My original plan for this morning was to attend Lisa D.’s 9:30 cycle class and follow that up with Zumba by Bonnie at 10:30. Bonnie wrote me back however to say that she had a sub for today so I decided to put off her class till next week. It turns out that Lisa had a sub too but I didn’t know that until I walked in the room. Since Lisa also teaches cycling on Friday mornings I will still be able to attend one of her classes.
The sub for Lisa turns out to be the spirited securities lawyer, David Prince. As soon as I see him I know I’m in for a tough workout but I wonder how it will be for him as a substitute.
It’s a tough gig to be a substitute teacher – just think back to school days when the poor sub showed up. Subs enter the fray with the deck stacked against them to some degree. Presumably some or even most of the students in class are there because they like the regular teacher. It’s natural for students to wonder “who is this guy” and the sub’s got to prove him or herself.
Having taken David’s class on Sunday, I know that he is a hoopin’ and hollerin’, no holds barred kind of teacher and I wonder how that’s going to play in here this morning. I look around the room and realize that there are a lot of “serious” riders and I think this bodes well for David because he’s going to push everyone to their limit.
Sure enough, class is tough and David doesn’t hold back a thing when he gets to the sprints – he whoops it up and the class responds by working hard. David plays great music and is a motivating force throughout class. He asks us not to back down but to give our best and his earnestness and passion are hard to resist.
David’s personal fitness journey is inspiring. Two years ago, he joined the LRAC and made a life changing decision to reorder his life and get in shape. He weighed 235 pounds at the time and realized that he wasn’t living up his full potential and that he had the power to change that. He decided to workout every morning before work (in fact, before 6 a.m.) because nothing would get in the way at that hour. Slowly but surely the pounds started to come off. A cycling class aficionado for many years, David decided he wanted to teach class. Encouraged by fellow LRAC group cycling teachers, David went to Houston to get certified as an instructor. He’s been teaching now for about a year and currently weighs in at 185. His passion for helping people realize their fitness potential is evident in the classes he teaches – even those as a sub.
David Prince
At the end of class, while I’m drenched in sweat and enjoying the cool down – David talks about the song that he's playing for us. It’s from a CD called Five for Fighting and it’s about Augie Nieto. Augie was the founder of Life Fitness – the very first makers of stationary bikes (Life Cycles) and an icon in the fitness industry. About five years ago he was diagnosed with ALS (aka Lou Gehrig’s disease).
ALS is a devastating disease whereby one’s muscles cease to function one by one until even the ability to swallow or breathe is lost. The life expectancy for this disease is about 5 years. Augie learned all this soon after his diagnosis, became depressed and considered suicide but discovered that he’s just not the quitting type. Instead, he became determined to find a cure – if not for him then for others. His efforts (Augie’s Quest) have inspired many and directly resulted in raising $22.5 million (to date) for ALS research.
Although ALS is an extremely rare disease, it so happens that two of the management staff at the LRAC have lost immediate family members to ALS in the recent past. Susan Sell-Garrett, in our Membership Office – lost her mom and Dana Smith, the Club’s Controller, lost her husband. Both of these women have led efforts to raise money for the fight against ALS. Susan is involved with the MDA (Muscular Dystrophy Association) and Dana with the ALS Association of Arkansas.
In fact, next Saturday (April 10), there is an ALS awareness fundraiser that Dana is helping organize and which the LRAC is a sponsor. It will take place at Dickey Stephens Park at 9 a.m. For more information go to www.walktodefeatals.org or contact Dana at (danasmith@lrac.com). We hope you can come join the Walk.
Several weeks ago at our national health club trade show Dana got a chance to meet and talk with Augie. He’s five years out from his diagnosis and is confined to a wheelchair. Augie is able to speak only with the aid of a computer that is activated via his eye movements. Even in that state, she says, he remains a powerful force of nature and demonstrates the triumph of human spirit over the demise of the body.
Following is David's play list for the class:
Spin 048
| | | | | |
| 1 | Warm Up | Be Ok | Ingrid Michaelson | 2:28 |
| 1-2 | Rolling Hills | All In | Lifehouse | 3:56 |
| 5 | Jumps | Mercy | Duffy | 3:40 |
| 2 | Watts Drill (40/50/70) | Let It Rock | Kevin Rudolf | 3:51 |
| 6 | Sprint | My Life Would Suck | Kelly Clarkson | 3:32 |
| 2-4 | Stated to Standing Climb | Hot Mess | Cobra Starship | 2:52 |
| 2-4 | Extreme Hill (4-6 gears above base) | Superman | Five for Fighting | 3:42 |
| 2 | Interval (4x30) | Low | Flo Rida | 3:50 |
| 2-4 | Extreme Hill | If I Were A Boy | Beyonce | 4:09 |
| 6 | Sprint | Do Or Die | Forever the Sickest Kids | 3:17 |
| 4 | Standing Climb | So What | P!nk | 3:34 |
| 2 | Seated Climb | Blind Man | Black Stone Cherry | 3:38 |
| 2 | Seated Climb | I Don’t Care | Fallout Boy | 3:34 |
| 6 | Sprint | When Your Heart Stops Beating | +44 | 3:13 |
| 2-4 | Seated Climb to Standing Climb | Separate Ways | Journey | 5:26 |
| | | | | |
| 1 | Cool Down & Stretch | Augie Nieto | Five for Fighting | 3:29 |
| 1 | Stretch | When All Is Said And Done | Pierce Brosnan | 3:18 |
| 1 | Stretch | You Raise Me Up | Celtic Woman | 4:31 |
(54:35 plus Cool Down) Spin 048
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