Black & Purple

There are certain Carolyn-isms I love. BEAUTIFUL JOB! is one of them. 

 Another is and I am not sure how to spell it, but I will take a shot. Unh-unh-unh. It comes when she is posting up for a sprint. I get pumped up for those and there are not many instructors that get me in the anaerobic zone on a flat road, but she does.  

Today like all her classes time rockets by, and when I looked up for the first time at the clock, 45 minutes was gone. I was blown away; it was going to be over way too soon. I always take that to mean that I had a great time and when I think back on most of my workouts at Equinox prior to my spin career there’s not many that I can say I enjoyed as much as I do when I am in the CS, and The Blue Sapphire is an integral part of this bliss.  

I wanted to title this entry something like Black and Blue Sapphire. Our heroine had on a black top and I could have sworn she had on a pair of blue tights.  Sounds picturesque, but those hopes were dashed when Carolyn said what’s up those purple pants?  I was damn sure they were blue. I know that black and blue marks turn purple but that was not going to fit my story line. I am a little short on metaphors, but if something comes to me I will make sure I add it as an extra later tonight. 

It was a great week all around and Sunday was icing on the cupcake. 

Just Messin Around

The CS, which will soon become a closet of all things, had the ambience of a Hot Yoga class.  It was indeed warm, only to get hotter with 41 riders pumping our collective pedal stroke and heartbeats to.  The fact that The Blue Sapphire would be at the head of the class insured that fact as a foregone conclusion. But so what!  It meant that we had to finish our water bottles and maybe wipe our brows a few more times than normal.  It was Sunday with Carolyn, The Blue Sapphire and we weren’t going to let a little more sweat get in our way of having the ride we love to end the weekend with.

Carolyn, always has a well thought out choreography, and her music as she calls it, is eclectic but it’s always recognizable and never obscure. I love her ongoing commentary because she handles what we are thinking about out loud which gives us the feeling we are not alone. She knows the hour is challenging and she never messes around. It’s all-serious because she really cares but it’s always fun.   She throws her 100+ pounds into every nuance of her ride but it seems like it carries the weight of a Mack truck.  

This week was a challenging one, because I had taken 8 classes and I didn’t have the usual pizzazz because sexagenarians do have their limits. Or do they?  I had a blast being in Roslyn, Woodbury, and Scarsdale and back in Woodbury for The Blue Sapphire. I thought of cutting out but my heart just wouldn’t buy it.  

The Ringer

It’s not often that I am writing about The Blue Sapphire in a Thursday and a Sunday edition. It’s usually one or the other. This week however, had me lucky to catch the blazing blue star twice and she was three times as good. I had decided on her early ride subbing for Young Atlas, Damian and it made my Sunday decidedly different.  

In the front row, I spotted one rider that stuck out like a sore thumb.  He was what looked to be 6’7”, and with that strapping physiology he seemed almost to dwarf his bike. I knew he was an outdoor rider not merely by his size and presence but because when we were way up the resistance dial in position #3, he was sitting in the saddle.  Commanding an even pedal stroke with the resistance dial at 9 out of 10 while being in the saddle is a strenuous posture indeed. It just was my intuition that outside was his real home, not the safe confines of the CS.  I’m not saying the outside rider is better than we stationary aficionados, but the contrast of one to the other is decidedly a world apart. 

Carolyn is not merely a charismatic talent, but she is also a highly skilled technician. Always doling out precious information about breathing, posture and cadence, she gets under our ‘engine’ to make sure we are pedaling efficiently and not out of control. When we are gunning our motors, she can be found checking our flywheel and pedal stroke and when she signals okay with that smile and those striking sapphire eyes we are good to go.  

The next time I spot “The Ringer” I will look for clues and model his spinning choreography. 

The Electricity

This Thursday night with The Blue Sapphire topped the best rides list once again. There was something that gave it a conspicuous difference beyond the charisma of Carolyn Mellace.  It was how fully associated the whole CS had become. With each petition, The Blue Sapphire got enthusiastic backtalk cheering that resounded off the walls of the studio like Flubber,* with no sign of fatigue no matter how far up the resistance dial we traveled. And travel up we did. It just didn’t seem to matter and the fact that I wasn’t the only one being heard in the CS, told me we were riding the curl of a truly thrilling ride. 

Is there such a thing as too many adjectives when describing a person? Probably not, but I didn’t want to seem like I was overdoing it, because I strive to report what I see, and because this blog is experiential in nature, I have to be there to really capture the true feeling of the moment, the hour. As I watched the reflected image of our lithesome dynamo with the spectacular musculature pedaling with the speed of that Superman locomotive, I realized that I might   have run out of superlatives in describing Carolyn, The Blue Sapphire. (Until the next ride) She is another that is larger than life than she is in person.  

No Air Turns

How can it be that each time I take to the Schwinn bike with The Blue Sapphire that this ride is even better than the last? I don’t know why, but again it was true today. I had sent her a suggestion to play The Killers song, Human and without being cognizant, it was the first song she played today during the warmup.  In fact, the first 15 minutes went by in a blink and even though she warned us not to lose it all in the opening moments, I had a difficult time holding back. The choreography couldn’t have been scripted any better than she had on her line up card. I had forgotten just how tired I was from a frenetic week culminating in tag team at Roslyn yesterday in Pam’s Boot Camp and a session in the CS with The Heart of Stone, Cathy Munzer.

There is never a session with Carolyn that looks like the last. She is actively making each hour unique, and in the mix of music and her ride there is nothing formulaic. The jumps today were particularly innovative and by the time we ended that interval, I was gasping in the zone anaerobic. One thing I learned in the beginning from Carolyn, was how to breathe. I was prone to mouth breathing and she taught me that that was the most inefficient way to get oxygen. More air maybe but not air high in oxygen content as nose breathing avails us of. However, it was not easy to breathe in that way as it took tremendous discipline. Eventually I got the hang of it and even in higher resistances I am fairly successful breathing in through the nose, and exhaling through the mouth.

Near the end of our ride The Blue Sapphire had us do a mind bending interval hill climb, using 5 full turns up and then taking it off in the saddle. She spied someone and said: No air turns! AYKM? Would anyone really do that in her class? She gives us her heart and soul, we should give nothing less than our level best and a 1/4 more turn to the right.

The Grey Panther

She cocked her head to the side flashed a blazing a baby blue topped by the white cloud above her iris and it was her check where we were in our Sunday ride with The Blue Sapphire. Resplendent in grey form fitting attire the athlete of Carolyn shone just like it does every Sunday, complete with a full house and our sense of knowing that we would be having great fun, but by rides end our collective asses would be kicked. And kicked they were.

A lightning bolt hit me during today’s ride and it came from two places. The first was the variable I was searching for; what is the salient difference between riding indoors and the outdoor version. Yes, we all know that the elements play the largest role, and the fact that we are moving over ground rather than staying on the same ceramic tile was the main difference, but there was something more I was so sure about it, but until today it was escaping my hard drive. I saw it in Stacie, yes the newlywed Stacie who has one of the brightest smiles this side of heaven and her nonchalant attitude about what she may look like when she is in the saddle of her stationary bike. She is not self-conscious. Not a speck exists in her, and she was not worried if some of her epidermis was showing as the rider next to her was clearly very concerned. This self-consciousness does not exist on the outside ride. And it was the clue I was searching for and Stacie showed me for the first time that the reason we don’t communicate as well as we could in the CS is because we are worried about what we look like. It’s not just the women that are concerned with what sweat apparently does to our good looks it’s the men as well.  Can we lose the “skin” that when we don’t look like magnifying mirror beautiful, we can get closer like our outside rider counterparts do? Just a question and I am not sure this is the singular reason but it happened in the usual way, it was nascent. 

The other major revelation came from The Blue Sapphire herself. As I noticed to my left, a young man was clenching his face for virtually the whole ride and I also knew that this doesn’t happen outside either. Tightly clenched hand grips have no place for us in the CS as well. Carolyn said, as she alluded to me about the Minnewaska ride that when biking outside we are loose not only in the hand grips and our face but how we plant ourselves in the saddle as well. It harkened back to my earlier in the week ride with The Corso Zone, that a tight physiology does not give us the results we are seeking.  Loose and flexible rather than tight and clenched. 

Thank you Carolyn it was indeed a memorable Sunday.

Frozen Core

We had a Blue Sapphire edition this past Thursday that was as challenging as ever. However I am always seeming to say that each time I spin with this superlative Equinox star. As fall starts to take hold, the setting sun virtually blinds us at the 6 o’clock hour and makes me wonder where did this year go. 

Thursday nights with Carolyn is one hell of a way to start the weekend early and fire up our metabolic oven and incinerate some of that extra caloric intake we inevitably find ourselves favoring ourselves with after a challenging work week or shopping week if your name is Nancy K.  

I was so certain that the resistance dial was the only adjustment I could make on the bike where I could improve my endurance and strength. Carolyn was the first to show me that that just wasn’t so. When she has us freeze our upper body and just use our legs, the burning in my legs is excruciating, even with little resistance in the pedal stroke. She tells us it strengthens our core and I love the idea that these short stints carry the impact they do even though my legs are on fire. 

Black White and Blue Perfect

There are times when I refer to the energy measurements known to man like amperage, horsepower, candle power, watts and BTU’s. All of them come to mind when I watch the dynamic Blue Sapphire take over mission control in #41.  She (to coin a colloquial phrase) had it all going on this morning.  Carolyn has very distinctive features and facets of her personality in spin.  She has of course those blue gemstone eyes that flash a warning we are headed for either a challenging speed interval or a heavy mountain climb. Then there are those baton like arms of hers that direct our movement in and out of the saddle and expand our effort when the resistance wheel is calling us for a turn to the right. And then there is that lilting voice of hers, that could give buoyancy to a sunken ship. Today however, she added something more. It was her generous helpings of that trademark comet white smile, which made the Herculean effort we need for hill climbs conquerable. 

I have been on quite a few spin excursions with the Blue Sapphire, but today was 20 out of 10. I had fun, I smiled more than I ever do and I felt as if all of us were feeding off the collective energy we seemed to be generating from the choreography of this extremely talented female. We of “Hello Sunday” had a BLAST today, an all out blast and I want to thank Carolyn’s cardio class in the hour before that saved some of that Blue Sapphire candle power for us in the CS.  

Thank you Carolyn and Sundays will never be the same unless  you are teaching our class. 

The Blue Bullet

She was dressed in black but she was the blue bullet this Sunday morning. Have you ever been shot? Probably not, but this bullet doesn’t wound but still hits the heart.  Carolyn is always a special treat and the week is not complete unless I can catch at least one dose of the blue gemstone. 

The Blue Sapphire takes her work serious but she never takes herself too seriously. When there was a technical snafu with her music, she delightfully provided the bridge of silence with her own rendition of the song. She did it so spontaneously and it reminded me that we are here to work out but also to have fun. I always do on Thursday nights or Sunday morning. 

Carolyn uses a segment of each class to concentrate on the core when she says: “Don’t Bounce.” This takes effort and my legs start to burn when the upper half of my body is frozen out of the action. A great exercise within the exercise of spin class. I also have a love hate relationship with the “up to saddle” intervals as it takes me out of my comfort zone having to make the extra movement on top of the pedal stroke.  Her music is exquisite too. She never stays with one genre either, like the bubble gum top ten of the day and we never hear the same songs over and over. 

Carolyn will switch with Damian this week  as he will take her Thursday and she his Tuesday both at 6 PM.

Not All Lambs Go to Heaven

It’s Sunday and where else would you find me but spinning with The Blue Sapphire in her 1015 slot. Pound for pound the biggest little powerhouse this side of the Mississippi.  Or west for that matter, why discriminate geographically. 

Three of my most recognizable spinettes from KSC were here; Debbie H., Nancy K. and Green eyed Stacy. Stacy said my goatee looked good and that made this old man feel good. Nancy just back from her world tour, has been accusing me of flirting and I guess I would have to agree, since I am not dead just yet. We were also graced with Peter R. our club manager this morning and I couldn’t see from my vantage point how he fared but no doubt he was challenged and he got a firsthand dose of one of the clubs elite group exercise instructors. 

  My engineer friend to my right had her own take on the proceedings this last Sunday of the summer. She said that Carolyn had a drill sergeant air about her today. However you want to describe The Blue Sapphire, she always does what she does with a smile and her trademark blinking blue headlights. Carolyn connects with us emotionally and that is part of her appeal. Too many times I have seen some technically proficient instructors lacking this essential element even though their ride never disappoints. They all have charisma and I love how Kristen and Carolyn turn up the volume just right.  

What I have most recently found challenging are the intervals of seated to position #3. This move takes a bit of choreography and today was emblematic of The Blue Sapphire because she had it timed like a disc jockey. These breakaways are particularly challenging and get me quickly to the anaerobic zone. Ostensibly I used to think that this was just an exercise to break the rhythm of the road but now I know that there is a purpose to it. The other challenge, outside our intense hill climbs are when we hold our upper bodies still and just use our legs for the pedal stroke. This takes extreme concentration and strength.  

Thanks Carolyn for a great summer and fortunately for us we can pick up where we left off next Sunday. 

Anaerobic Sapphire

I was a touch curious what two days of not spinning would do to my stamina, and as I suspected the rest did me good. A Sunday Blue Sapphire gave me a double shot of the diminutive wonder this week. She had the usual full house and Carolyn is never routine, predictable or boring. She changes the music, cadence and her repertoire is unfailingly dynamic in its’ scope and thoughtfulness to detail. For instance when she adds: “Take it up, take it down” it not only requires concentration but adds endurance to the rigorous pedal stroke as well. 

Toward the fourth quarter of our hour I got into oxygen deficit, more commonly known as  the anaerobic zone. After nearly 7 months of devoted spinning, the intervals of going anaerobic are fewer and fewer, signaling to me that I am improving.  But today watching the Mellace perpetual motion machine, I fell off the diving board into deep blue water. I felt like I was going down for the third time only to be bailed out by the end of the hour.  

Scanning the room I found a few scattered KSC riders and I was especially glad to see my lithesome friend Debbie who for some reason reminds me of Lady Penelope a character from the 1968 television show, The Thunderbirds. The blonde dulcet, looking even more fit than I can remember, always has a smile and a kind word whenever I see her in the CS. It also made me sad, as the summer has disappeared yet again in two shakes of a lambs tail.  

I See Two Stars on Thursday Night

I discovered an idea that can help my recovery between sessions without missing a day in between. On Wednesday I took the Mike Borska 830 AM class and then The Blue Sapphire, Carolyn Mellace on Thursday night at 6 PM.  The 32 hours in between seemed to work and gave me the rest my body was clamoring for. In a previous class Mike said I looked a little tired and for me because I get wrapped in taking classes and then writing about them, I lose sight of the fact that each class is an all out effort for me.  It also feeds into my addictive personality which I have to be on guard for.  

Carolyn keeps us on our toes. She is always about having fun but she doesn’t “fool around” She has a singular devotion and it’s not just for the money. She’s shares the passion as we do to keep our bodies “in the pink.” An old expression dating back to Shakespeare’s, Romeo and Juliet in 1597. A little history lesson but one that always reminds me that the peak condition is something that the athlete in all of us drive for. 

I love Thursdays with Carolyn, primarily because it sets up the weekend and always seems to propel me towards a sharper state of mind as the week winds down.  She is always sharing her unique personality when she twinkles one of her blue stars at you. I am so fond of her and happy she leads me twice a week. 

Have you been aware of the changes in the club?  When I went for the shower I saw that half of them were sheet rocked up and just four were working. Not a problem for the evening but what about during the morning rush when the club is burgeoning with people.  I suspect that much less women shower at Equinox so it probably is not a real issue on their side of the continental divide. However, all in all I think the construction is going on well without nary an interruption for us members. The management must be nervous as I know Peter feels like this is his home away from home.  

Just a word about the new membership counselor Louis. He is a ubiquitous fellow isn’t he? I see him all over the club, not just in his glass cubicle behind his computer and phone. He is enthusiastic and takes his vocation way beyond anyone that I have seen before in that position which unfortunately has a huge turnover. He seems to be taking in the pulse of the club and I wish him well and I hope he remains a long time. I recommended a new member and he treated her with deep concern and continues to do so long after the sale.  

Okay, so the question is will I be able to make the Saturday edition of KSC? For those of you who read me I am a little under the weather with my atrial fibrillation today and I so wanted to be with you this morning. Hello Evil Woman. Do you miss me, just a little?

All Lambs Go to Heaven

Even ones that take us to Hell and back.  

Let me tell you that our trip to hell and back was in it’s way, pure torture. However, being led down the path to Hades by the Blue Sapphire was like enjoying fire and brimstone.

 While I am always quite absorbed in the adroit call of this talented instructor, I am also taken by the visual Sapphire.  It is true that her lithesome physiology has been acquired part by genes but mostly (I suspect) by a dedication and work ethic that are beyond my comprehension. This coming from a man who for several years ran a hundred miles a week, so the admiration does not come without some allusion to how much dedication to hard work it takes.  

There is an ethereal part of Carolyn, a sense of delicacy despite the ferociousness of her spirt that one can almost see in the shadows that live just outside her furious athleticism. Almost beyond description, this jewel shines with a flawlessness that is even beyond viewing to the naked eye. 

This Sunday session I had resolved myself to take it just a little easier after spinning with the Evil Woman on Saturday and a planned session with the Corso Zone on Monday. The thought was only a fleeting one because as usual I got taken in by the two blue stars and a comet.  There was a moment when those two blue stars blinked only to be followed by the white comet of her smile. And just like the other 39 I left nothing in the studio except for the salty pool beneath my bike.  

I hope my spin mates that I have not waxed too poetic about all the instructors I write about, but they are all  so very talented and each singular in their talented natures.  This week between Kristen, Carolyn, Cathy and Mike I had the most fun and I thank them all.  

45 Minute Sapphire

The abbreviated version of Hello Sunday,  was hardly discernible from the full version. The Blue Sapphire was splendorific this morning.  Those two blue stars had a deeper brilliance this early morning. As if a star can have it’s own exclamation point. 

Spinning as I have recounted has taken on a larger than life aspect to my own.  I never in a million summers would have guessed that I would rediscover the passion I used to claim when I ran long distance.  Those days however, were fraught with a distinct lack of symmetry and were abundant in an egocentric lifestyle that left wreckage at every turn. Those days are long gone but having entered back into the fray of extreme effort as spinning demands of me, I have a deeper appreciation of the lives I touch and a commitment to myself to keep my head right size, while I pare my body down to the athlete that lies within. I had let complacency overrun my existence but no longer.  I have found that working to correct character defects was important but I needed to focus on my shortcomings as well. 

 I owe much to the instructors at Equinox who have helped point my compass back to magnetic north. My life had so much deviation, and I filled it with variation hoping that I would resemble the man I was created to be, whomever he was. I am still not sure what path I am on, but one foot in front of the other along with my daily pedal stroke is all I need be concerned with in the present moment. 

What was that all about Jack?  Just that stream of consciousness that seems to take over my fingers as I pound out these daily stories. 

The Blue Sapphire has made Sunday much more meaningful in that I am motivated afterward to read and write with a deeper clarity due to the energy exchange I receive each time I get a strong dose of her infectious kineticism that seems to be more abundant than the stars I can count.  As I took my after spin stroll I saw moving like a perpetual motion machine the Blue Sapphire leading her cardio group session. Someone asked me if I was going to do a double. AYKM? Well, maybe someday, just not today.  

More Powerful Than a Locomotive

It’s 925 on a Sunday and I wait on the TMW* for the Blue Sapphire’s edition of Hello Sunday.  As I love to write about it, and this gemstone in particular, it never seems a bother to sit and wait for the 30 minute sign in. 

The Blue Sapphire is beyond superlatives, but I will do my level best. Some have accused me of having a “thing” for the Blue Sapphire the way I wax poetic about her. I am not sure where that comes from but she is a fantastic motivator and I just flat out admire her. 

Another packed house, and Hello Sunday is fast becoming one of my favorite classes here at Equinox. One of the ingredients that make Carolyn so unique is her gesticulations. I really took the time today to watch her hands and arm movements. Like coupling rods to locomotive wheels, she moves piston like as she directs us toward speed and effort. It is a pure art form in itself.  When the Blue Sapphire beckons we all follow in UNISON. The appeal she exudes is irresistible. Whether it’s her smile, voice or just innate talent, I can’t miss Sundays with Carolyn Mellace. 

That was the week that was wherein I found myself spinning 7 days in a row. Just two months ago I would have cringed at that prospect. I made a concerned effort to sample more of the instructor base than ever before and the talent is very deep at Equinox, very deep. 

Louis, a  recent addition as membership advisor, refers to this club as our “Third Space.” Home then work and then Equinox. An interesting premise that is literally very true because we don’t arrive, workout, shower and leave.It is this sense of belonging and having virtually every staff member knowing your name that makes entering and leaving like a second home.  I have belonged to so many clubs in the past including Bally’s where my deepest concern was spending only the briefest intervals and always being concerned about locking my belongings,  and just how sanitary the environs were. Never have I been concerned about  cleanliness or  possessions here, and when I leave something here like shoes, they appear on my very next visit.  Equinox has this  three pronged approach of Greet, Train and Maintain which is why it will remain the premier club at least in my mind. 

Gee I sound like a P.R. man. Only speaking what my heart tells my mouth what to say. 

*TMW Ten Most Wanted 

The Blue Ferrari With Lavender Interior

That was the image that descended on me as I started my climb with the Blue Sapphire.      

The sports car to end all sports cars is Carolyn . She’s sleek, compact, powerful and with the design right out of the  Fountain Head.  Fine architecture is what God had in mind when he designed this woman’s physiology. A work of art. 

Never one to quibble as to  what we are in her class to do, she  had us  negotiating  the steepest of mountain climbs today. And for minutes at a time I might add.  A full house which tells me the phenomenon of Mellace increases by the week. We have our own little cult with the Blue Sapphire. It’s an exclusive club too because she’s only here two days a week. So there is a limited amount of tickets available to this inspirational hour complete with smiles and torture.  

This blue Ferrari has two pistons that almost whirr when you watch them fly through the pedal stroke.  Just a marvel of biometrics and  when you watch her move, she leaves her DNA all over you.  I couldn’t help but notice how her tendrils became her windshield wipers and helped her keep a clear view of each and every one of us and our efforts. We put out for the Blue Sapphire and the boys are included. 

Two Blue Stars and a Comet

Inspiration  with me always appears in a flash of light. And when I looked up in position #41 and saw Carolyn’s eyes, she flashed a lightning like smile and it reminded me of a comet across the sky. You can tell a lot about a person from their eyes and their smile and with the Blue Sapphire you see devotion, dedication and inspiration. I won’t mention the physiology she carries because it’s sinful that someone looks that great.   

 Today in the CS the temperature control was malfunctioning and it felt like a sauna as we came through the glass doors.There must have been a shortage of towels in the locker rooms  because it seemed like  all the riders had bath towels covering the handlebars as if preparing for the impending bath by sweat.    But I soon forgot that as any excuse to ease up on my effort in fact, it was quite the opposite. When I spin with the Blue Sapphire I abandon any thought of holding back. However, I really had to concentrate on my breathing because I was soon out of it, breath I mean but soon I got back on the rhythm of the road and with my breathing as well. My air intake  is still challenging to regulate but I am working on it. 

The CS was a  packed house and it was crossover Sunday because the room  was filled with members of Kristen’s, Mike’s and Tripp’s classes. Even Don Berman made a guest appearance and of course Debbie the Olympian.  No disrespect but Hello Sunday is the best show in town, in my humble opinion. 

The hour disappeared  faster than that comet in Carolyn’s smile but with an effort like that I welcome it just the same. Two blue stars and a comet the Blue Sapphire is truly a celestial display.

Hello Sunday

Next Up: Sunday July 25th with The Blue Sapphire 

Wanted: Dead of Alive

The Blue Sapphire had a nice mix today in her musical selection. And when she started to play Bon Jovi's, Wanted Dead or Alive I thought about the 1958 version played on television by a then obscure actor named Steve McQueen. I admit to having a little bias here as my alter ego is John McQueen. I have often used it as a door opener on the phone or in person and it went like this: John McQueen, like Steve, but John. Years ago I always got a chuckle or a query; Any relation? I used to answer no or a very distant cousin. Today however not many know the King of Cool, Steve McQueen. He was a big star in the 1960's and 1970's and he died rather young of cancer at the age of 50. On the phone I instantly know if someone is under thirty or not because they have no recognition of the name and usually think I am talking about the mythical character in the Die Hard series, John McClane. It's too bad that an actor of that magnitude gets forgotten so easily. Most people think that The Breakfast Club is an old movie.

A packed house for the blue precious stone today and she was spot on with hill climbs that were challenging and she added low resistance speed work that had me approaching the anaerobic state. It's a great combination I think because it focuses on leg strength, endurance and the speed flushes out the legs to fuel recovery. Carolyn might have a different take on it but so far her regimen is working well for me. From the back row I could see my friend Debbie who is so sweet and carries the physiology of an olympian and it gives me a perspective of just how much effort we show for the Blue Sapphire. At one point Carolyn said something about going through the motions, and from my vantage point I couldn't see who was lollygagging. It's near impossible anyway TBS always galvanizes us to bring out even more effort than we think possible every time we spin with her. Hello Sunday! It was a great way to finish up a hot weekend.

Peanut Butter Without Oil

The Sunday version of The Blue Sapphire had me experiencing 'dead legs'. It might have been too many spin classes this week or what Carolyn suggested: I had too much road on in the days preceding. I am never quite satisfied that I have given enough effort when I spin but that idea as I sit here is poppycock . Every session is a mind bending one in terms of concentration, sweat and determination.

Today the Blue Sapphire termed her musical selection 'eclectic' and indeed it was but it was all good from these set of ears. We had a packed house on this very sunny Sunday and from position #2 I could see and hear TBS in very clear tones. I must say I love when she uses her arms as if she is rowing it gives me such a sense that she is so totally engaged with us all.

Peanut butter without oil. It did feel like that today, a good tasting class but there was no fat no oil in this hour because TBS never lets us forget we are here to work and sliding in oil is just not part of her repertoire. Peanut butter without oil, indeed healthy but not so easy to swallow. But if you ask everyone, we like it like that especially in Sundays With Carolyn.

Up close in #2 this heavenly body, The Blue Sapphire, has an amazing constellation dotted with two sparkling blue stars atop her diminutive athletic frame.  

The Third Rail

The Blue Sapphire on her throne looking very regal this 4th of July.  With those eyes of blue flashing it signaled  the pulse of third rail   electricity present in the CS this Sunday morning. It's been about two weeks since an entry in TBS but today it all seemed worth it.  

I was watching her movement today and it was indeed animated as some of our instructors can be but Carolyn had on her dancing shoes today because she had it all going on.  I have a new acronym that describes the Blue Sapphire: PEGS.  Power, energy, grace and speed. There seems to be a fluidity to her classes and I call that grace. The speed is in her wheels of fire as her pedal stroke is but a blur.  Her energy is of the Atomic variety, and it burns like an eternal flame. The power in her lithe form is something she shares freely with us all because it's like a contagion that fills the CS.  Good Morning Sunday! It always is with The Blue Sapphire at the helm.  

IT'S PONYtail TIME

Thursday night in the back of the CS my vantage point for watching The Blue Sapphire was somewhat compromised. I was able to see her legs moving at warp speeds I have never even contemplated of trying for myself.  However by class end I had my RPM’s higher than I have ever reached before. I knew it was fast because as we hit the closing moments my calf started to cramp up. 

Carolyn’s dedication to her craft is always on display and quite frankly the blue precious stone always mixes up her classes with different roads and music.  But, this is only the back page story, because tonight for example I just felt disengaged somehow from the trials and tribulations of the day yet I was drawn in by TBS and her personal magnetism, it’s irresistible. And by class end the familiar puddle under my bike was there in it’s usual triangle pattern. 

What about that ponytail? It was moving faster than Zorro’s whip and it might have to be registered as a lethal weapon.  Fast and furious on all counts and the hour disappeared like Nestlé’s Quik. 

Breathing

I asked Carolyn about how to breathe during our classes. Now that might seem like a dumb question from yours truly but here is what she had to say:

During most exercise routines, there's a tendency to breathe in and out through the mouth as opposed to in and out through the nose, which will basically oxygenate your body more efficiently and utilize less CO2.  Keep in mind that this is for more strenuous cardiovascular routines as opposed to weight lifting... Here's the deal in a nutshell for both running and cycling (which you'll appreciate since you were a marathon runner). According to most fitness experts, they say that to fully oxygenate the muscles and clear the body of carbon dioxide you should breathe a 3:2 inhale-to-exhale ratio (i.e., full inhales and full exhales). This means you INHALE on the LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT foot strikes and EXHALE fully on the RIGHT, LEFT foot strikes. This pattern is not that hard to turn into a habit, but it may require you to slow your pace down for a few runs or during spin class in order to master the technique.  Most people will notice a lower heart rate since they're able to get more oxygen in and more importantly, push all the carbon dioxide out of their bodies.  You might notice that you will naturally drop to a 2:1 ratio when you are really pushing it to the finish and that's fine...but it is difficult to maintain a pace that requires you to breathe at a 2:1 ratio. The CO2 in your body will increase if your breathing patterns are short and hurried. This will increase your heart rate and lactic acid production, and decrease your endurance in any cardiovascular event whether you're running, swimming, biking, etc.  I hope this helps!    

Lollygagging

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  Webster’s Dictionary defines lollygagging as dawdling.  When the Blue Sapphire caught some of us dawdling today she called us out on it.  Now I am not about to claim: It wasn’t me, because when we spin together we are in a sense a collective and we are all in spin class as one even though it is an individual effort.  We are a team for three  reasons:  First we have for various reasons chosen this time to be in her class and if we are not first timers we all know what is expected of us from a professional like Carolyn. Secondly the energy in the studio is vital to each and every one of us. When it’s high we can all feel it and feed off it. When it’s low the same holds true because our collective effort suffers.  And thirdly Carolyn is pouring her blood sweat and tears into the class by doing what she is asking of us.  How can we let her and ourselves down as well?  That’s why it’s a team and we have to all pull together. 
  
  
  Are you buying into this?  My guess is yes because in a club like Equinox our time is valuable and we are not going to waste it on lollygagging. 
  
  
  The Blue Sapphire had me so focused on my breathing Thursday night and for the first time most of the hour I was breathing through my nose instead of my mouth.  Carolyn had explained to me that when we take air in via the mouth it’s CO2 we are breathing as opposed to Oxygen when we take air through our nose. I can’t say it was easy because I was suffering from the belief that I could get more air via mouth breathing but I was wrong and I have to tell you that I was less fatigued and my pedal stroke was more powerful.  I may have been hallucinating I will let you know if it works a second time.
  
  
  Carolyn likes to use the word “Beautiful” and it is her that is.  I love coming to her class and I love writing about her.  

Sunday Hazing

To a packed house The Blue Sapphire pumped out a rhythm that had us all relative strangers in synchronous pedal stroke up and down the steepest of ladders.  Her chant:  “How are you Sunday” had us responding in unison in exasperated breath.  

The art of spinning is starting to come together for me. Four months in has me comfortable in the uncomfortable zone and balancing speed, cadence and resistance like bacon and eggs and toast.  I am even starting to feel graceful in and out of the seat too. Thanks to Carolyn and her “Fine China” metaphor I am placing my derriere in the saddle rather than slamming back down after a strong effort in #3. 

A Memorial Day weekend treat was having Carolyn leading us today. And from the back in #38 I must say fellow riders we did look good.  A familiar face in Debbie to my right with her carved features showed me she was leaving nothing for tomorrow and that was incentive enough for me to empty my tank just in time for “Mea Culpa”. 

The Blue Sapphire is as cute as a lamb but whoever heard of a killer lamb?  They just invented it and they call her Carolyn Mellace.

The Lamb Leads Us to Slaughter

The Blue Sapphire had my legs on fire this Thursday night. The resistance dial seemed to be moving to the right by voice command giving me the workout of the year. 

 I say to myself how can a woman so small in stature command such a presence in the CS the way she does.  It’s not just her fitness or even her perfect physiology it’s something else.  Might it be her relentlessness in going after what she demands of us?  That is certainly possible but what about her delivery? She has a way of making torture feel like it’s right and proper and not outside the laws of humanity.  This must be it I thought because ultimately it’s our choice to be here and be with The Blue Sapphire. 

She has her own haunting way about her as well.  Her smile is captivating and when you see the whites of her eyes you just want to perform at a higher level.  When she rocks from side to side pounding the pedals we all know that Carolyn is doing the same thing she is asking of us.  Effort comes natural to her and it makes perfect sense to me to follow her lead.  Tonight especially had me focused on pedal speed something, which I now know, can bring me to breathless and increase my level of fitness as well. I had thought it was solely the resistance that would get me to succeed at spin and because of Carolyn I am learning that both speed and resistance compliment each other.

Sunday is coming up fast my friends and who better to spend part of our Memorial Day Weekend with than The Blue Sapphire. 

Thursday Night With The Blue Sapphire

Relax it's not Thursday Night Yet!

A Little Bit About The Blue Sapphire

As if you didn't know already.

About Carolyn:  Carolyn is a certified cycling instructor and also teaches interval training at Equinox.  She is a yoga practitioner and has taught classes in Bosu, Urban Rebounding, Weight Training, Boot Camp and Step Aerobics in her 20-year span in the fitness industry.  Carolyn’s engaging and unique style has brought her a huge fan base.    She is part time at Equinox as she maintains a full time career in the Pharmaceutical Industry. 

There are many things that strike you when you see this diminutive figure of power.  She has a lithe form that belies her endless endurance and strength. She moves with grace and speed. And when she flashes her smile and winks blue, you can almost feel her hand on your shoulder guiding you through the most challenging parts of her ride.  I feel lucky to have discovered her through Kristen and I know that Peter wishes she were here more than two days a week.  She teaches Interval Training and Spin classes on Sunday mornings as well as a Spin class at 6 PM on Thursday evenings. I call her The Blue Sapphire you’ll call her Sensational.  You can follow her exploits right here. 

Cat's Paw

Carolyn professed tonight that she wasn’t going to be pussy footing around with us. And that was going to be the title for tonight’s post but let’s face it this lithe figure   is more like a lioness hungry for prey than any kitten I could imagine. And what makes it all palatable is that effervescent smile she flashes as she adjusts her ponytail into a tight bun. 

I like this Thursday night thing firstly because I can get a bike with relative ease, secondly it gives me the whole day to recover from the previous days spin and last but not least we have The Blue Sapphire a truly gifted athlete that loves what she does and her attitude reflects just that.

Tonight I could feel twinges in my left calf as I rocked up to position 3 and I immediately backed off a bit but it seemed to abate by mid session and I was reminded quite succinctly that I need to stretch more.  This frame is approaching the winter season and I have to come to grips that I have to oil the moving parts at least every 100 miles. 

Fine China

I never thought that spinning for me Jack Briant would be anything that had the word graceful in it. However I stand corrected because in The Blue Sapphire’s class today I felt it.  I thought that grace was a feminine mystique or charm like the hip carriage they sway so gracefully when they walk by.  That might be a little archaically romantic but hey I am a child of the moon when hippies ruled the earth. 

I think I got lost there let me swing back to The Blue Sapphire and her unmistakable charm she exudes with that wink of her blue eyes and when she flashes that smile that elevates my effort in the saddle of spinning torture.  Hey I was talking about grace wasn’t I?   Yes I was. 

Mellace had us driving hard in #3 and when she said sit down as if our derrieres were “fine china” it had me mesmerized because the movement of spinning never seemed to be graceful to me mainly because I was so out of shape from the athletic perspective.  Today however was the first time that I felt a definitive difference in my level of fitness. All those KSC’s sessions culminating in how I feel today.

Even with the magnets in high resistance I felt like I was spinning in mud but the stroke was even not choppy and when TBS* called for speed with the magnets apart I was able to achieve breathless in the higher RPM’s. And not feel like I was out of control or bouncing in my seat.  Graceful? As Bugs Bunny once said: “Could be”.

P.S. Thanks to Cindy for the address of this blog SundayswithCarolyn.blogspot.com

The Trellis

A special edition of the Blue Sapphire this Thursday night had me wondering if the magic I felt the first two times was going to sustain itself for the third edition.  Well I can answer in a resounding affirmative that the third time is an even bigger charm. It affirms in my mind the innate talent that Carolyn possesses.  Her countenance is the most beguiling feature of her athletic physiology.  It says very quietly to my grey cells that she is with you and not just calling a rhythmic cadence artfully executed. 

She squeezes the sweat out of me without so much as a complaint or even a grimace.  It’s almost as if I can put my legs through torture and smile while doing it.  The climb up the trellis today was beautifully written like The Blue Danube even though the fire in my legs told me there would be hell to pay tomorrow. 

What I do like in her orchestration is that I can transition myself between the RPM and resistance with more deftness because the segments are drawn out just a bit more and I feel my pedal stroke is smoother and more even foot to foot.

So The Blue Sapphire is ensconced in my weekly regimen I just wish I were younger so I could spin every day and write more first hand experiences.

I see her as a seraphim angel but I could also swear that she has two small horns as well. 

Spinning Choreography

This was my second dance with Carolyn Mellace and with a full house in the CS this Sunday morning; the heat was turned up full with all of us in pedal stroke synchronicity.  Carolyn Mellace a petite physically gifted specimen with flashing eyes fixed on high beam and a neon smile that sets off her riveting countenance. 

This spinning class unique unto itself had me running low on gasoline by the 50^th minute.  It might have been the combination of speed and resistance that had me so caught up in keeping pace with this female dynamo.  She may be diminutive in stature but the talent wheel she spins is 10 feet tall.  Truly here is another gemstone in the Equinox palace of professionals.

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy myself as much as I did but Carolyn’s choice of music felt like Shakespearean iambic pentameter.  She had each interval choreographed perfectly and the condiment of her smile made it way more than worthwhile. 

I don’t know just how many spin classes these old legs can handle but they will just have to make an adjustment to include Sundays with Carolyn.  I can’t wait until next time. They boys in the locker room were all buzzing about how great this class was and how Mellace must be running on 93 octane.  I totally concur. A spinning mate John told me she has an evening version on Thursdays, I want to catch that edition when that one goes to press too. 

Spinning Choreography: Plays on Sunday Mornings at 10:15 don’t miss it.