Is there really such a thing as "too much spinning"?

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michaelaeryn91
michaelaeryn91 Posts: 24 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
So, I love spinning. LOVE IT. I used to only do 1 class a week, but now I do two (Tuesday nights and Saturday mornings). I am going to a wedding next week so I decided to squeeze in one more class this week, on Thursday. I was reading some articles and it was said (mostly by Tracy Anderson) that too much spinning is not good for you and can actually make you gain weight.

I understand if you are doing things like eating bad or drinking a ton of beers after your class (I don't drink after the gym, and if I do eat something it's healthy). But what I don't fully understand is how spinning makes you lose "lean muscle" which I know is required to be healthy.

I guess what I'm just asking is peoples' opinions. I love spinning and I feel really good about myself for being able to do it this much on top of other cardio I do (treadmill, elliptical), and keeping up with college.

Replies

  • paj315
    paj315 Posts: 335 Member
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    If you're eating enough calories to support your workouts then no you shouldn't be losing lean muscle during cardio. I used to do 4-5 spin classes a week and I was at my smallest ever during that time! I love it too I just can't do it along with the heavy lifting that I am during right now!
  • _HeartsOnFire_
    _HeartsOnFire_ Posts: 5,304 Member
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    escalator-spin_gif-bin-090313.gif
  • VelveteenArabian
    VelveteenArabian Posts: 758 Member
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    It's not about spinning specifically, but doing too much cardio in general. It is absolutely possible to overtrain in cardio and it is possible to get to a point where you aren't getting much if any results anymore.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    I know a girl who did it quite a few times a week. She said her legs got kinda funky because she was really focusing on pushing, but not pulling up and truly spinning. I go once, wouldn't be afraid of going twice. But then that's it. Too much of one type of movement for me.
  • michaelaeryn91
    michaelaeryn91 Posts: 24 Member
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    Oh I know exactly what you mean by too much pushing and not enough pulling. I make sure I work out my entire body when I do it! My legs are already a little thick but it's not muscle :(
  • davebuz
    davebuz Posts: 3 Member
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    As a featured Spinning Instructor, I would encourage you to purchase a heart rate monitor and consider doing as many as 3 endurance classes a week at your target heart rate for endurance (75% of max) and do strength classes 2 times a week. Strength class do tear muscle down and keeps you in the anaerobic zone the entire time (over 80% of max). While endurance classes may seem a little more boring, when used with a heart rate monitor, they keep you in the fat burning zone the entire time, not tearing down lean muscle mass for as long as you choose to ride. Spinning instructors are taught to have their students follow the 80/20 rule for Spinning (80% endurance and 20% Strength) and like instructing students to use heart rate monitors, very few follow this basic principal of the Spinning Journey. check out this link from Spinning.com https://spinning.com/en/file/download/tinymce_file_browser/84/Endurance_Energy_Zone.pdf
  • MeanderingMammal
    MeanderingMammal Posts: 7,866 Member
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    I was reading some articles and it was said (mostly by Tracy Anderson) that too much spinning is not good for you and can actually make you gain weight.

    I think the main thing to think about is the balance between CV work and resistance work. I'd infer from your later comment that your focus is CV, so in that sense you're not getting best effect form your training.

    There is a lot of fiction round about muscle mass, and too much CV eating muscle mass. The reality is that if you're in an extreme deficit then you do lose an excess of weight in an uncontrolled way. A lot depends on how you've set up MFP, and you should be eating back what you burn in training.
    I guess what I'm just asking is peoples' opinions. I love spinning and I feel really good about myself for being able to do it this much on top of other cardio I do (treadmill, elliptical), and keeping up with college.

    With any CV training there is a risk of overuse injury, but if you're also running, albeit on a dreadmill, and using an elliptihell then you're mitigating that.

    I'd actually suggest swapping out one of those for some resistance training, either bodyweight or using weights. I'd suggest the elliptical goes as it's the least valuable of your CV activities. Doing resistance training of some kind does help you retain lean mass, and also strengthens the muscle, connective tissue and bone, as does the running.

    Cross training helps a lot.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    I was reading some articles and it was said (mostly by Tracy Anderson) that too much spinning is not good for you and can actually make you gain weight.
    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:
    Suggest you change authors!
    But what I don't fully understand is how spinning makes you lose "lean muscle" which I know is required to be healthy.
    Spinning is resistance cardio and if properly fuelled will allow you to build muscle. If you want to atrophy muscle then inactivity will do that! Too much of any kind of exercise in a huge calorie deficit isn't great though - but it's the inadequate diet that is the real problem. Excessive exercise volume causing muscle loss is very unlikely to be a problem for ordinary people eating properly.
    As an example - I'm in training for an event and my combined outdoor cycling and indoor training on a Spinnng bike is currently about 10 hours a week. I'm only seeing increases in strength and muscle growth (and I'm 30 years older than you!).
    I guess what I'm just asking is peoples' opinions. I love spinning and I feel really good about myself for being able to do it this much on top of other cardio I do (treadmill, elliptical), and keeping up with college.
    Carry on - but please consider adding in (or substituting) some strength/weight training into your regime for overall balance.
  • jporter1183
    jporter1183 Posts: 43 Member
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    I take a spin class 3-4 days a week, however I also do atleast one day of strength training. I would suggest adding in a strength training day or a different class to mix it up a bit and work out some of your other muscles. But I hear you, I love spinning and I would do it daily if I could!

    Also, I've lost most of my weight so far due to eating well/spinning weekly, and I have lost many inches. So I wouldn't worry too much! If you love spin, then that's the exercise for you!
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    I ride at least 80 miles per week...more if I'm getting ready for an endurance event...I hardly think spinning three days per week or whatever is even approaching the realm of "too much". You just need to make sure you're balancing out resistance work as well and eating appropriately. Loss of muscle mass is largely due to diet and not properly fueling your body...and the only way you're going to gain weight spinning is if you eat too much. So you have to eat enough, but not too much.

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