Every indoor cycling class at MINT has its own personality specific to the instructor. Still, with each ride, there are a few basics every rider should remember, and a few guarantees to make sure you’ll have a great experience! Check out these tips from Ori Korin, our Cycle Director.  

1. Know which format you choose: rhythm rides incorporate some on-the-bike choreography timed to the beat of the music, using light arm weights, while MINTRides simulate outdoor rides, using intervals, hills, and flat roads. Both involve cardio endurance, it just depends on what you’re in the mood for!

2. If you’re not used to the bikes we use, ask your instructor for help setting up. Our LifeFitness bikes are easy to set up, but whether you’re an experienced indoor cyclist or new to the class, it’s always good to check your bike settings. Your instructor can help with your seat and handlebar height, fore and aft positioning, and making sure your sneakers are strapped in tightly, or if you’re clipping in (our bikes use SPD clips, unfortunately, they’re not compatible with Delta cleats), that you’re in securely. And be sure to tighten all your knobs!

3. Once you’re in, we’ll let you know how to use the monitor: Each instructor will walk you through how they coach using RPMs (or cadence), resistance (or level), and other metrics (watts or power output, rate of perceived exertion or RPE, i.e., a scale of 1-10 to measure difficulty) so you’re able to follow along and know how hard to work! The beauty of indoor cycling is that everyone can work at their own pace, and adjust to their own level on a given day. 

4. We’ll coach you on good form throughout the class. Since indoor cycling doesn’t require you to actually move forward, or balance the bike the way an outdoor bike does, you’re free to add your own additional resistance and practice maintaining good body positioning to help you ride more efficiently. Things to keep in mind are to keep your feet flat, draw your elbows in, and make sure your weight stays over the saddle.

All of these tips will help make sure you have a fun and safe indoor cycling experience. Don’t forget your water and towel! Visit our class schedule and sign up for a class today. We look forward to seeing you in class soon! 

Meet Matt Gardiner, MINT’s newest personal trainer! As a NASM-certified personal trainer, Matt’s goal is to help others find an area of fitness and working out where they can find enjoyment and are motivated to push themselves while doing it. His signature training style is a mix of cardio and strength: getting your heart rate up and then chasing muscle failure. Having had deep routed experience in the military means that each one of his clients can expect to receive a heightened level of dedication and consistency from him. Matt has worked with clients with a variety of goals including running a marathon and reaching a new squat max to simply wanting to feel more comfortable and confident in their bodies. Whether you’re training for strength or endurance, he will find a unique, challenging, and above all – enjoyable – way for you to meet your goals.

His advice for anyone trying personal training for the first time is, “Getting started in the gym is all about gaining confidence and making a commitment to yourself. When you first come in, sometimes it’s better to not even have a goal for the day. Simply looking around, familiarizing yourself with the people and equipment, and getting yourself comfortable with the environment is the best way to start. That’s where a personal trainer comes in; once you have made that connection and commitment to yourself, a personal trainer is there to guide you through a routine and help you reach your goals in the most effective and systematic way. So if you’re looking for a personal trainer, be confident and committed; they are there to help, and ready to guide you to your goals.”

Outside of personal training, Matt is in the Navy which is a huge part of his life and character. When he’s not working, he loves to run. His favorite DC path is the C&O canal in springtime!
If you’re up for a challenge and dedicated to creating a healthy lifestyle, Matt is actively taking on clients and is ready to help! Please contact our GM, Bresni (Bresni@mintdc.com) to get started with a consultation.

If you’ve visited MINT since the start of the new year, you might have noticed some exciting changes to the club’s layout, look, and class offerings! 

New paint, concrete, and wood floor finish give a refreshed look to the entrance area and studios. These spaces are spruced up and ready for you to sweat in. Be sure to take a pre- or post-workout selfie in front of the new MINTy leaf wall and tag us @mintgymstudio! 

Our member lounge to the right of the front desk has also gotten some upgrades, including new seating by the coffee machine for you to relax and enjoy a jolt of caffeine, mix and mingle with members, or kick back and relax before or after your workout. 

Just past the member lounge, the Stretch studio offers a quiet enclave to create your own routine. In addition to the existing wood barres lining the walls, the space now has a stretch cage to assist with those deep muscle stretches. Foam rollers, light weights, and barre balls and rings also fill the space, providing lots of options for your personal workout or stretch sesh. 

Upgraded equipment on the floor (new CrossTrainers and Steppers arrived in January!) ensures that your workout goes smoothly with plenty of machines available for use. New class offerings give members something new to try this year – check out a Full Body Burn or Mat Pilates class! 

As always, MINT remains committed to providing a safe and sanitized environment for your workouts. HVAC, AIRPHX, and improved air filtration systems keep clean air flowing throughout the club, and all spaces are cleaned from top to bottom every night, with special attention to high-touch surfaces. 

Registration is still required for entry to the club, so be sure to sign up online or via the Mind Body app, whether for a class, general gym time, or a personal training session. Walk-ins are accepted depending on available space. 

We hope you’re enjoying these changes! Over the next 4-8 weeks keep an eye out for even more exciting upgrades to the cycle studio, front desk, and more. 

Molly is a long-time yogi who has been practicing yoga seriously since 2008 and began teaching yoga in 2013. She started by offering yoga classes to children in schools, then later earned her RYT-200 and began teaching adults. She’s spent the past decade teaching at MINT and other gyms and studios in DC.

She’s a firm believer that we should take yoga seriously, but not take ourselves seriously when we do it. She doesn’t have a particular specialty, instead, she brings a mix of different styles to class to create a flow that feels good for all bodies and experience levels! Each class features a creative flow to help build strength and flexibility set to a carefully curated soundtrack. Molly’s goal is to share the physical and mental benefits of practicing yoga with everyone who takes her class.

Whether it’s your first class or your 50,000th, she will help you find ways to move that feel good in your body. All are welcome in her classes and to those who may be new to yoga, she recommends “just show up”! Getting on your mat is usually the hardest part of any class. And remember that the instructor is there to help you.”

When she’s not teaching yoga, Molly loves taking long walks at the Georgetown waterfront and dog-sitting multiple days a week for her neighbor’s pup. Check her out on Instagram @yogamolls and visit our class schedule to sign up for her class!

Cycling has many benefits for you as an individual, for our community, and for our planet. It is a low-impact aerobic exercise that offers a wealth of benefits. Adding regular cycling classes to your fitness routine can help shape a healthy lifestyle, both physically and mentally.

Although indoor cycling is typically not as intimidating as outdoor cycling if you find yourself intimidated or nervous to jump on a bike and take an indoor cycling class you’re not alone! We asked our long-time MINT cycling instructor Chuck Harney for some tips for those who are new to indoor cycling to help make their ride more effective and comfortable:

• Wear bike shorts with padding, they are formed to fit the contour of the bike seat which makes the ride much more comfortable than wearing gym shorts. In addition, the shorts are fitted tight to your leg to avoid chafing.
• Get bike shoes with cleats that clip into the pedals. This addition will change your life on the bike. By being clipped in, you are literally one with the bike. Your pedal stroke is perfectly circular, avoiding the mashing of the pedals, especially on a climb. You are also in a fixed position on the pedal, which means your foot is not moving around as you pedal, which means you are much less likely to have a knee injury as a result.
• Get a proper fit before you ride. What do we mean by that? Unless you know the exact position of your saddle and handlebars to your body, you’ll want to ask your instructor to fit you on your bike. The most important parts of bike fit are your saddle height and your handlebar height. 
• Training on an indoor bike can benefit you physically, mentally, and emotionally by improving the overall function in your lower body and strengthening your leg muscles without overstressing your joints. It targets your quads, glutes, hamstrings, and calves.

• Cycling improves your endurance for any type of physical activity and is great for all levels and experiences. 
• It increases your anaerobic capacity and peak power while strengthening your core which helps to improve posture.
• Increased production of endorphins can help boost your mood. 
• This type of aerobic exercise can Increase mental toughness while decreasing  stress levels. 
• It helps to regulate blood pressure and blood sugar levels

Cycling is a really versatile form of exercise that can be scaled to different fitness levels, lifestyles, and goals. You can go all-out for an intense ride and really challenge yourself, or you can pull back, and go at a pace that works for you. However you choose to ride, know that you’ll be doing your body—and your mind—some serious good.

We encourage you to join Chuck and sign up for his classes on Sundays at 11am.