Injury recovery can make you feel less than ideal both inside and out. The road to building strength and stamina usually isn’t pretty or inspiring. For me, this particular round of recovery has been much slower than I’d like. The itch to get back to some fast paced activity has been overwhelmingly strong so when I received an invitation to an event at SoulCycle Pasadena by the beauty brand LATHER, I thought that the universe was giving me a sign that I was up for a challenge.
It isn’t easy to admit that the last few fitness events I’ve attended have been difficult physically, mentally and emotionally. I’ve been in some desperate need for some overall motivation lately and I saw some in the combination of the words “soul” with “cycle” and with LATHER‘s mission message about “living a more radiant life”.
I was familiar with the LATHER brand because a friend had given me a set of Bamboo Lemongrass Foaming Body Scrub and Almond, Milk & Honey Body Butter as a birthday gift…in February. I was “saving” them for some unknown time until I recently had a particularly bad day and decided to treat myself.
I fell in love with the spongy, clean smelling scrub and the very soothing body butter immediately. The Body Butter is now part of my nightly routine! The fact that LATHER uses natural ingredients, (many of them vegan), does no animal testing and partners with a number of organizations that promote better and more healthful living, makes me more interested in learning a bit more about their anti-aging and relaxation lines in the future.
I’ve had a long time love (and hate) affair with indoor cycling. Fast paced exertion to great music with someone coaching you to meet a challenge is my favorite kind of workout (but my back doesn’t necessarily feel the same way). I’ve been to many different indoor cycling studios but never to SoulCycle. When I lived in New York, I could never get into a conveniently timed class so this was a fun opportunity to check out the mega fitness brand and test my new level of fitness post-injury.
SoulCycle is clean, bright and modern. This high-end boutique fitness studio offers all of the spa-like amenities you want (but don’t know that you need) like Purell, hair ties, gum (and even earplugs!), lockers and shower facilities. Even spinning shoes are free for your first class ($3 to rent thereafter). Don’t let the slick look intimidate you, the staff at SoulCycle Pasadena were more than friendly and accommodating.
I barely made the cut (I’m 5′ 1″).
Chris, our instructor, for our class gave the group instructions for proper set up, explained the 3 different cycling positions and got us riding quickly. Chris was great about encouraging everyone to motivate each other without being dictatorial. I was modified my positions (as discussed with my Physical Therapist) and worked very hard at not pushing myself too hard or too fast.
However, 5 months off the bike made for a very humbling experience. Even Beyonce and Britney couldn’t distract me from the nauseated feeling I had about 30 minutes into the 50 minute ride. I had to back off a bit (and cut the weight section short) in order to prevent reaching The Puke Point. I felt weak, sad and dejected but I did not give up. I slowed down but never got off the bike and finished the class with the group.
Post Ride – I’m smiling through the nausea. Jessica is gorgeous even when she’s sweaty.
The blow to my fitness ego was fierce but I saw an underlying lesson to be learned – Strength and stamina are not equal entities in wellness.
Strength is multilayered – it can come from mental, physical and emotional places. Stamina, on the other hand, is singular, and without sustained effort it withers and dies. Stamina can be regained over time but strength can be resurrected and displayed (almost at will) from places well beyond the body.
I’m thankful to LATHER and SoulCycle for helping me learn that I have more strength than I realized but have some ground to cover before I get my stamina back to my desired place of wellness. Thanks also for the gift bag – it eased the pain just a little bit.
To celebrate my newfound piece of knowledge (and my bounty),
I’m giving away one LATHER and SoulCycle gift bag!
which includes the following products:
LATHER Muscle Ease Gel
LATHER Bamboo Lemongrass Body Wash
LATHER Cucumber Ginseng Facial Mist
LATHER Lip Balm
SoulCycle Tote Bag, silver
SoulCycle Tank Top, red (one size)
To enter the giveaway (entries accepted until 11:59pm PST 5/25/15) and for more details::
Disclosure: I was given a complimentary class at SoulCycle and gift bag for myself and one to giveaway from LATHER. I was under no obligation to write about this experience. All opinions are clearly my own.
The lesson I’ve learned about wellness is that it’s okay to take it easy and rest… sometimes rest is just as important to your health as exercise! 🙂
I’ve learned not to carry stress of things/people I cannot change.
I’m not on Twitter but I’d love to win this for my sore CrossFit body!
I just took my first class at the PDNA location tonight! Checking another location off my list 🙂
I’ve learned that if I try to stick to counting calories and a restrictive diet, I end up getting frustrated, feeling deprived, and binge. So now I try to make smart choices and moderate my portions.
It’s not recently learned but a great reminder to drink more water. And more water!
Wellness is definitely a lifestyle, and comes from doing whatever you can to treat your body with the most respect, love, and care
A lesson learned in wellness: probably that wellness is as much physical as mental. You can’t be physically healthy without the mental part. And how important the mental part is! (oh, does that even make sense?)
I’ve learned oh-so-much! Patience is probably the biggest/hardest one. *sigh*
Refuel, recover and rest and all part of health and wellness for sure. Sometimes rest is more important than anything else. I absolutely agree, Alyssa!
Steph: I logically understand that concept but have not fully taken it to heart. I bet I’d be much less stressed if I did though. It’s an evolution I hope to obtain someday.
Good luck! Thanks for entering, Danielle!
Did it compare to the other locations? Hope next time you’re in the ‘dena, you’ll let me know!
Hoping all is well with you. Saw your marathon photos and hope your legs are recovering!
Anne:
You make this dietitian’s heart sing! I call that the “boomerang and hoover effect”. I wish more people would become more comfortable with not restricting themselves but to consider each meal or snack a choice. Sometimes our choices aren’t necessarily healthy for us but they feed/fuel/satisfy some need that we have and giving in to that need is so much better than denying it! A+ for you!
You’d think moving to California would teach me that one but I still need to drink more water. I try but I know I fail miserably.
This is one I *need* to work on.
Laurel: I like the way you think in terms of wellness. It’s not an easy philosophy to fully embody and put into practice but it is a great one.
Yes! Carrie, you make a ton of sense. I’m not sure if it’s because you and I are both “thinkers” but yes, wellness is emotional and cerebral. You can know the tenets of nutrition, exercise and self-care but emotions can definitely derail all logic.
Patience. Not a lesson I can identify with even after nearly 3 years of living in California.
I will forever be tightly wound and exceptionally impatient…and I’m (sort of) ok with that.