Happy New Year

Hello Everyone! Well, I finally did it,created a blog. My motivation was really all the club members who would ask about the playlists that I use during my Spinning class. It would be impossible to (and illegal) to burn a cd for everyone who asks each week, so I thought this would be a great way to post the list of songs I am using for a particular week, and then YOU, the blog "follower" can locate the music. I am sure in many instances you may already have songs on your iPod and I am merely reminding you of them.
The name of the blog, "Use the Music Spin", refers to how I teach my particular spinning class. For those of you are not familiar with the term "Spinning", it is an indoor cycling class, done in a group setting to music. I have been taking classes for about four years and have been a certified instructor for almost a year and a half. Every instructor is different, depending on training, certification and personal style, but for me the focus is the music.
The human body is made up mostly of water, so sound waves literally resonate through you. Think about what music can do to you, make you dance, make you cry, or in the instance of exercise, motivate you. We've all heard our favorite song and started to move around a bit, especially if alone ( I dance in my kitchen regularly). My idea is to try to use that same feeling in an exercise class to get you to work harder, and hopefully have some fun. You don't have to love the song, but if you listen and concentrate, you can peel back the layers and find something to pull you along, whether it is the rhythm, the melody or the beat.
My former career was in Early Childhood Education and while I was a teacher I would organize my class curriculum around themes. It would help structure the class and then I could apply the objectives and goals I needed to reach within the theme. I think that when I became a Spinning instructor my mind was used to operating a certain way, so the idea of themed playlists just sort of happened. I also need a lesson plan, similar to when I was a teacher of young children and having my music all chosen and worked through ahead of time is critical for me. Every instructor's method is different, but for me, it's definitely the music that I create the workout with.
Those of you who take my class regularly know that I try to use a variety of different artists and genres. I always say if you hate the music one week, come back the next because it probably will be totally different. My family and friends sometimes give me grief about putting so much time in choosing a theme, the songs and then developing the workout, but the thing is, I enjoy it. I WANT to do it. It's a challenge every week to try to come up with something new. It sounds kind of corny, but when I got hired at Fitness Formula Club in Oak Park, I decided that I wanted every class I teach to be the BEST spinning class you have ever taken. Now, realistically, I know that is not possible, but I hope, I think, that maybe out of all the classes I teach a week and all the members who come and work, maybe it is true for at least one.
More to come including this week's music...sort of a New Year resolution theme, and some other ideas I have in the works! I'll need suggestions :)
Bye,
Portia