I’ve done quite a few spinning classes over the years and enjoy the exercise, but dislike some of the instructors, don’t really like the music and hate missing reading my boy his betime story. As such I’m considering buying a spinning bike, putting it in the garage and using it a few times a week (at a time convenient to me!). Has anyone done this, or similar and is there anything I should avoid/ look out for in particular? Thanks.

The wife bought a 2nd hand reconditioned gym spin bike yesterday for £300 (it was nearly £2k new or so she tells me). Weighs a ton mind, and built out of girders, so looks like it will last a lifetime. I’ve not tried it yet, but it is the same make her gym use (LA Fitness).

You could always go to the gym and spin without an instructor? 🙄

I got one a few years back off ebay. A guy was selling 3 ex gym ones. Paid about £60 but had to travel 50milea to pick it up.
Very heavy, so make sure you have a clear pathway to where you want it. Find some workouts to download. My wife bought some icycle workouts which are very good, but as i only do the longer interval workout I downloaded some more freebies. I recently did a spin class at my work gym (it was free!), I found my home workouts a lot harder-longer high resistance spins. Also found my bike better for controlling resistance as mine has a lever where I can see relative resistance, tee one in the gym had a turny knob (which wound round and round).

footflaps, Any idea where she got it from?

You could always go to the gym and spin without an instructor?

My gym membership has lapsed and I’d rather spend the money up front and be able to exercise in the privacy of my own home and at a time that suits me.

Get one with integral coat hangers, because it will spend most of its existence draped with stuff rather than being ridden.

Any reason not to get a turbo trainer and a couple ot DVDs?

Any reason not to get a turbo trainer and a couple ot DVDs?

I don’t currently have a bike that would be suitable to use on a turbo trainer.

Fairnuff….

….but on second thoughts (and having looked on google) I think I may be wrong, I’ll look into turbo trainers too!

Get a 50 quid bike of ebay to stick on the trainer. It doesn’t need to be top spec to run on a turbo trainer. My mate got an old 7 speed GT, cleaned it up, works a treat.

I have one that runs off the braking surface of the wheel, so it can be used on any bike. Got it off merlin…

Turbo Trainer and half a bike would be just as good, easier to move and probably easier to source. I reckon if I get a new road bike the old one will just get mounted to the turbo.

Our new spin bike is replacing a bike + turbo, the wife prefers Spin bikes as they’re more stable for standing up sprinting. Having just carried one into the workshop, I can testify to the stability bit – it could survive a nuclear blast, so isn’t going to move with someone sprinting on it…

I’ll ask where she got it from when she’s back. She found a sellar on Ebay who had a whole shed full of them….

I have a spinning bike and a turbo trainer. The spinner’s in storage at the moment as the house we’re renting is too small to fit it anywhere! The turbo is better in terms of storage space and weight, but the spinner is really good and solid and smoother to pedal. When we buy our own house this year, we’ll have to squeeze the spinner in somewhere!

Keep an eye out for private gym’s and local authorities refurbing their gym’s. I also put a request on Facebook if anyone had any contacts connected to gym’s. It worked for me.

IMO the good ones are good, the crap ones are horrible, my old cheep-ass council gym had some with magnetic resistance like a turbo trainer, the fancy overpriced ‘Spa’ I’m a member of now has horrible friction resistance ones, and rubbish instructors.

I’d rather go to the old gym, but a good alternative is a turbo and sufferfest. Any bike with big enough gears and a slick tyre is good, just get any old POS off gumtree and spend the money on a half decent turbo.

Turbo training on a bike or using rollers is not the same as spinning….well not the spin classes I attend anyway. There is no way you can do what we do on a bike on a turbo trainer or rollers. There is a lot of upper body stuff going on, leaning back and forth and to each side and you simply don’t have the stability on a bike on a turbo trainer and certainly not rollers. It’s just not even in the same ball park. If you want to do proper spin stuff then you need a proper spinning bike.

Ours is a Startrac Spinner NXT, which seems to be the gym spin bike of choice. New they are about £1200, but loads on Ebay around the £200-£300 mark. The one the wife bought is in pretty mint condition, bars and saddle look brand new.

Untitled by brf, on Flickr

That startrac looks exactly the same as the Technogym ones my gym has. Seem to eat bottom brackets though…but I guess they’re seeing hammer twice a day, every day.

There is a lot of upper body stuff going on, leaning back and forth and to each side and you simply don’t have the stability on a bike on a turbo trainer and certainly not rollers. It’s just not even in the same ball park. If you want to do proper spin stuff then you need a proper spinning bike.

Yep never got that bit, seemed fairly weird.I guessed it was aimed at people who only ever did that as a workout so tried to cram in some extra exercise into it.

Get a cheapo (£60 at Machine Mart) folding turbo trainer for the bike and buy a rowing machine. My cycling buddy uses one during the week and he is much fitter and faster than me; the rower gives you a fantastic CV workout in 30 minutes.

Buy some rollers, more fun and better for your bike skills.

Rollers are more fun? Though I wouldn’t consider rollers or spin ‘fun’ as I’d much rather be out on my proper bike, if I had to spend an hour on my own grinding away on rollers in my garage or at the gym getting an all-over body beasting from a very attractive instructor dressed in Lycra I know which option I’d choose every time.

if I had to spend an hour on my own grinding away on rollers in my garage or at the gym getting an all-over body beasting from a very attractive instructor dressed in Lycra I know which option I’d choose every time.

and in reality a bunch of middle aged women some gym idiot mumbling into a mic playing shite music and pretending that they know something about bike riding. If you able to get all excited by the view your doing it wrong.

An exercise bike in the home? What a new idea!
Go to the local tip, they’ll be loads there.
(“Spinning” bike 😆 )

I just sold one on eBay! Only got rid of it because we don’t really have the space any more and I’m commuting these days so on the bike plenty.

It was great while I was using it – TV/DVD in the garage and spin away. When I was in training properly I’d spend an hour or two a day on there all through the winter, since the kids came along I just don’t have the time for that. Great way to get some targeted training in and to supplement proper riding.

Mine was a Lemond Revmaster Pro and it just sold for about 25% of it’s new price which was a bit disapointing but that’s life. If you get one get the heaviest flywheel you can and as much adjustability as you can, on both riding position and resistance.

I have rollers also but always preferred the spinner as you could give yourself a proper beasting without falling off 🙂

Rollers ftw.

I don’t currently have a bike that would be suitable to use on a turbo trainer.

Buy/build a road bike and plonk it on some adjustable resistance rollers. Rollers keep your form sharp as you’re involved in maintaining posture, use a little computer with it and you can keep track of your output. When the weather’s good you can take it outside, unlike the spin ‘bike’.

I appreciate all the points that I should just get out on my bike, but the local trails aren’t that good at the best of times and I don’t like riding on the road (especially in the dark). I want to be able to nip out to the garage for 30mins of interval training (and spend all that time exercising rather than faffing with a filthy bike etc) before breakfast and then get on with my day. I’m primarily looking to improve my fitness so not too worried that it’s not a real bike!! Thanks for all the useful posts.

Mike Smith, you need to come down to my gym. In the two or so years i’ve attended spin classes there the instructors have alwyas been attractive. The participants in the class not so.

And by the way – as i’m trying to stress, spinning is not cycling. ITs not intended for pure cyclists, its not intended to improve cycling technique or make anyone a better cyclist. So any comparisons to turbo trainers and rollers is just not valid. If you want to improve your cycling technique then don’t go spinning.

When the weather’s good you can take it outside, unlike the spin ‘bike’

Spin bikes have wheels on, can’t you just wheel it outside ?

Mike Smith, you need to come down to my gym. In the two or so years i’ve attended spin classes there the instructors have alwyas been attractive.

Fair enough, my point was if your able to perv at the instructor then your not trying hard enough 😉

I want to be able to nip out to the garage for 30mins of interval training

Rollers then. As above, spinning is more of a general gym thing, rollers are cycling specific.

spinning is more of a general gym thing

They are common in gyms but 30 mins of on a turbo is no different fitness wise to 30 mins on a Spin cycle or 30 mins on rollers (and yes I own all three).

Yes but if he is looking to buy something, rollers would be cheaper than a spinning bike and he’d get the same cycling benefit.

Agreed. Although a turbo takes up the least space…….

Personally I wouldn’t have a spin bike as they are great big lumps of iron, but the wife prefers it to the turbo, hence bought one….

Plus they are chuffing expensive, at least new. Can get a nice road bike and rollers for that 🙂