SoulCycle opens a new studio, offers college students a free class

Spinning stalwart SoulCycle opens its tenth location in the former Tower Records space near NYU and offers a free class to students.

By Jonathan Shannon Thu Jan 3 2013

SoulCycle NoHo

Denizens of the Village have one more exercise option, as the trendy Spinning chainlet opens SoulCycle Noho (384 Lafayette St at E 4th St; 212-860-1300, soul-cycle.com; daily 6am–7:30pm; single class $32, first class $20, ten classes $310) today. The location is equipped with 60 stationary bikes, a boutique selling sporting apparel and a listening bar with iPads and headphones so you can check out the spot's instructors and listen to one of the custom playlists they've created for class. Since the new studio is deep in NYU territory, SoulCycle's waiving the fee for college student's first class.

RECOMMENDED: Best gyms and fitness classes in New York 2013

If you're new to the concept of indoor-cycling classes, it's a group workout on resistance-equipped stationary bikes, led by a charismatic instructor and set to pumping music. As luck would have it, while working on our recent roundup of Spinning classes, to bypass the B.S. we sent a (dare we say unfit) writer to see how much pain is experienced during a session: "After only a few minutes, I could hardly hear [the instructor]; my whole world was my legs and abs and this funny metallic taste in my mouth." In other words, it hurt a lot—but as they say, no pain no gain, and in the interests of balance we also interviewed a SoulCycle trainer so you know where you're going. Check out the pain and gain of Spinning.

And look out for more SoulCycle locations coming this year in Soho (midwinter) and the West Village and Williamsburg (both in the spring).