How to practice spinning at home

Cycling and good music lovers have found in spinning a sport that allows them to combine two of their great passions. It is a excellent sport for exercising the body, a high-calorie-burning activity that allows you to work the cardiovascular system while strengthening muscles and escaping the mind thanks to the effect of music on the brain, which acts as a stimulant and rhythm coordinator during sessions.

But those who have tried spinning in gyms and fitness centers will have doubts when they want to make the leap to indoor cycling at home. Is it the same? Do you get the same effects? Is there anything to consider to exercise at the same pace? We will tell you in the following article.

What is virtual spinning?

Health circumstances aside, the truth is that recently there has been an increase in users' interest in exercising the body at home simply because facilitate work-life balance and have everything necessary to recover. It is undeniable that training at home is much more comfortable, and in indoor cycling it is possible thanks to virtual spinning.

And there is something you should know if you intend to do spinning exercises at home: you cannot train without assistance. Spinning is a sport in which the rhythm is vital to maintain a constant exercise intensity, which is why music is used: to set the pedaling rhythm.

Virtual spinning uses the figure of a prerecorded real instructor and adds it to a preconfigured session, so that sessions can be replayed at any time and anyone can enjoy a full spinning session at home. You can also use the live broadcast from a real instructor, who is coaching remotely and uses a camera to send the signal to their students.

Now, for that you need to have a bike at home. The good thing about spinning is that it uses increasingly compact stationary bikes and they don't require much space to pedal comfortably, although experts insist that it is necessary to place it in a spacious area to ensure the mobility of legs and torso throughout the session to avoid injuries.

How to train on a bike at home

The only thing needed to train with the bike at home is to have a properly adjusted stationary bike and to have a screen in front of the bike (of a not too large size) to be able to follow the session.

But keep in mind that cycling at home is not the same as spinning. Indoor cycling is the name given to any activity on a stationary bike indoors, but it can be at a slow or personalized pace. Spinning, on the other hand, has a predefined rhythm that the user must follow. That is why the effects on the body of these sessions are so different: because the goal is maximum calorie burn and subjecting the body to high-intensity physical exercises.

Preliminary checks

Before your spinning session starts, it is necessary to carry out a preliminary check of the bike, especially if there are other people at home who use it. The first thing is to adjust the saddle height. To know the correct one, stand right next to the bike you have at home and place the saddle at hip height. We secure it well and get on it.

It's time to check the pedaling. It should be comfortable and allow the leg to complete the full range of motion without reaching a fully tensed position. The leg must remain slightly bent at the height of the knee at its maximum extension angle; if this angle is greater and the leg becomes fully extended, significant joint injuries can occur and could prevent you from cycling at home for a while.

Once you check that the saddle height is ideal and the pedaling is optimal, adjust the handlebar height. Normally, it should be kept at a height similar to the saddle and be in a position that allows slight torso lean forward, while maintaining an upright posture so that during the climbing moments the body can be balanced.

The best spinning exercises to do at home

As a general rule, a virtual spinning session has everything so that the body can be trained almost entirely during the 45-60 minutes that each one lasts. However, there are more specific spinning exercises for home that can be done if you want to train specific muscle groups, such as the abdominals.

For example, tightening the abdominal region during 15-second intervals being upright can help reduce fat in this body area, strengthening the lower abdominal muscles. However, training with the bike at home following the guidelines of virtual spinning sessions involves performing very complete exercises for the body.

Normally, the spinning exercises done at home do not differ much from those carried out in indoor cycling rooms at gyms. The preprogrammed sessions that can be played at home are designed to combine climbs and descents, giving the user moments to strengthen the lower body and others to get their cardiovascular system working at full capacity.

Is it a good idea to do spinning at home?

Thanks to virtual spinning, training with the bike at home is a good idea not only for those who want to train at their own pace, but also for those looking to emulate the level of demand these sport sessions at the gym without leaving home.

Nowadays, people feel very comfortable doing their exercises at home, something that has not gone unnoticed by indoor cycling bike manufacturers nor by the companies that market them. This has also led to the creation of more varied sessions to make virtual spinning sessions, which can also be carried out live through live broadcasts, in addition to recorded sessions.

For reasons of comfort and the possibilities of balancing sports and domestic spaces at home, having a bike at home is an excellent idea. It allows all family members to train at their own pace, you can adjust the intensity of the sessions thanks to the grip wheel that tightens or loosens the pedaling and takes up much less space than other sports equipment.

Doing cycling at home also allows you to create a unique concentration space that is often essential to fully enjoy all the possibilities a home offers. And thanks to virtual spinning sessions, which allow anyone to enjoy a monitored session without having to leaving the house, it is possible to safely carry out all spinning exercises at home, as these sessions include expert advice from instructors to help you prevent injuries and discomfort caused by improper use of the bike.

Therefore: yes, doing spinning at home is an excellent idea that also allows you to save money in the long run by eliminating monthly gym fees and amortizing, month by month, the price of the stationary bike which, unlike those of the physical training centers, it will be your property.