Spinning in Akasaka

Snow fell heavily on Tokyo this weekend. Today the Arakawa bicycle trail remains blanketed in snow and a brutal cold wind whips across the Kanto plain.

These sortof winter conditions are why people in Tokyo don't enter March triathlons.

Thank goodness I rode 100 kilometers on Friday.

And thank goodness for the spinning class at Y's Academy every Tuesday and Thursday evening.

Y's Academy is a large bike retailer in Akasaka in central Tokyo. Well, large in that it encompasses 7-stories of bikes and bike gear which may sound enormous. But Y's Academy is located in one of those very common Tokyo "pencil buildings." Each floor is approximately 500 square feet cramped and cluttered with gear. The 5th floor is the spinning studio.

The 20 or so bikes at the Y's spin session are always filled despite the fact it is all based on word-of-mouth marketing. At 500-yen per session it is a good value, and I keep hoping that they add more classes each week. Y's is only a 5-minute jog from my apartment so I can squeeze a good hour spin workout into my day by leaving work at 6:35 and eating dinner at 8:40.
At my swimming sessions at the Roppongi Hills spa, in contrast to US clubs, I seem to be the only person training seriously. At Y's the other participants (spinners?) appear more intense even than myself. Most of them are clad in expensive cycling shorts and jerseys and state-of-the-art shoes and carry sports drinks and even technical moisture-wicking towels.
I have attended a few spin sessions in the US, which I acknowledge where quite strenuous, but the other participants tended to be clad in baggy sweats and cotton t-shirts and I surmised that their objectives for spinning primarily focused around weight loss.

Spinning hasn't been the same since my spin partner friend Nicola left for Melbourne, but it is still a highlight of the week and an efficient workout. Moreover, on these snow days, it is the only thing allowing me to get in crucial bike training for the triathlon.

Monday - 1.25 hour swim