Leave it on the Bike

Hello Music fans... So, I gave in and just started using Ping on iTunes.  I will be posting playlists there much more regularly than I write here, but that doesn't mean I will stop rambling or talking profiles.  Look for me: jennifer ellwood. Happy Spinning!!

Old Bikes, New Year It's been that kind of New Year...the good kind...fresh new energy, I'm starting a new job at a new studio and the music has been raining down on me.  It's funny how that happens.  Finding new, inspiring music can be very time consuming, especially when life is as busy as mine.  But, once I open the gate and start looking around, it seems to roll my way.  So, today's post is just a list...some are songs (new and old) that I've been using in class lately and some I just like, but am not sure if I'll ride to them.  I'm hopping off the bike and posting those anyway, because I believe a song might not be something you or I would use in class, but another one on the album might be, or it might just lead into something else...The rest are great (also "Off the Bike") albums that are on personal rotation on my iPod.  Oh, and I have to give credit for some of these to fellow bloggers, Facebook friends, real-life friends, and my siste...

As I type, the East Coast is getting slammed by our first winter storm and it's a nasty one.  On Long Island, we are experiencing blizzard conditions, high winds and, possibly, 20 inches of snow. The gym just cancelled my morning class and, while I'll miss the Monday Morning energy, I am grateful that I have a warm home in which to wait this one out. As usual, my end of the year post finds me reflective and, in all honesty, I am glad ELATED to leave 2010 behind.  On the surface, it was not the best year for me and it ended much differently than I intended, but I realize where my own growth happened. Much like a steady hill climb in the Spin room, I fought every turn of gear that I was asked to put on instead of just surrendering and believing my legs could handle it.  Duh. Any of us who have ridden know that this is when it hurts the most.  Yes, but, the beauty is that something always has to give. We either fight it until we are exhausted, get off the bike, or ...

Burn it off that is.  Well, it's actually everything else that goes with it that we really need to work off, no?  No time for guilt.  My wish for you is that you get to spend the day wrapped up in love...not much else matters. I had a blissed-out moment while teaching today.  You know the kind.  I was partially into my second class in a row, with sweat running off my forearms, the class was in a groove, the music was pumping in perfect rhythm and everything just flowed...easy...effortless .  It was clearly an "in the zone" experience, causing a big smile to cross my face, one of those that makes the students wonder what the (bleep) is wrong with me, but that's okay, I like it that way.  Today, I am grateful for experiencing that moment, not just the details, but the feeling of it, the way all of life is supposed to feel. So, in tradition, it's my 90-minute, day after Thanksgiving playlist.  Most of the mash-ups can be found here, at Bootie . ...

Okay, so I'll admit that there is a small piece of me that hates fitness trends.  As in other areas of my life, I kind of stay on the outskirts and observe before I jump headfirst on to the newest "bandwagon."  I guess I'm a minimalist, but I just can't see myself swinging from straps in the ceiling...at least not in the Spin room.  I also have a hard time imagining interrupting the flow of a ride, to which I am so addicted, to pink up tiny pink hand weights and do some upper-body work.  My intention, here, is not to stir up this debate and I fully understand the reasons these things are done.  I just can't shake that little voice inside that keeps saying, "Just get on the bike and RIDE, already." Then again, if it wasn't for jumping into this trend called "Spinning®," taking my first class sometime in 1996 (and, more importantly, giving it a second chance), I would not be writing this right now.  I would not have had the opportunity ...

I often get asked if I start planning my rides with the music or the profile first.  Honestly, it's a bit of a split, but heavily weighted on the side of the profile.  I really think about what and how the students have ridden lately and where our training needs to go.  Only one facility where I teach requires me to do a certain type of "training" each class.  Everywhere else, it's all by my planning.  However, I do like to keep us on some sort of a program, even if it's loosely designed, and I keep track of every class I've taught.   Not today. Today's ride started with the music, and it was a collaboration.  I wish I could take 100% credit, because it works so well.  We did not use exactly the same songs or profile, and each of us brings our own personality to the ride.  I would hope the same holds true for those who borrow ideas from this blog.  It's great if you want to use the exact ride I put out there, but I think it's even...

So, this go-to ride is archived here sometime back in 2008, but I had a request for the playlist from today, so I'm posting it again.  The playlist is slightly different, the profile is slightly different, I am slightly different.  Everything grows and changes, as is evidenced by the trees changing colors, the leaves floating to the ground and the fact that I can make eye contact with my oldest son without looking down.  Today is the equinox, a time of perfect balance, day and night, dark and light.  I've been super busy and have only had a glimpse of where my balance is today....time to check-in, assess, and, yes, grow.  p.s. As it has been lately, there are some mash-ups that made their way into this playlist.  If you want them directly, drop me an email. Roller Coaster Ride Playlist: 1. I Feel the Way Love Goes/Mash-up 2. Everybody Got Their Something/Nikka Costa 3. Disturbia/Rihanna 4. Do It!/Von Iva 5. So Fine in the Sun/Mash-up of Weezer (Isla...