How to Stretch After Spinning

I took a Spinning class yesterday. As in, I sat on a bike in the back row as someone else instructed the class. My class...the one I teach every Tuesday. Teacher became student because I had to observe a new Spinning instructor. I don't get to take classes that often, so it was nice to ride without all the pressure that comes with being the ringleader. But, once a ringleader...always a ringleader. So today, I thought it would be fun to walk you through a series of stretches that can be done after your bike ride.

The two most important parts of any Spinning class are the warm up and cool down. Especially the cool down. It's super important to bring your heart rate back to an acceptable state, and it's also essential to relieve your muscles of all the tension they've just built up. Hence. an appropriate post-Spinning stretch routine.

Use the bike, of course. And start with a hamstrings stretch.

Rule of thumb: Hold every stretch for 20 seconds. And please don't bounce.

From a hamstrings stretch, you can push your hips forward and relieve your hip flexors. Also your calf muscles if you keep your heel on the floor, like so:

Switch legs, then focus on your quadriceps:

Before you switch legs, come into a chair position to stretch your hips and glutes out:

Oh, so good.

Don't forget your upper body. Start wit this chest stretch:

Be careful with the bike, though. Make sure you aren't pulling the bike toward you, as it could fall on you. They're pretty stable, but still. Never hurts to err on the side of caution. And while it might look like I'm pulling on the bike in the following picture, I'm actually just pushing my clasped hands away from my body:

Note the rounded back.

You should also feel it right between your shoulder blades.

Next up, obliques:

Classic stretch, right there. Again, I'm not pulling on the bike. It's an illusion, I swear.

Finish it out with a little side lunge to relieve your inner thighs.

Feel free to stretch biceps and triceps, too, although they're a bit secondary in the list of muscles working hard during a Spinning class. When it comes to post-class stretching...after any group fitness class...you reserve the right to continue your cool down if necessary. We instructors do our best to walk you through it, but everyone is different and we get that, too.

If you want more stretching ideas, check out the #thefitdish to see what my fellow fitbloggers are doing. Additionally, it's #wildworkoutwednesday, so you know there's some new workouts floating around the Internet today.

Oh, and in case you're wondering about that instructor I observed—She did just fine. Exceptionally well, actually. I'm looking forward to watching her grow as an instructor. Literally, she smiled the whole time she was in the saddle.

True sign that someone is right where they need to be.

Want more Spinning info from yours truly, a certified Spinning instructor?
Check out these articles:
• Spinning Playlist with Rolling Hills
• 45-Minute Spinning Playlist
• How to Create an Awesome Spinning Playlist
• Spinning During Pregnancy: How to Ride Safely when You are Expecting
• 8 Tips for Taking Your First Spinning Class
• How to Make the Most of Your Time in Spinning Class
• A Spinning Certification Review

PS: There's still time to enter my Mighty Nut Powdered Peanut Butter giveaway...

Question: If you could give one piece of advice to Spinning instructors everywhere, what would it be? What makes you love/hate a Spinning class?