Aqua Spinning

Let's skip straight to the TMI... I really need to work on my pelvic floor! If there's one thing that Aqua Spinning taught me it's that riding a bike, in water no less, after having two kids is an interesting experience! I was invited along to the Aqua Spinning class at Edinburgh's Commie Pool by Joe Blogs who had teamed up with Simply Health to share with blogger the benefits of this unique new fitness class. I had no idea what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised!

At the turn of the year I talked about wanting to get fit again after stopping running when I went back to work and this seemed like the perfect opportunity to get my bum into gear. So what is Aqua Spinning? Well it's exactly what you think it is! You are literally on a spinning bike, in the water. If you've ever done a spinning class before, don't be put off (I know, they're a truly awful experience!) as spinning in the water, despite burning more calories, is much easier; apparently this is down to the buoyancy & low gravity effect. Despite this, Aqua Spinning can also burn up to 800 calories in an hour. YES, 800 CALORIES! If that isn't good enough for you, being in the water also means you don't get the same inability to walk muscle ache you'd expect from your average spinning class.

So basically Aqua Spinning rocks the socks of health benefits. But how does it work? When you arrive at Aqua Spinning the bikes aren't actually in the water. In fact, the pool itself is raised! You grab you special shoes, set up your bike to both your height & resistance level, then off you jump, the pool is lowered and your bike disappears! In terms of depth, the pool is lowered to accommodate the smallest person in the class, which lets face it, at 5'11" it's never going to be me! That being said, it's more of a case of making sure no one is under water & having a fear of being stuck under water, that suits me just fine!

So my opinion? It was amazing fun! Perhaps it was because I was surrounded with like minded bloggers, or because the instructor Fiona, insisted we all smiled throughout. Either way I really enjoyed Aqua Spinning. It took a wee while to get the hang of it, from the simple cycling, to the hands free splashing about whilst trying to get as fast as you can, I can honestly say my smile was actually a genuine one and not forced because Fiona was telling us we had to or she'd make us go even faster for even longer! One thing I'd need a little more practice with though is the whole coming off the seat, keeping feet in the pedals, and cycling the bike from behind; my fear of going under the water stopped me from participating it that part!

I was so impressed with the entire Aqua Spinning experience that I even enquired about going back for more. The Royal Common Wealth Pool is one of few pools in the UK offering Aqua Spinning (or 'Hydrospin' as they call it) and like with many fitness classes, timings are difficult with children & an other half who works back shift. That being said, if I could just get my head around exercising before 7am, the Thursday morning class may be ideal before starting work at 8.30am. Plus, anything that reminds me to do my pelvic floor exercises had to be a good thing, right?

To find out more about the health benefits of Aqua Spinning, head on over to Simply Health who have put together a good wee rundown of why Aqua Spinning is so good for you. Big thanks to Jo Blogs for another fun event here in Scotland, particularly in Edinburgh!

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