I recently sat down to chat with Flywheel and Flybarre instructor Miki Russ on the benefits of doubling up your workout routine. She’s got some great advice. Read on!
You always host such fun events and classes at Flywheel. What’s happening with Flywheel in Charlotte for the month of August? Any new classes? What events should we NOT MISS? All thru August we are doing a Double Dare challenge. Take both the 10:45 and 11:45 cycle classes M/W/F and you are entered to win a 5 pack of classes each time you double up. Also, the FlyBarre challenge is starting in September. It’s perfect time to get back to a fitness routine since the kids will be back at school. 
I’ve seen a lot of people double up on classes at FlyWheel and FlyBarre. Does that happen often in your classes? It happens more as of late.
What’s your opinion on Doubling Up? Do we dare?? YES you dare!
And what is best? 2 FlyWheel? 1 of each? 2 FlyBarre? I think it’s best to double with a barre wheel combo.
Obviously, all of this depends on an individual’s fitness goals, but what are your thoughts? My thoughts on this are if you dare to double you should do Barre first then Wheel. Yes I said it!! Barre then Wheel. Most often people think they need a cardio “warm-up” before resistance training therefore they opt to do Wheel first then Barre, however, during the first 20-30 minutes of a workout you are burning glucose as your energy source. What happens after you run out of glucose? Your body begins to burn FAT but, it’s much harder to burn. It takes longer for your body to activate the fatty acids that have been stored. Let’s use our 45 minute wheel class as an example here….if you are burning glucose for the first 20 to 30 minutes of exercise then you are only getting about 15 (at most) minutes of actual FAT burning. If you spent this time (burning glucose) in Barre you actually could get the full 45 minute benefit of FAT burning during your cardio. Another benefit of Barre first is after resistance training your heart rate stays elevated for hours afterwards. Cardio only keeps your heart rate elevated mere minutes after your finish. If you do barre first you’re able to get your heart rate back up with much less effort than if you did the workouts in reverse order. Get the maximum effort out of your double by resistance training then cardio training!!
At Flywheel Charlotte, there is this amazing fun vibe created by the instructors in each class. I’ve been there enough to know it is genuine and contagious. How do you keep this going in? How do you stay so hyped about teaching? I love teaching and that in it self keeps me “hyped”. Most importantly I genuinely look forward to seeing the clients bring their best efforts and seeing the results they obtain from class to class. It’s what keeps me going.
What has been one of your favorite things about working for Flywheel? One of my favorite things is that very same vibe you mentioned above. Flywheel is a culture, it’s an experience and we are family. You are right, I (and all of us) truly enjoy being at work. It’s crazy to think this is my “job”. Not only do I love being on the schedule to teach classes, I love to take classes from the most talented group of instructors on the planet. I am blessed beyond words!
For someone that may be new to Flywheel and Flybarre, what advice would you give them about starting? I would first tell them there’s NO such thing as needing to “get in shape” before they try out barre or wheel. We hear that a lot. It’s quite the opposite – Flywheel is where you GET in shape or get in BETTER shape. Wherever you are in your fitness journey, at step one or years of being active, we have a place for you.
Also, what are your thoughts about busy parents making time for exercise? Exercise should be scheduled as any other activity you do. The biggest mistake busy parents make is thinking they will fit in a workout. You cannot fail to plan/schedule your workouts. If you do, you plan to fail.
Just for fun:
What are your top 3 workout songs these days? “Summer” by Calvin Harris, “Black Widow” by Iggy Azalea and “I Lived” by One Republic
Favorite summer activity you do with your family? Hanging out by the pool and grilling out
Early bird or Night owl? Definitely NOT a night owl!!
Favorite vacation spot? Our family’s mountain house for a family trip. Grand Cayman Island by far is my favorite vacation destination ever!
Thanks for chatting with us, Miki! Find out more about Flywheel Charlotte at their web site.
