I Hate to be Late...part two (also known as a rant)

Yesterday I started out writing a little back story for the real story that I'm writing today. I just got long winded and kind of off topic, and in the end, I wanted to eat ribs and laugh at Steve Carell with my family. The story could wait until today.

Two mornings a week, I take a spinning class - indoor cycling. I've grown to love this class, even more since The Biggest Loser says that a one hour spinning class will burn 700-1000 calories. It's super early, (5:45 am) and the class is fairly small, the instructors are good and so is the music. My kind of class.


The bikes are the upright kind, not the recumbent, and they have a little knob that you can turn and make the resistance harder or easier. The instructor leads the class on different "courses", up hills (crank the resistance up), races or sprinting to "get ahead" of an imaginary biker, jumps (resistance high, alternately standing and sitting), etc. The sweetest words are "take it to flat road", and you turn the knob to zero resistance. It's all timed to the music and it is seriously fun. Did my fingers really just type that? Shoot me now.


The lights are out during the class - the only light coming in is from the hallway. I like to close my eyes when it gets really hard, pedaling and trying to get to the end. My balance seems to be okay, and I've never felt like I was going to fall off (though wouldn't that make a good post?).

The first time you go to the spin class, you're supposed to go at least 5 minutes early to get set up on your bike. It's not hard, just a lot to adjust, so the bike will fit your body. You can move the seat up and down and closer and farther (to the handlebars). The handlebars also move those same ways. It needs to be "just so", so that you don't hurt your knees and so you can be as comfortable as possible. The instructor shows you how to set it up, explains the resistance knob and some of the terminology. It takes a few minutes - that's why the class schedule says to come early!

A few weeks ago, I convinced my friend Susan to come spin with me. She's a night owl and getting up early is her definition of hell, so I knew how hard this was for her. She did it though, and has come faithfully every Thursday morning for the past month. I told her she's hardcore. We rode together, and we got there plenty early to get her set up on her bike.

Unfortunately, not everyone who is new to the class comes early. Remember I said that other people being late doesn't phase me at all. Well, all that has changed, at least as far as the spinning class goes.

For the past three weeks, people are walking in right at 5:45 or later, without a clue as what to do. The instructor has to take time with each late person to get their bike set up and several times, the actual class hasn't started until almost 6:00. The rest of us just keep pedaling, warming up. (Okay, it just occurred to me that I could hop off my bike and help one of them get set up, but I would sure hate to do it wrong. Nah, they are still wrong to be late and make the whole class wait).

Now I wouldn't mind the starting late too much, except that the class has to end at 6:45. When it starts late, we get less time in workout mode, or we have to skip the abdominal work at the end of class altogether. Yes, I could do the abs at home, but I know me, and I don't. I just don't.

And the kicker...by the time the class starts, the rest of the class has been warming up, as in our bodies are getting hot and sweaty, while the late-y lates have been trying out different handlebar positions. They are still cold from walking in. The instructor asks, "Are you ready for the fans?", and the not-warmed- up people shout out "NO!".

Excuse me?

Don't mess with my fans!!!!! I will take you down, I swear...

Yes, this is petty. I know that if this is the worst thing going on in my life, I have nothing to complain about. But I just had to get it off my chest. Thank you.

Anything bugging you lately?
Go ahead, I'm listening.