As WoMos I think we will all agree, the one thing you need on a constant basis is energy.
Sometimes there are those days when you feel like you are walking through mud. It’s exhausting. Then some days you whizz through every bit of the day with a spring in your step. If you're anything like me, it isn’t sleep dependent either. I can have days where I’m firing on all cylinders on a bad night’s sleep.
Sleep helps of course, but for me, what really makes the difference is exercise.
Without exercise my lethargy increases, I feel less motivated and the mud days become more frequent. It’s my time out, my release and my energy boost. Finding the time is another WoMo challenge, but that comes from how you prioritise exercise and where you place it on your ‘must do’ list. For many women it isn’t on the must do list at all, there are many other things that come first, but what I have found, is that if I keep exercise near the top of my list, I achieve a whole lot more, just from the energy it gives me.
The thing that really gives me the weekly boost I need is a session at Psycle. If you are reading this and you aren’t based in London, then sorry, as you won’t have a Psycle studio nearby. If you work anywhere in Central London, you are in luck! There is a studio of Oxford Circus and one in Canary Wharf.
I discovered Psycle when they started. They opened in Mortimer Street and at that time I worked round the corner. As I’m the nosy type, I figured I ought to go and check it out so I went for my first class. That was it, I was hooked.
Let me explain….
Psycle is basically a club, playing pumping tunes, in a dark room, with a bunch of sweaty people. If you miss those nights when you’d dance till the wee hours (as now you get up for kids in the wee hours instead) this is the 45 minute throw back you need. It’s dancing, of sorts, but on a bike. The bike saves you from having to pull the coolest moves on the dance floor, which for many brings a sigh of relief! Those 45 minutes are literally the 45 minutes of reset for me every week. You enter the studio and you switch off. Each class is led by one of their brill instructors (yes they are all wonderfully crazy and committed to giving you the workout you need) who show you and talk you through every move. Let me just add here, I HATE spin classes. I had done a handful in the past and could never get excited about ‘climbing a hill’ whilst sat on a static bike. Psycle is no normal spin class.
I have arrived for a Psycle class hungover from a night out, exhausted from my busy life, enraged by something that has pissed me off and fed up with the idea of exercise. I have dragged myself to the studio when exercise is the last thing on my mind and forced myself to get my backside onto the bike. Without fail, I know that within 5 mins (ok 7 mins on a bad day) I’ll be in the zone. And once I’m in the zone, I know I will walk out back into my busy world refreshed, energised and ready to tackle anything.
Other than my once a week dedicated Psycle session, I cram in the odd swim or a gym session. Sometimes it's 4 times a week and sometimes it’s once or twice a week, but if it’s once, it’s Psycle. It’s not for everyone, I’ve had mates try it and think it’s nuts, but if you haven’t been, give it a go. 45 mins of your time, your zone, your world and a complete escape from all the stuff being a WoMo throws at you.