THOUGHTS DURING YOUR FIRST SOUL CYCLE CLASS

Who : me. mary grace. 15. Just finished a series of antibiotics after being diagnosed with Lyme's disease. lazy, but also ambitious.
What : my first soul cycle class.
Where : small suburb just outside of NYC.
When : summer of 2014.

A Soul Cycle opens up in my town. Hell no. Mrs. Down-the-street-neighbor hurt her back from too many spin classes. Hannah Banana in my English class goes every night, though. She's BFF's with her instructors. Seems intimidating. But her beach bod is pretty on point. Oh, Mrs. What's-her-name loves it ... she'll ask me to babysit every time I see her. I don't like babysitting for her. And wait, didn't that guy in California fall off a bike and die at Soul Cycle?! Case closed.

And then my best friend goes. And somehow she convinces me to go with her the next time. What kind of underwear to I wear?! Wait, they give me shoes, right? Should I bring a water bottle? The only one I own is dirty. What about a bag? I think there's a locker room... MOM. Why can't my mom come with me?! Do you think they'll judge me if my socks don't match? Crap, my mom has to sign a waiver. Maybe I should "forget" that part and then I won't have to go. Nope, already paid $34. MOM. Still wish she could come with me.

And then I walked in the place. Oh my God it smells like grapefruit. I always love the idea of grapefruit, so bitter though. What bike did I book?! Where's my friend... This is so high tech. I like those pants. What's my shoe size?! MOM. Wow, Smartwater. Fancy. Wonder how much they charge for it here. How does this locker work? Do I bring my phone in? There might be an emergency. Nah, I'm not that important. Wait, but really, how does this locker work?

And then I walked in the studio. AH. I hope this class isn't full. So intimidating. Yes, Ms. Yellow-Shirt, I need help. So many moveable parts. This is so high tech. Oh, I think I know how to clip my shoes in. Nope. Falling on my ass was embarrassing. What happens if I throw up? I guess I'll have to excuse myself. Wait, these are five pound weights. MOM. Yes, I'd like different ones. I have to pee. Will I pee my pants?Oh, there's a large man entering the room. The door is closed. I'm stuck.

And then the class started. What's third position? I'm going to follow the lady in front of me. Shit, she has no idea what's going on either. It's ok, lady. I guess we're in it together. Saddle??? PUSH UP?! Pedal and push up simultaneously, at the same time?! Ow. I wonder what I'm going to have for lunch. Nope, nevermind. My breakfast is coming back up. Is burping in spin class rude? THERE'S CANDLES UP THERE. Yum. Wait, I love this song. Can I dance? Wooooooooo. Yes. I've got the hang of this. LOL, I should be a SoulCycle instructor. I wish I wore a headband. I bet they'd pay for my headbands if I was an instructor. Can I sit down now? Yum, water. Weights?! Oh, right, I knew that. Ow. Ow. Owww. OMG, is this an acoustic version of 'Latch'?! Wish I could Shazam this right now. Should've brought my phone in. No, I like being unplugged. Ha, I'm such a white girl. Wait, YES, I am too good for all the crap in my life. Yessss. This is so uplifting. My eyeballs are wet. Is that sweat or tears? Yeah, I'm crying.

"THANKS, STRING! SEE YOU ON THURSDAY!"

And the rest is history.

xx MGR