The Top Ten

Okay and this is the final time I am going to say this in KSC. Yes I have said it before and no one will believe me when I say this here and now this class, on Saturday July 30th 2011 was the best class Kristen has ever gave in the now 18 months of my spinning career.  I have gone up to Kristen James on many occasion and told her that this was the best class only to be told: Come on, John.  Well and I say this without equivocation that this is #1. Now why do I say that now after a year and a half?

1. All my favorite spin mates were there today. Gloria, Ari and Lizzie, Coop, Cindy, St. Mary, Stacy and my new friend Deepak. 

2. I burned the most amounts of calories I have ever expended, 600 which is considerable based on the fact that I use beta-blockers that inhibit my HR. 

3. I was spinning next to Anastasia who along with KJ is IG*

4. Some of the discography I genuinely loved especially the first song, which felt so ethereal, as it started me ruminating about my changed life.  

5. I was so amped up today and my energy level would have broke that rectal thermometer my mother used to use on me when I was a kid. 

6. I finally felt like I could act up in Kristen’s class without fear of reprisal like I do with abandon in Tripp’s classes.  

7. Do you need more? I guess I need to get to 10 or 12 for it really to be considered #1. So for  #7, I got my HR up to 153 when it rarely gets beyond 135. 

8. I found that (and I have forgotten that I learned this before)   by taking down my resistance wheel, I felt a more even pedal stroke with less struggle than usual which makes the ride exhilarating. 

9. Kristen and I had our one on one eye contact where she talks and I listen. I love the attention from Ms. James because I am starved for attention and I am a dog. 

10. Finally I got up the nerve to ask Peter for a press pass to every spin class because I am the prince of social media in Equinox Woodbury.  

Which leads me to and this is not to influence Peter but next up is my special edition of KSC, which will feature an exclusive on Peter Rothermel our beloved GM. Please find a link from several years ago about this story, which I will break for you next week.  

http://www.myfoxny.com/dpp/good_day_ny/090327_Weight_Loss_with_Diet_and_Exercise

Suburban Mysteries Solved

Thursday was a day for revelations in KSC. Deepak is the go to man for iPhones and Kristen sleeps with Don every night. I am a big fan of Sherlock Holmes and Charlie Chan but this mystery was easier solved than the butler did it.  I guess it’s all good because I got to speak to Deepak last night and he’s as personable a guy you’d ever want to meet and it takes a man with the serenity that Don possesses to make our Queen of Spin look so regal when she dons her evening clothes and looks like a billion bucks.  

I am pleased to report that the discography in KSC although still for the most part is not listenable to this writers ears but has changed enough so that we are not listening to the Billboard Top 40 of urban prose each morning. This is no secret to KJ and I have whined about it ad nauseum but because it’s her class she plays what she wants. No matter I am down usually for five classes of her driving tenacity each week.  

Tomorrow is Saturday KSC and there will be no doubt another edition that you will hopefully flock to. I have been so busy of late and my multiple blog postings are a tad behind. 

Dropping the "G"

Kristen James Gagne. My original title for this post, which I may stick with, will be called: Dropping the G.  Now I know that it is so Woodbury and even in other circles for today’s modern woman to have 3 names. I often wondered why a woman took a man’s last name in marriage in the first place. It almost seems positively medieval especially with the divorce rate over 50%. Likelihood is that if the union falls apart that the woman would be stuck with a memory she might not be particularly fond of at least in the early goings when acrimony is at its’ zenith. (When she’s really pissed off.) I know that a cooling off period often ensues and most relationships if they have children attempt a working relationship where the dragon of fire has been extinguished.  Jack is this KSC or some rant you are off on? 

So this story needs to be pursued as it leaves my fingers maybe in Jack Briant Reporter perhaps.  In any case I started talking about Kristen James Gagne and I suspect only suspect mind you that the G will fall off the table because there is just not that much room for a woman as busy as the Evil Woman. Just think about all those schedule changes she has to make each month and if she drops the G she can save enough time signing off on them to teach an additional class of spin or VIPR even.  I am sure there are more advantages that I could not even conceive of. Suffice it to say that by dropping the G we have a whole new ‘spin’ on her moniker.  First off Kristen James sounds regal and could be a new edition of a bible. Think of it. The Kristen James Bible. Or maybe it’s a dictionary or encyclopedia or even more diagnostic, an edition of DSM-IV. She does after all have a MS.  

And so as I sit here first on line for the remaining bikes for the Equinox Hot Ticket I ask you is this not a cool name Kristen James. For the time being though for the transition at least it will be Kristen James Gagne. 

*Editors Note. Since James is Kristen's middle name and not her maiden name this story is technically not correct as it applies to her but I kind of liked the story anyway.  

Jump Jump

It feels like a month of Sundays since I had the privilege to spin with The Blue Sapphire, Carolyn Mellace and today true to her exquisite form it was like I never was away. She has it all: power, spunk, personality, charm, looks and a singular adroitness in her craft. And she only does this part time!  

She said she has been instructing for 20 years and started when she was 10 and although she meant it as a joke she doesn’t look much beyond what would be 30 years old. I have to get back in the saddle when she is up on Thursdays at 6 PM and Sundays in the summer at 9:15 because it is a fun ride and I am always in a triple pool of sweat beneath my bike so I know I have gotten a kick ass workout. The hour flies by and what I really love and we do not do, as much of in my other glorious classes is the “jumps”.  With the monitor active, I see that my HR jumps up significantly when she has us do them even when the resistance wheel is not that cranked up. She varies it to be right on the rhythm of the road of the particular song she has plated.  

She is flat out great and I have missed her call. Thank you Carolyn you truly are The Blue Sapphire.  

If You Can Think It......

The first ten minutes of KSC would be so daunting if I stopped and thought about it before I jumped on my bike, which is usually #3.  But instead I busy myself with housekeeping preparing for my ride. First thing I do is adjust my seat height to 14, when that is secured I then make sure I am a 0 on the seat slide longitudinally. I then place my water bottle on the right side cradle and two hand towels on the left handlebar to soften the grip of my left hand, which always goes numb at various points in the ride.  I am ready I think. The little rituals for each of us are so singular that we all have our own way of laying out our bikes.  We have taken the workout towel and extended it way beyond what was intended. Some of us bring up bath towels (plural) and drape them ceremoniously across the handlebars and it looks more like a bed than it does handlebars of a Schwinn stationary bike.   

I have written now 300+ stories on KSC and without Kristen’s inspiration and of course all of you; this would have been just another blog. I started writing blogs a little over two years ago when I started “My Life After AA” but it was not until I asked Kristen one day in the old CS if I could start to write about the experiences in her class. When she said: Sure. I was on my way.  I have told her how that simple assent by her has changed my writing beyond my wildest dreams. Of course a better dream is when an editor says Jack we want you to write for us.  I confess I did have a fantasy that Kelly Ripa, Regis Philbin’s partner on the daytime show (who is an avid spinner) one day discovers KSC and on my counter I see 500,000 hits. Oh well if I can think it, it can happen. 

Jennifer Goodman Linn

We of the CS want to acknowledge the passing of Jennifer Goodman Linn.  Kristen and Tripp had dinner with her in the city some time ago and her death will make both of our stars of the CS stop and treasure those moments with her and give them food for thought for the present moment and beyond. 

Kristen Shared: I just feel honored to have been a part of her creation "cycle for survival" and look forward to helping carry it on in her memory for years to come.

Jennifer’s Website: http://www.youfearless.com/

Please share your comments today after her passing yesterday.  

Jack 

And this is reprinted from her website.  

It is with great sadness that we want to inform all of you who have supported and loved Jen throughout the years that she passed away earlier this morning. As tough as a fighter Jen was, her death was peaceful and she did not seem to be suffering; she was surrounded by loved ones.  Obviously this is tragic and heartbreaking for all of us, but we are grateful that she is no longer suffering.

Jen’s funeral will be held at Riverside Memorial Chapel, located at 180 West 76th Street (near Amsterdam Avenue) at 11:45 a.m., Friday, July 22nd, 2011. In lieu of flowers, Jen preferred that you please consider donations to Cycle for Survival (www.cycleforsurvival.org) to keep alive her determined fight to eradicate rare cancers.

Little Animals

Couldn’t you just feel it today? It’s always energetic in the CS with the Evil Woman but today there was something extra as Kristen was “putting out” more than ever before. That almost seems like a prevarication because her charisma is always a streaming essence. However, just like when we summon up a little more in our pedal stroke it’s what it seemed like she did today in the 8:30.  

Today she was thematic with the “Little Animals” metaphor and I couldn’t agree more because we seemed willing, eager, excited and pumped to stay on the beat of the percussion of each song.  I could see Cindy next to me giving it all she had as she always does but today at rides end you could tell she was spent, at least from my vantage point. And so was this sexagenarian because as I looked down at the three puddles my shorts were soaked as if I just jumped in the pool and as I descended the stairs I thought to myself how do we do this day in and day out? I think it’s amazing because I really feel like we are in training and the little animal in me is unleashed each time I don those specialized shoes.  

It Ain't Ringling Brothers

No popcorn, peanuts or cotton candy in this the center ring of Equinox. No jugglers, clowns, or high wire aerialists either. And no one would complain that the ringmaster, Kristen Gagne uses a holistic whip in this spinning circus. In fact when she makes the call for the next act we all head dutifully for the breathless zone. And today as ever it was no exception.  When we took off at 9:15 this morning the tough get going and the rest of the circus beyond the lavender palace walls are at parade rest* by comparison.  

Saturday KSC is fast becoming an iconic part of my week because there’s just something about being with her on the weekend. She seems more fanciful and maybe it’s just because it might be her favorite day and time for a brief respite after a long arduous  week.  For me it gives me a sense that I can go into Saturday in caloric deficit and that extra piece of salmon won’t find itself on my mid section. Yeah Jack who are you kidding salmon?  

Kristen has shared that each class has its own personality. Today however she said that different sections had their own synchronicity.  But  the back row, which in my opinion is a bunch of miscreants who skylark every chance, they get are almost a class unto themselves. I am not sure if it’s Harold or Don that lead the charge and  I used to think it was Don but even though Harold wasn’t there today I am beginning to think he needs to have his bike facing the window at least for a class or two.  

It ain’t Ringling Brothers and in this circus there is only one ring in this Big Top. 

A note to Kristen’s mom: She was naughty today. I think everybody caught it too. But she’s at the age of majority and there’s not much we can do.

  

* Parade Rest:  Standing at ease.

Kristen's Song

Today yet another side of Kristen was featured in the 945 Wednesday edition of KSC. She never ceases to amaze me because you just don’t know what side of the bed she got up on. Will she be the true Evil Woman and implore legalized torture to bend our bodies into shape? Or will she be playful and pull us up to the bumper baby and get our pedal stroke finely tuned? Or will she be the angry Kristen more determined than a drill sergeant? Or will it be like a day like today where she drives home her point using the innuendo of real life whether it is hers or someone she just spoke to five minutes before class.  

Some say it’s her body others say it’s her personality. 

I think when you meet her you are immediately struck by her face.

Then later you are left with more than a trace. A trace of love and caring that glows like a full moon and to be real we all start to swoon whenever she graces us in the room.  

Hey I am a writer just not a songwriter.  We love you Evil Woman we do!

P.S. 

Dear Kristen's Mom thanks for reading. Please let us hear from you if you care to.  She was a very good girl today but you should have heard what she said Saturday. 

Inspired Choreography

A fresh Monday had me twisted about some of my various permutations in my personal life but Kristen pulled me right out of that tailspin yet again.  It’s not often that I have a preoccupying thought once I pass through those glass doors, but today was an exception and I was lamenting that very fact as I jumped atop #3. Life on life’s terms was a mantra I would hear time and time again in my 12th step protocol but it’s not always possible to depersonalize life’s events because life is so personal.  

As I moved through the warm-up I could feel this monkey chattering in my ear but I felt my attention being brought back to the pedal stroke with each passing song on the ride.  I did notice that none were in the current Billboard Top 40 and as we reached midway Kristen lit my fire with a song that quite literally incinerated what had me so upset and I used that fuel of anger she has talked about in previous sessions. I was just like Pat Benatar: All Fired Up.    So glad because my day changed in that instant and I will not give up my power and let anyone make me feel the way they want me to. I eased my grip on the handlebars and I relaxed into the rhythm of the road.  

Motion creates emotion is what Tony Robbins used to claim in his live seminars and tapes and in spin class the motion is like a centrifuge and it takes the sediment of situations and puts it at the bottom of my test tube and I can see the clear course of action and leave fear, doubt and indecisiveness out of my equation.  

The choreography was for me so satisfying today and I had double inspiration in the personage of Kristen Gagne. 

For the Love of God

Venturing into KG’s one-hour class this past Thursday was a leap of faith. I had been in the 45-minute versions almost exclusively but in this winter break I was able to secure a bike in prime time. I hadn’t thought much about the extra 15 minutes until Kristen said “you will feel like giving up today.” Now I’ve completed 17 marathons and 3 ultra marathons and was a DNF (did not finish) in just one. My mind turned to that one time and I started to doubt my own resolve but I couldn’t stand the embarrassment of unclipping and getting off my bike and waltzing unceremoniously out of the studio.

When I heard Kristen talk about her 6-year-old son as he said to her “For the love of God, you’re teaching again?” That was all I needed to dismiss this qualm and I settled back into my gel seat and gone was any notion that I was in any way quitting. I took on the face of the 17 races I had completed and the 1 I didn’t vanished with my next breath.

In this class we have heard a lot about the Hard Zone and going anaerobic, And my awareness of being out of breath and being accustomed to it has expanded and I am determined to visit this middle ground of the hard zone rather than just being out of breath the whole session. This will take discipline I thought but maybe it just comes with my rising fitness. The hard zone, breathing in through my nose and out my mouth takes concentration because the easier softer way is just to breathe through my mouth.

But let’s get serious now; can I really escape being out of breath for virtually the whole session? “For the love of God” the answer is that I don’t know and my sense is that I’m okay with it. I am okay with it because my quality of life in the other 23 hours has already seen a marked improvement. My weight is dropping and my lungs are starting to take on the size of a yellow physio ball. And I am starting to feel sorry for all my other Equinoxites that work out exclusively in the main room. Poor things they’re just going through their workouts in the infield while we are getting comfortable on the warning track and not afraid of hitting up against the outfield wall.

Positively Jump Street

Today let’s just call a spade a spade and say that KSC is positively Jump Street.  I like to bet on black except when my heart’s involved then it’s always red. Today was sure money that this July 4th KSC would be booked and the odds of getting a winning lottery were like the veritable hen’s teeth. I just made it by two and front row in #6 to boot (I still think I should get a press pass) and on top of that I stole Marcy’s bike but I liked it too so I was greedy and kept it. Bad boy Jack!  

I was still luxuriating in the last two sessions of Evil Woman’s choreography and  I was nonplussed that it was back to the bankable Top 40 Billboard. Although she did play the new Coldplay- Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall at spins  end and it capped off another blazing saddle ride. How the hell does she do it? She writes a new song every damn day and that’s why we keep coming and coming. Which reminds me of that re mix she played the other day of Skylar Grey- I’m Coming Home. That is one HOT re mix and should be rated R.  God I love that song and this remix by Arion Dubstep makes it even edgier. The instrumentation is ethereal yet uses the synthesizers perfectly.

It’s off to the July 4th celebrations, which for me might just find me here where I love it so much behind this Macbook keyboard. I love you all KSC. 

Jack 

Coldplay: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyMhvkC3A84

Skylar Grey: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HSBWSoMna8

Breathless

One thing I am learning in my daily forays into this world of spinning is that being out of breath is starting to be comfortable in a sadistic way. Never did I think even during my running days that in the anaerobic state that I could be comfortable being out of breath. I guess I have rationalized that each time I spin it brings me closer to the fitness I felt as a long distance runner, where virtually every workout honed me for a faster time in my next race. I am not racing anymore but the feeling I am getting as I enter  into my 60’s is that this is for my own personal satisfaction and that I have recaptured a portion of those days when I could run as much as 62 miles in 8 hours or run up the Empire State Buildings staircase.