My workout schedule tends to get disrupted when I head home for the holidays but the fitness boom is extending beyond major cities and studios are popping up all over the place, like Bethesda, Maryland for example. My friend who lives in the area recommended PureRyde for cycling and pilates and the folks at the studio were nice enough to let me come in for complimentary classes to check it out. I made sure to sign up for my friends favorite instructor Ingrid Nelson.
I got to the studio Saturday morning, prepped for the 9:15 cycling followed by the 10:30 pilates. The studio is located in downtown Bethesda but has a large parking lot out front which makes for a stress-free situation (as a New Yorker I’m not used to figuring out driving and parking time and it causes me pre-class anxiety). The studio has a great vibe, the yellow and gray color scheme is soothing and the walls are painted with a chevron pattern (what’s not to love). The studio has a pilates room and a cycling room, a tiny locker area (not a locker room, just lockers) and two bathroom stalls (so definitely not a place you can go to before work and expect to be clean). Because of the non-locker room situation I recommend coming dressed for class or you might be waiting a while.
First up was cycling. Now this isn’t your standard cycling class. The bikes actually move side to side. This is my first experience with these bikes and I can’t say that I was a huge fan. It’s a bit unsettling but I’m sure if you do it enough you get used to it. As a cycling instructor, I find that you can get enough of a workout with a standard stationary bike. And also as an outdoor cyclist, I don’t think these moving bikes really mimic what it’s like to be outside. Just my opinion though, I know some people love these and they are worth giving a try.
Once on my bike the staff was very helpful in getting everyone set up. Clip in shoes are free for your use during class but I brought my own.
I quickly could see why my friend loves Ingrid. She’s got a great energy, is upbeat and pushes you without being mean about it plus she has a rockin’ bod to give you extra motivation. The class is small which makes for a nice intimate experience (maybe 15ish bikes in the room). A lot of Ingrid’s style was to go super fast on the bike which again, isn’t really my thing but people in the class seemed to love it. As a certified instructor I’ve learned about resistance and it’s importance in class, both from a calorie burn and safety standpoint and at some points I felt like we weren’t instructed to have enough resistance (for example, at the beginning of class when we were told to turn the knobs all the way to the left and go as fast as we could, yikes). That part aside, I was sweating like crazy and got a good workout in. We did weights for one song and did weird side to side motions on the bike to work our core.
Overall, I did sweat and I did work hard but I’d prefer to stick to stationary bikes that are indeed stationary.
Next up was +Pilates. I’d never done pilates on a reformer and I LOVED this. The class had about 8 reformers and Ingrid led from a reformer in the front of the room. I could feel my muscles working as we moved through the hour class. As a newbie, Ingrid did an awesome job instructing me as well as the more experienced students in the class. Sometimes pilates can feel low energy but not the +Pilates program here, my heart was beating and my muscles were screaming (just my kind of workout!).
Overall I really enjoyed my experience at PureRyde. The workout was great, the staff was super nice and I’d like to think I burned off at least some of my Thanksgiving dinner. While I didn’t love the cycling, I’m particularly picky about it so don’t just take my word for it, you can try it yourself. The +Pilates is a must-try if you’re near a PureRyde. Speaking of, PureRyde is located in Bethesda, MD, Austin, TX, Gulf Coast, MS, Oxford, MS, and West Bloomfield, MI.
Thanks again to the folks at PureRyde for welcoming me into your studio!
