Sitting straight up, not touching bar?

[equus123]

haha no offense but this guy sucks.

what the heck is the point of being a *teacher* to teach people in a spin class to do something totally different than riding a bike. it makes no sense to me. "i'm going to be your spin instructor. i'm going to tell you not to ride your bike like everybody else....or the way you're supposed to ride....because of pointless reasons."

perhaps he can reiterate throughout the class to remind people from leaning too hard on their handlebars? even then....if you're not a road cyclist and just enjoy taking spin classes then what the hell's the difference?? you know? so what if they lean on the bars...doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things except your arms burn after a while!

[han-grrl]

Although this instructor is right, you don't want to DRAPE all your body weight on your handle bars...you don't want to be completely upright in a standing position either. weight should be centered over the centers of the pedals, with some pressure on the hands for balance. i have seen participants, try to take all the pressure off their legs, and try to hold themselves up with their arms (usually in an effort to make it easier). I have also seen some instructors (i believe this is called hovering) to try and spin without any hands while standing, which is quite hard on the knees. this is actually a no no in the spin program.

anyway, the main thing to remember is to be safe, and stay comfortable. if something doesn't feel right, then DON'T DO IT!

Smile

han

[Bad JuJu]

haha no offense but this guy sucks.

Yeah, I'm slowly coming to think so. On the other hand, it's a good workout and the only class that fits into my schedule--plus it's at the campus gym, so it doesn't cost me anything.

I think I'll continue going and just try to keep my form as close as possible to road cycling--I already KNOW how that's supposed to be done.

Really, all of you, thanks for all the input and advice!

[kymberann]

more weight over the pedals and less over the bars works the core more effectively.
Actually it is more weight over the saddle not the pedals! And this weight comes from the hips and butt area! THink of it as a gentle stretch and the more the glutes are back the more the hamstrings are engaged which helps create balance between quads and hammies. This is virtually impossible to do in an upright position. I very rarely use an up right position as it is awkward and just not standard unless it is in a recovery mode for you back!
Watch road riders, you wont see many in an upright, it slows down timw and impossible to climb hills!

[RoadRaven]

I can't sit up straight or hold the bars on the spin bike for long.

The way I ride the spin bike for long periods of time is spending most of it resiting on my forearms in a pseudo aero/TT position.

The spin bike is so radically different from the road bikes - even though we have tried to set it as best we can to match, it still feels wrong...

[indysteel]

After my own frustrations with certain spin instructors at my gym, I tend more and more to treat their instructions as suggestions. If they don't make much sense or stand to injure some part of me, I freely ignore them. Like the instructor who wants our class to spin like crazy people while using a high resistance. Unless he's paying for my knee replacement surgery, I'm not doing it.

It seems like you've already gotten an answer to the no hands spinning question, but I'd further add that sitting up like really just works your quads. Strong quads are great, but if you want to be really powerful on the bike, you have to work your glutes and hamstrings. Your question brings to mind a passage in one of my favorite cycling/exercise books--"Bike for Life." In the book, it states that if your bike fits correctly, you should be able to practice "butt-centric" cycling. The ideal bike fit, according to the book, puts your upper body in approximately a forty-degree angle to your bars to best utilize your glutes and hamstrings. It makes sense to me, then, to approximate that angle in spin class so that I work those muscle groups. In fact, since I regularly started spinning, I do feel more powerful in that sense on the bike. I notice it during seated climbs in particular.