A few random thoughts…

by John | Oct 30, 2014 | KEEPING IT FUN, Master Instructor Blog, Music

I collect stuff; articles, observations, suggestions and random ideas that I feel could make for an interesting post or interview. Not everything is worthy of the time needed to research and craft into an article – but I feel are still worthy of sharing. Here are the latest:

Why So Many Women Are Crying at the Gym?
Great question and this article in Time Magazine explains a bit more of why many women love SoulCycle classes:

For a generation of stressed-out working women, exercise is as much about emotional release as it is physical training.
You could go to therapy — or you could hit the gym. Women are getting teary in SoulCycle, and misty-eyed at Pure Barre. They are letting out wails in yoga and rubbing the shoulder of the weepy woman next to them at CrossFit. “I think people have started to notice that their clients are just showing up to class and just unloading, and so they’re tailoring their classes to create space for this,” says Hayes, who is a pilates instructor by day. “When I take private clients I end up feeling like a therapist for them.”

These fitness instructors aren’t trained in that, of course. But they’ve probably been there.

It’s not an accident that just as you’re starting to relax, coming down from the adrenaline, you’re blasted with a throaty ballad. Those playlists are meticulously constructed. “I’ve been teaching for almost 20 years, so I’ve basically seen it all: crying, laughing, throwing up, overheating,” says Stacey Griffith, a Soul Cycle instructor. “There are moments in the class that are directly programmed for that reason — but it’s not like we’re trying to get people to cry. We’re giving them the space to step outside of themselves.”

I noticed and reported on these “moments” in both classes I took at SoulCycle. They are part of the class profile and appeared to be a powerful component of the class.

Great example of how mixing in key can create energy
I was reading this article in the WSJ  ANATOMY OF A SONG How the Kinks Roughed Up Their Sound If you're an old Kinks fan you'll enjoy learning how they created their special sound in the days before digital music – poking holes in the speakers with a knitting needle.

Near the end of the article Ray Davies, the song’s composer and band’s lead singer, makes a reference to key changes in the song The Kinks — You Really Got Me and the effect they had:

Once teens saw us and heard our metallic sound, the excitement built and the single took off after its release the following week. Part of what the audience was responding to was the song’s key shift from G to A. The more natural and melodic place for the song to go was from G to C or D. But I wanted it to go to A, which was quite revolutionary then. There’s something about that full step up that feels like acceleration and raises the excitement level. The progression actually made me shudder when I originally came up with it.

Turn up the volume, and listen to with your eyes closed – do you hear what he's describing? Are there time in your class where a similar change could be valuable?

http://youtu.be/S7ffgqjcH40

Will women be wearing corsets in your class soon? 

I hope not. It seems that fitness expert Kim Kardashian has started a trend called “waist training” using an old fashion corset and many of her followers are lacing up these devices of torture and giving it a try:

However, “own photos” seem to be a big part of waist training. And so I decide to wear the corset to spinning class and possibly take an own photo afterward. Apparently, this is what Kim Kardashian does: She waist-trains at the gym, then she takes an “own photo.”
I don’t really like spinning that much, but I go to this particular class because it’s very leisurely. For example, we keep spinning to “California Love,” which is kind of slow. Every song is the pace of a stroll in the French countryside.

Before I go to the gym, I put my corset on under a gigantic shirt. It’s slightly easier to put on today. Perhaps I am training my waist? I can even walk to the gym without getting too winded.

Unfortunately, actually spinning is a bit harder. I am only one minute into “California Love” when I start feeling very out of breath. I unbutton the first snaps of my corset. Then the spinning instructor puts on “Bang Bang” by Jessie J. She has never done something like this before, and I am quite displeased. What an energetic song. It’s almost entirely screaming. My corset can’t stand the stress. I start unsnapping more buttons under my huge shirt, even though everyone in spin class is looking at me, wondering what I am doing under the shirt. I throw the corset near my bike. I do not take an own photo. I decide to take a couple of days off from waist-training.

I'd love to hear if/when one shows up in your class 🙂