoulCycle, they have shown the rest of the Indoor Cycling industry how to be successful. Not to mention positively changing the lives of thousands of participants…
For Miller, the benefits of being die-hard include daily clear-headedness, a built-in support system, and being held accountable. “I'm definitely less flaky as a person,” she says of committing to ten or more classes a week all over Manhattan, New Jersey, and Brooklyn. “I used to be notorious for missing trains, planes, parties, dinners, but since I started doing Soul, I'm early to things. I show up on time. It sounds silly, because we all should do that, but I was late a lot.” To minimize the financial impact (she says she's only on the hook for half of the classes she takes), Miller buys packages and nabs free rides via a group of instructors who now make up her inner circle. She even gave up a pack-a-day habit. “I would never have quit smoking if it wasn't for Soul,” she says with a laugh. “It was between SoulCycle and the cigarettes.”
NOTE: This is not intended as financial advice, only to alert you to this future opportunity.
I'm seeing that E! Entertainment Television has released a couple of trailers for their upcoming show about Indoor cycling Instructors > Hollywood Cycle. Looks like your garden variety fitness studio drama. Nothing different than what we experience every week at Life Time. Does this look like your studio as well?
The show is scheduled to begin July 7th 10/9 central on E!
