Wednesday, January 29, 2014

How to make a spinning (gym bike) class less boring.. Rock Metal Spin!

If you've taken Spinning classes at the gym, or if you teach them, you might just be sick of the boring, repetitive, tame, uninspiring drivel that's the soundtrack to most of the classes. Yes, the beat's there, and the songs are chosen to match the planned "route", up hills and sprinting along straights and back to rolling hills and then that horrible-impossible climb... But wouldn't it be better if the music were cool, too?

I put together a Rock Metal Spin playlist. It's about 40 minutes long, and some of the songs are nicely extended so that you can't sneak a breather in and have to really, really get the cardio going. And yes there are several Five Finger Death Punch songs in there. They are brilliant for the gym.

And yes, I've tested it, that's why I can't breathe right now. Give me a few minutes...

Here's my Rock Metal Spin playlist:

HIM: Wings of a Butterfly (3.32)  Steady warm up
5FDP:  Cold (3:48)  Steadily increasing, heavy, hills
Gemini Syndrome:  Syndrome (3:33) Very heavy but steady hills. Some downhill if you like.
5FDP: House of the Rising Sun (4:07)  Begins with a breather... then sprints
Marillion: Power (6:07) Long hill that gets steep at the end
Alter Bridge:  Calm the Fire (6:05) Middle-of-the-ride steady road: recpvery
5FDP: Remember Everything  (4:39)  Another set of big hills
BMTH:  Can You Feel My Heart  (3:47)  Sprint intervals. Oh yes you will sprint.
Gemini Syndrome: Left of Me (3:06) Short intervals
Joy Division: She's Lost Control (4:56)  Steady straight road all the way up a not-too-steep-hill. Tired yet?
Alison Moyet: This House (3:56) Warm-down and stretching. And who cares about genre labels anyway?

If you happen to be a spin teacher and want to use this list, I've linked--as far as possible, and quite sadly--to the non-"explicit" or "radio safe" versions, but you'll want to check and make sure. Even better, buy directly from the band's own websites.

And you also need to check whatever it is you have to check to make sure that all rights are taken care of when playing music as part of a business or whatever you usually have to do for your playlists. (I have no idea what you have to do, am just know that there is something/some type of licensing that allows the artists to be compensated!) (And I don't want anyone to lose their jobs because the whole spinning class sings out, "But what the F!*! do you know!")

Shame we can't make and share and buy playlists on iTunes any more...

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