'I felt comfortable enough to give it my all at a Taylor Swift spinning class'

Nicole Glennon says she feels secure in spinning class and has found herself getting stronger and enjoying the classes

I’ve never been a sporty person. As a child, I was always picked last for the football team, and my secondary school habits included trying to find a way to get out of PE and fully embracing the bookish nerd stereotype. 

I enjoyed ballet and swim classes pre-puberty, but as body insecurities heightened with every passing year, I gradually ditched these, not wanting to be seen in a leotard/swimming costume.

For a long time, I thought not enjoying team sports equalled not enjoying exercise, so I avoided joining any college society that tried to pitch hillwalking, kayaking, cycling, or any other such pursuit as ‘fun’. 

But as my birthdays started creeping into my early 20s, so too did my understanding of the importance of exercise. 

I tried to force myself to go to the gym, at various stages trying everything from group classes to personal training sessions, without anything sticking.

Then, in October, a friend shared a link to a spin studio that was doing a special Taylor Swift class to coincide with the release of her latest album.

Pitching itself as a ‘body-affirming indoor cycling studio’ some of the policies at echelon on Dublin’s D’Olier Street include no diet talk and no weight-loss talk. ‘All bodies, in all their diversity of size, shape, fitness level, race, ethnicity, sexuality, gender and age are welcome,’ the studio says.

I think part of the reason all previous attempts to become a person who exercises regularly have failed is because I’ve been too ashamed of where I was starting. 

Shame about my lack of fitness, shame about how my body looked, shame about not already knowing how to do a deadlift or a push-up. 

But from the moment I stepped foot in echelon, in a dark studio where nobody could see me struggle and sweat, I felt comfortable enough to give it my all. In the weeks since, I’ve stuck at it, feeling myself get stronger, and most shockingly of all, actually look forward to the class.

echelon.ie