Indoor cycling in the Philippines has just been redefined. This New York City fitness cult has finally landed on our shores, and already Filipinos are queuing up to join the most talked-about endorphin party in town.

Electric Studio Indoor Cycling, the country’s first indoor cycling boutique, gives a new spin to local indoor cycling. Located at 8 Forbes Town in BGC, Taguig City, Electric Studio is the brainchild of Kris Sy, a Boston-educated Filipina who last year left a corporate life in New York to open a fitness studio here.

It’s easy to see why New Yorkers are addicted to indoor cycling. This is not your traditional spin class, with its uninflected, textbook-oriented routines.

This is cycling on steroids, as the figure of speech goes, that aims to give you a full-body fitness experience.

“We wanted to create a formula that was unlike anything. We created the program from scratch and put pieces of great workouts together—those we think would be great for Manila. So you won’t get the same workout anywhere,” Sy said.

Sprint, climb, push and dance your way up imaginary hills to build a stronger body. All you need to do is sign up, book a ride, choose a bike, choose an instructor and show up at the studio.

When you get to the studio, an instructor will give you a quick tour of the place (if it’s your first time) and prep you for class. Sign a waiver and you’re good to go.

Socks

Don’t forget to bring socks. The studio will provide cycling shoes. You can bring your own shoes as long as they have a set of sturdy cleats and are compatible with the brand Look Keo.

Celine Tang: “You never feel like someone is judging you.”

Although it’s perfectly fine to do indoor cycling without cleats, this small detail demonstrates the studio’s earnest effort to instill confidence in their students.

Cleats are very beneficial. By clipping shoes onto the bike’s pedal, safety is already assured. Plus, clipped shoes have also been proven by studies to activate more muscles and allow you to maintain control of the bike. It promotes increased power, muscle balance and comfort. In short, you get more bang for your buck during the 45-minute class.

The instructors, Sy said, have diverse personalities so that each class is never the same. Love pop music? There’s an instructor with just the right pop music playlist for you. If rock music is your thing, join the class of the studio’s “rock star” instructor.

“The class represents the personality of the instructor. We trained and chose the instructors based on their personality. We asked ourselves, would students want to hang out with them? Because that’s what makes the person inspiring and connects them with the students,” Sy said.

There’s no one here who’s going to measure your vital stats and weight, and BMI or body fat/muscle ratio. They respect your privacy. Besides, unlike most fitness centers, the Electric Studio is not about body image. It’s about creating a community of positive energy.

“We are a culture of noncalorie counters. Stuff like body changes is inevitable; it will come. Because the best workout is actually the one you do. It really doesn’t matter how many calories you burn. The most important part for us is empowering people to want to work out,” said master trainer MC Barao, who flew in from New York to train the trainers for 90 days.

It’s important to build a fitness culture where people want to work out because they want to get stronger, Sy said. “They come back because they had a good time, not because they want to fit back into their jeans,” she said.

The saddle can be uncomfortable, so request for a seat cover for extra cushion. Dumbbells, at 2, 3 and 5 pounds (again, your choice), are hooked up under the bike seat, and fresh-smelling clean towels hang on the handlebars. It’s a full-body workout, so prepare to curl some biceps and tone those triceps while pedaling on your bike.

"It's like a party on a bike,” said Cathy Cantada-Dizon, who recently purchased her own cycling shoes for class. — “It’s like a party on a bike,” said Cathy Cantada-Dizon, who recently purchased her own cycling shoes for class.

Is it hard? Oh, yes! The first time is always the hardest.

Makeup artist Cathy Cantada-Dizon, who is among Electric Studio’s pioneer students (she first attended classes at their pop-up studio in Makati last January), said she couldn’t walk down the stairs or bend her knees after her first class.

Dizon was strong, or at least she thought she was, before attending the cycling class. She had been practicing yoga for almost three years when her yoga instructor told her about Electric Studio. She got curious and signed up for one class.

“A week after my first class I came back. It’s just such a wonderful environment. The teachers really guide you with the pacing. I found the perfect workout to go with my yoga,” she said.

Positive environment

And it’s that positive environment that keeps them coming back. You go at your own pace. The instructors will not force you to keep up with them.

“You never feel like someone is judging you. I get my energy from the teachers, and I love the playlist,” said Celine Tang, who owns and manages the company that brought in Alex and Ani accessories to Manila.

She first tried indoor cycling as a student in New York but never bothered with it again until today. The instructors, she said, are very encouraging.

Pat Lim, who handles marketing and IT for an insurance company, said the first workout is “super hard,” the kind that will “keep you in bed for three days.” But he went back to class because it’s a quick and efficient workout.

“I’ve always been athletic. I play tennis and basketball, but attending this class got me back into exercising. You just get addicted to it. After your second and third classes, you get better at it. It’s not easier, but you get used to it,” Lim said.

After six months, he said he shaved at least two inches off his waist and lost 10-15 pounds. Not that he was consciously trying to lose weight; it just happened.

“It's a quick and efficient workout. And it’s not boring,” said Pat Lim. — “It’s a quick and efficient workout. And it’s not boring,” said Pat Lim.

Moving and pushing your body for 45 minutes nonstop is an excellent way of torching calories. Dizon said her friend burns an average of 1,000 calories per session.

But it’s really riding inside the dimly lit studio and the brisk whiff of scented candles in the air that get you going, and coming back. Riding inside a dark studio makes you focus on yourself, letting yourself go without worrying how you look.

Soon you forget about comparing yourself to others. And for 45 minutes, the only person that matters is you. This is an ambiance a nonspecialized studio, like a gym, cannot achieve.

This gives the class that sense of community and bonding, and ultimately, well, a cult that’s anchored on positive energy. You leave the class feeling like you’ve accomplished something great, and so you come back for more.

Located on the 2/F, 8 Forbes Town Road, The Fort, BGC, in Taguig. Tel. 8336051/6056 and 0915-2124929, or e-mail [email protected]. Visit www.electricstudio.ph for more details.