BurnCycle Brings a Unique Spin to Portland

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Most of us know one of the best ways to get energized is through exercise. And wow…if you’re craving an invigorating, inspiring workout–I found your answer. It’s a dance party on a bike. And just in time for Mother’s Day, you can get in on the vibe for free and get your pick of special offers! 

BurnCycle Portland Spinning Classes

{This post is sponsored by BurnCycle, and I received a gift card in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.}

Local mom and Portland native Jessi Duley founded BurnCycle, opening a flagship location in the Pearl District and her newest studio just off I-5 in Lake Oswego. Three friends and I got to sweat through one of their killer 45 minute sessions recently. This is not your average spin class. Their website describes the studio this way:

“A heart space and a head space. A place where the most hardworking, positive people in Portland would find each other and sweat, smile, encourage, inspire and connect. Somewhere people could come tap into the boundless positive energy that [Jessi] would infuse into every aspect of the studio.”

BurnCycle Spin Studio Lake OswegoIt actually sounds pretty similar to the mission of Portland Moms Blog–but with more sweat. Here’s what my friends and I loved about our time at BurnCycle:

The Facility

Light, bright and brand spanking new, the studio is clean and inviting. Cheerful greeters helped us sign in, brought us shoes and guided us to store our belongings in lockers.

The Music

Rows of stationary bikes fill the workout room, where the lights are low and the beat of the music pulses. Am I in a nightclub? No. It’s 9 a.m. and instead of dancing I’m about to ride a bike. At BurnCycle you cycle to the beat of the song, while the instructor advises “let your mind rest and your body take over!” I obeyed, focusing on matching my pedaling to the song’s cadence (which is more difficult than you might think and took all my concentration). I soon found my cares–and calories–melting away.

The Workout

burncycle3With your bike as your stabilizing center, the workout incorporates drills to target your upper body, obliques and core. The result is high-impact and low intensity (translation: as a beginner, I couldn’t quite keep up but I wasn’t super sore the next day either!) As a parent with a full schedule, I appreciated that the class only lasted 45 minutes!

The People

The people working (and working out) really make the experience. The girls who greeted us were helpful and energetic; they helped us navigate the dark workout room, ensuring we got locked and loaded into our pedals and knew how to adjust the bikes.

My friends and I all agreed: our instructor Steph was the highlight of our session. Steph’s passion for people shines. She kept us all going with constant encouragement. About halfway through the class, when I wasn’t sure I could pedal one more time, Steph slowed the music down, put on Coldplay’s “Fix You” and waxed philosophical about humanity–how none of us is perfect, and we all seek acceptance, and it’s okay to be a broken beautiful mess of a person. If I hadn’t feared falling off my bike, I would have stood up and cheered. 

BurnCycle provides a challenging yet doable workout, a fun environment and great people to cheer you on. No one showed off or kept score–I mean, it’s dark in there, so you can’t really see anyone but the instructors anyway!

Special Offers

Ride Like A Mother Month:

In honor of Mother’s Day, celebrate yourself and claim your first ride free in May! 

BurnCycle Free ClassBurn Mama Discount:

BurnCycle offers 15% off for expecting mothers until 6 months after babies are born! You can also score an awesome Ride Like A Mother Tank Top and a 3-pack of classes for $64.

Burn Mama Discount

Let’s see you #RideLikeAMother!