Ride with Tommy!

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, February 12, 2015

1. Party Rock Anthem - LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett & Goon Rock
2. Crazy In Love - Beyonce' featuring Jay-Z
3. I Lived ([RED] Remix) - OneRepublic
4. Living For Love (Dj Paulo & Jackinsky dub mix) - Madonna
5. Lips Are Movin - Meghan Trainor
6. Style - Taylor Swift
7. Heartbeat Song (Dirty Pop Deconstruction remix) - Kelly Clarkson
8. Whitney Megamix - DJs Jody den Broeder and Warren Rigg
9. Would I Lie To You - Eurythmics
10. I Put A Spell On You - Annie Lennox
11. I'm Not The Only One - Sam Smith

After giving a little "behind the scenes" look at what goes into making a track list for one of the Ride with Tommy! classes a few weeks ago, I thought this morning's track list called for another occasion to provide a little more insight into my song choices. This morning's Ride, like my last "behind the scenes" peek, started with the requests for the #totalrequestride class. Each week, Crunch members can tweet their requests to @crunchgym followed by the hashtag, #totalrequestride. Diane in the Crunch corporate offices in New York, compiles the top 3 requests and then sends them out to the instructors across the country! This class really provides a reflection of a sign of the times. Think about it. Anyone in any city in any state where there are Crunch gyms, can use their cell phone to request their favorite song or video which, if in the top 3 of that week, can be played at any one of the Crunch gyms in the country that week! The ability to share and communicate as widely and immediately as we do now with technology and social media at our fingertips is really kind of amazing. In addition to the very cool aspect of playing the top 3 requested videos, it is so cool to consider that Crunch gyms everywhere will have a sense of consistency and continuity throughout the country. I compare this to McDonald's. If you step into a McDonald's restaurant anywhere in the world, you will expect to experience the same principles that are instilled throughout the corporation from the top management down to the hourly worker: quality, service, cleanliness and value. Crunch is actively trying to streamline and improve the Ride (indoor cycling) program, as well as the entire gym experience, throughout all of its gym locations. Crunch is founded on ideas where fitness meets entertainment. Now, much like McDonald's, anyone who steps into a Crunch gym, can expect the same opportunities for an intense workout while having a lot of fun doing it. And that person that stepped into any Crunch gym will know what to expect because of that consistency instilled in the ever and fast growing number of locations across the United States and the world! So, the first 3 songs of my track list are provided as a part of the incredible process that can start with a single member in any Crunch location anywhere. So cool! This weeks top 3 requested videos are: "Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO, "Crazy In Love" by Beyonce featuring Jay-Z, and "I'm Not The Only One" by Sam Smith. And these 3 videos lead into a reason for my selection of some of the other songs. I always try to tap into the current "pop culture" when a big event or happening takes place such as the Grammys this past Sunday. Therefore, I included Madonna's new song, "Living For Love", which she performed live on the broadcast, as well as the requested Sam Smith single, "I'm Not The Only One". Meghan Trainor and Taylor Swift presented at the Grammys, so I also included their new songs. But probably one of the most talked about show-stoppers of the night was (current Crunch member!) Annie Lennox! She was (and always has been!) an amazing performer! So I not only included her new single that she performed with Hozier, "I Put A Spell On You", but I also reached back to a song from her Eurythmic days, "Would I Lie To You" which provided a great run to end the challenge portion of class. I always jump at the chance to support or highlight awesome charities, so when I came across OneRepublic's new single, "I Lived" as a remix on the [RED] section of iTunes. The [RED] organization is an amazing movement trying to create an AIDS-free generation. I LOVE OneRepublic and this is another great song by them. And this remix includes a sample of the old Coca-Cola jingle, "I'd Like To Teach The World To Sing". Amazing! And speaking of charities, my husband, Rich, are very active in the Family Equality Council, an organization that works for equal rights for families that are made up of parents that are part of the LGBT community. So when the awesome Kelly Clarkson included a gay couple in her most recent video for her new single, "Heartbeat Song", I just had to include it. I mean, I love the song, and I love Kelly, but the way that she included more than just your historically "typical" couples in a video about relationships without much sensationalism, I think, is truly amazing. Awesome! Finally, I felt it was just a small tribute to a huge talent that left this world way too early, but today is the third anniversary of the death of Whitney Houston. She provided us with so many incredible songs that I so often played in my Rides. So, I wanted to once again play a megamix of some of her greatest hits that provided the score to a 20-turn hill! Thank you Whitney! Thanks to everyone who gave their all on such a challenging 20-turn hill and throughout class!

Whew! See? It is not that easy putting together a cohesive, smooth-transitioning, high-energy, powerful, intense, challenging and fun track list. A lot can go into it. I hope this helps you see a little more of the passion that can exist by an instructor that cares about their responsibility as an instructor and motivator. I hope to see you in class soon so that we can share an amazing experience together!

In good health!

tommy

Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Monday, February 9, 2015

1. Sugar (remix) - Maroon 5
2. Black Widow - Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora
3. Sexercize - Kylie Minogue
4. Call On Me - Eric Prydz
5. 7/11 (remix) - Beyonce'
6. I Kissed A Girl (remix) - Katy Perry
7. F For You - Disclosure featuring Mary J. Blige
8. Lose Control - Missy Elliott
9. Geronimo (remix) - Sheppard
10. What Doesn't Kill You (Stronger)(remix) - Kelly Clarkson
11. Thinking Out Loud - Ed Sheeran
12. Prayer In C - Lilli Wood & The Prick and Robin Schulz
13. Love Me Harder - Ariana Grande featuring The Weeknd

Saturday, February 07, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Saturday, February 7, 2015

Thursday, February 05, 2015

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, February 5, 2015

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Monday, February 02, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Monday, February 2, 2015

1. This Is How We Do (remix) - Katy Perry
2. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
3. Welcome To New York (remix) - Taylor Swift
4. Pop Danthology 2014 (mashup of 66 songs!) - DJ Daniel Kim featuring Ariana Grande, Iggy Azalea, Jennifer Lopez, Katy Perry, Maroon 5, Nicki Minaj, etc.
5. Jealous (remix) - Nick Jonas
6. 7/11 - Beyonce'
7. Workout (mashup) - DJ Robin Skouteris featuring Jennifer Lopez, Iggy Azalea, Sir Mix-a-lot, MC Hammer, Missy Elliott, Britney Spears, Eminem, C+C Music Factory, etc.
8. Beautiful (remix) - Kylie Minogue featuring Enrique Iglesias
9. Sledgehammer (remix) - Fifth Harmony
10. Waves - Mr. Probs
11. Halo - Beyonce'
12. A Thousand Years - Christina Perry

Saturday, January 31, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Saturday, January 31, 2015

1. Of The Night (remix) - Bastille
2. Never Been In Love - Cobra Starship featuring Icona Pop
3. Love Runs Out - OneRepublic
4. Blank Space (remix) - Taylor Swift
5. September - Earth, Wind & Fire
6. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
7. Habits (remix) - Tove Lo
8. Rich Girl - Gwen Stefani
9. No Mediocre (remix) - T.I. featuring Iggy Azalea
10. Turn The Beat Around - Gloria Estefan
11. Last Days Of Disco - Robbie Williams
12. I Look To You - Whitney Houston

Today is the last day of the first month of the new year. Wow. A month has already gone by. So fast. 31 days. In the bigger picture, a year is only 12 months and one of those months is already done. 11 more to go. Time does fly by. Hopefully when you are having fun! Did you make any New Year Resolutions? Have you kept them so far? How about making monthly resolutions? Daily resolutions are not bad either. Tomorrow is a new month. February 1st. So basically what I'm really trying to get at is this: Are you staying committed to being the best you that you can be as we approach the first day of the second month of the new year? Have you committed to your workouts? Are you having fun? Have you tried something new? Have you included the Ride with Tommy! at Crunch Fitness - Sunset in your workout routine? I hope to provide you with the opportunity to do all of that! I am teaching the new Threshold Ride on Mondays at 9:30am and Saturdays at 9:45am. This is a Ride where YOU set your own Threshold at the beginning of class, and then measure your workout as a percentage of your own Threshold that YOU set! Throughout the Ride, you can watch "gauges" on the new, HUGE flat screen TVs at the front of the class. You can see your own Threshold percentage zone in which you are working displayed on colored gauges. Each color represents a percentage zone of your Threshold. You can see the power that you are exerting measured by these percentages as well as by watts and distance. And for you competitive types, you can see rankings of the entire class! And of course, you can see summary results at the end of class. So this is the newest class offering at Crunch. Why don't you continue to commit to your New Year Resolutions - or start new ones! - by including any of the Ride with Tommy! classes. Don't let time pass you by! Try something new! Have fun! Create that change that you want or have always wanted! There is no better time than the present! There is no better way to commit to your intense workouts than by having some fun while doing it! There is no better way to reach your goals than by taking the Ride with Tommy! Hope to see you soon! Until then, in good health! tommy

Thursday, January 29, 2015

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, January 29, 2015

1. Buttons (remix) - Pussycat Dolls
2. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
3. Toxic - Britney Spears
4. Free Your Mind - En Vogue
5. Heartbeat Song - Kelly Clarkson
6. Don't - Ed Sheeran
7. Let Me Be The One - Expose
8. Take Me To Church (remix) - Hozier
9. Ghost (remix) - Ella Henderson
10. The Heart Wants What It Wants (remix) - Selena Gomez
11. Time Or Our Lives - Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo
12. FourFiveSeconds - Rihanna featuring Kanye West & Paul McCartney
13. I'll Never Get Over You Getting Over Me - Expose
14. Save The Best For Last - Vanessa Williams

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Saturday, January 24, 2015

Track List - #totalrequestride, Friday, January 23, 2015

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, January 22, 2015

1. Crazy In Love - Beyonce' featuring Jay-Z
2. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
3. I Just Wanna Dance - Alison Jiear (from "Jerry Springer: The Opera")(Manny Patel Equality Mix 2013)
4. Top Of The Pops 2014 (Days And Nights) - Mashup-Germany featuring 70 of the top artists and hits from 2014
5. Justified And Ancient - KLF featuring Tammy Wynette
6. Genie (Tell Me Your Wish) - Girls' Generation (English remix by Ideology, vocals by Babiixj)
7. The Hanging Tree (remix) - James Newton Howard featuring Jennifer Lawrence
8. I Like You (remix) - Tony Moran featuring Debby Holiday
9. Geronimo - Sheppard
10. No Good In Goodbye - The Script
11. If Not Me - Craig Morgan
12. Night Changes - One Direction

Where to start with this track list? It started last week as I encouraged (begged!) all of the LA Riders in the #totalrequestride to tweet their music/video requests to @crunchgym. I also asked the Crunch coordinator in New York if an instructor could also make a request. Thankfully, LA Rider Courtney also requested what I consider one of my all time favorite high-energy, fast-paced songs to run to. And it is one of the greatest video mashups I have ever seen. It is the song, "I Just Wanna Dance" by Alison Jiears from "Jerry Springer: The Opera", which opened in 2003 in London. I kid you not. There is such a thing! It won 4 Olivier awards (the equivalent to our Tony Awards for the best of Broadway)! In the musical, the song is about a full-figured woman that dreams of being a pole dancer. She is unhappy with her life, is abused by her husband, and dreams of a better life. The song was soon adopted by the gay community and was played all over the world in dance clubs and Pride festivals. I think it touched so many with its representation of just wanting to have fun after a long period of struggle, which can so readily represent the years that the gay community suffered through the effects of AIDS and all of its political and emotional havoc wreaked upon the community.

"I'm tired of laughing and I'm tired of crying
I'm tired of failing and I'm tired of all this trying
I wanna do some living
Cause I've done enough dying
I just wanna dance
I just wanna f#*&ing dance"

It's been a while now that research has been making so much progress in treating and hopefully eventually doing away with AIDS completely, but for everyone that was touched by the disease, directly or indirectly (and we all have been touched by it indirectly!), a time to just dance was much needed and celebrated! This song encapsulates that feeling. And the video is made up of snippets of all kinds of dancing from movies and tv shows throughout many years. So this has been my very long way of saying one of my favorite songs and videos is in this weeks track list!

But this is not the only special part of this track list. It includes another mashup of the top hits of the year, this one by Mashup-Germany. We all know how I love my good mashups! Especially year-end mashups!

"Justified And Ancient" was a favorite of mine when it came out in 1991. It became an international hit and was #1 in over 18 countries. It features the vocals of country music icon, Tammy Wynette. One of my regular Riders, Del (who has been riding with me for just about all of my 16 years as an instructor!), absolutely LOVES Tammy Wynette.

And we both LOVE Debby Holiday, who provides us with her latest dance hit, "I Like You". She is one of the most beautiful people I know (inside and out!), with one of the most amazing voices as well as an unbelievable heart and soul which powers out of each song she sings. I hear a little Tina Turner in her voice. She should truly be a HUGE megastar in the world of music. I believe she will soon be!

Vince requested "Genie (Tell Me Your Wish)". It was a little out of the mainstream for my class, but after much searching and research, I found an English version of it which I am so excited to include!

I saw "American Sniper" last weekend. I was moved by how intense it was. And I was also moved by the controversy surrounding it. It is the true story of an American Navy Seal, Chris Kyle, one of the most accurate marksmen in US military history. Regardless of one's beliefs on this subject, and the very obvious horrors of war, I was, as always, so very proud of our Armed Forces, so very sad for the nightmares of war that they have to go through to defend this great nation of ours, and so very sad to learn the story of his murder by a fellow veteran suffering from PTSD. I saw that country singer Craig Morgan was angered by some comments made by some in the entertainment industry regarding "American Sniper" and Chris Kyle. Craig sings one of my favorite country songs, "That's What I Like About Sunday". He is also a veteran. Thank you, Craig, for your service, for standing up for what you believe and for fighting for the freedom to say what we do. And of course, for your talent. I included his tribute to veterans, "If Not Me", as one of the cool downs.

My 6-year-old twins, Austin and Aiden also had a hand in helping me select my track list (as they sometimes do believe it or not!). The recently attended sports camp during the winter break. They learn many songs while at camp as many high-energy songs are played throughout the day. "Uptown Funk" is one. Austin has asked me if "funk" is a bad word. Close, but no. I told him it is a word that is often used in and to describe music. Usually great music! Which I think this song is! And they both sing "Geronimo" often. Austin even performed to it in one of the closing day performances! I think it is a great way to run it out at the end of class!

And I have recently become obsessed with "No Good In Goodbye" by The Script. I love the music, and I love the lyrics. It leads off my cool down songs this week.

So after staying up until 4:00 in the morning to prepare for this week's #totalrequestride, which in addition to "I Just Wanna Dance" also includes the requested "Crazy In Love", by Beyonce' and Jay-Z, and the aforementioned "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. I was so excited to play all of this great music in class only to wake up to find that all Wednesday morning classes at Crunch Fitness - Sunset were canceled as the stereo completely broke down on Tuesday night. Arrrrgh!!!!

This week's #totalrequestride has been rescheduled and will be held tomorrow morning, Friday, January 23rd at 9:30am. So I hope you can make it to share in this experience, to workout, to hear this music and to see these videos.

I also hope you enjoyed this little "behind the scenes" of what can go into making a track list for one of my classes. I hope you enjoy them. I know I do! Until then,

In good health!

tommy

Saturday, January 17, 2015

Track List - Threshold Ride, Saturday, January 17, 2015

1. Partition (remix) - Beyonce'
2. Jealous (remix) - Chromeo
3. Telephone (remix) - Lady Gaga featuring Beyonce'
4. Chandelier (remix) - Sia
5. Me And My Girlfriend - Jay-Z featuring Beyonce'
6. Turn Down For What - DJ Snake & Lil Jon
7. Larger Than Life - Backstreet Boys
8. Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) - Beyonce'
9. Brave (DJs Blackow & Figares remix) - Sara Bareilles
10. Ring The Alarm (remix) - Beyonce'
11. Halo - Beyonce'
12. Chasing Cars That Way (mashup) - DJs Dan Mei & Marc Johnce featuring Snow Patrol & The Backstreet Boys
13. At Last - Beyonce'

Well, we did it! We had our first Threshold Ride on the weekend! This Saturday morning, January 17th at 9:45am, we, as a group, set our individual thresholds, and then rode the rest of class measuring our workouts based on our own personal thresholds. We saw how hard we worked using colors and percentages and watts (output power) and mileage! There is so much to learn about our bodies and how we workout and how our bodies react to the workouts we present to them. And how fun and satisfying is it to be able to visually monitor our progress, make adjustments and truly FEEL our bodies working. It can take something as simple as projecting a gauge at the front of the room that changes colors and that allows riders to see just how hard we are working based on a threshold that we, ourselves, set! Not just what the instructor says. Not just how hard we are "supposed" to be working based on what the instructor says we should be feeling. But actually SEEING how hard we are working! How much of a difference we are making! How much closer we are to realizing our goals! This is the new Threshold Ride. Every Saturday morning at 9:45am at Crunch Fitness - Sunset. We are also offering this amazing class on Monday mornings at 9:30am and on Monday evenings at 6:30pm taught by the amazing and beautiful Amy! Come check it out! Come have fun! Come learn! Come workout hard! Now on Saturday mornings! Hope to see you soon! In good health, tommy

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, January 15, 2014

1. Chandelier (remix) - Sia
2. All About That Bass - Meghan Trainor
3. Bang Bang - Jessie J featuring Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
4. Dare You (remix) - Hardwell featuring Matthew Koma
5. Fade Into Darkness (remix) - Avicii
6. No Scrubs (remix) - TLC
7. Shake It Off - Taylor Swift
8. Shake Your Groove Thing - Peaches and Herb
9. Happy Days Are Here Again/Get Happy - Billy Porter & Cyndi Lauper
10. Throb - Janet Jackson
11. You And I - Lady Gaga
12. Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová
13. When You Believe - Mariah Carey & Whitney Houston

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, January 14, 2015

1. One More Time - Britney Spears
2. Anaconda - Nicki Minaj
3. Blank Space - Taylor Swift
4. Bang Bang (remix) - Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
5. Ugly Heart (remix) - G.R.L.
6. Toxic - Britney Spears
7. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) - U2
8. Call Me A Hole (mashup) - DJ PomDeter featuring Carly Rae Jepsen & Nine Inch Nails
9. Every Heartbeat Personal Jesus (mashup) - LPVMusic Promotions featuring Amy Grant & Depeche Mode
10. Fireball - Pitbull featuring John Ryan
11. Jesus Walks x Sound Of Silence (mashup) - DJ Novokane featuring Kanye West, Simon & Garfunkel
12. Take A Bow With Me (mashup) - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Rihanna & Sam Smith
13. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Greenday

Did you know that Crunch Fitness - Sunset has two huge, big screen TVs in the spin room? They will be used for the new Threshold Rides on Mondays and Saturdays. They will also be used to play videos in our updated, refreshed and relaunched #totalrequestride classes on Wednesdays at 9:30am! 3 videos will be played each week to increase the fun, increase the excitement and hopefully increase the motivation as we stay as always committed to the intensity of the Rides that you have come to expect from Crunch and the Ride with Tommy! Corporate-wide, Crunch has been playing these videos in the #totalrequestride classes since last summer. Just now, as we have relaunched this class here on Sunset with the implementation of the big screens in the new year, we can now do the same! But historically, riders from Crunch Fitness - Sunset have not been super eager or active in requesting their favorite videos or songs. I want to start the new year with a challenge to our Los Angeles riders to request your favorite fun, high-energy videos that motivate and inspire you to take your workout to the next level! And isn't that a great thing to do as we kick off the new year 2015 as well as our new year resolutions and/or recommitments to our mental and physical health and well-being? So let's do this! Let's all show what great taste in Ride music and music in general that we Sunset riders have! And let's commit to riding to those high-energy and motivating videos next week, Wednesday, January 21, 2015, at 9:30am! And don't forget you could win iTunes gift cards just for making these requests! So what have you got to lose? Maybe a few calories? Maybe a few pounds? Win-Win! So use your twitter accounts or start up a new twitter account, and tweet your requests to @crunchgym followed by the hashtag #totalrequestride (and copy or retweet it to me at @ridewithtommy)! This is gonna be great! In good health, tommy

Thursday, January 08, 2015

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, January 8, 2015

1. Of The Night (remix) - Bastille
2. Never Been In Love - Cobra Starship featuring Icona Pop
3. Love Runs Out - OneRepublic
4. Blank Space (remix) - Taylor Swift
5. September - Earth, Wind & Fire
6. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
7. Habits (remix) - Tove Lo
8. No Mediocre (remix) - T.I. featuring Iggy Azalea
9. Turn The Beat Around - Gloria Estefan
10. Last Days Of Disco - Robbie Williams
11. I Look To You - Whitney Houston

2015. Sexy. Spin. Make it happen. I hear members ask all the time, "How can you feel sexy at 7:00 in the morning?!?!" I always respond, "You'd be surprised at how sexy you can look and feel when you are committed to making a positive change or difference in your mental and physical health and well-being!" That's right, though many of us may be fighting to wake up at 7:00am, I also always point out that all one really has to do is get up and get there. I, as the instructor, along with the music and the energy created by a group fitness class working toward a common goal, will take care of the rest. I can't tell you how many times in the past where I have told myself that I was going to take a spin class but only commit to exerting about 50-75% of my full effort. I may have been really tired or not feeling completely well. I may have just worked out with weights extra hard. Whatever the reason or justification, I almost always go into the class and then end up working much harder than I had planned or expected. The power of a good instructor, that instructor's music choices and that instructor's instruction and encouragement along with the amazing energy created by all the other Riders in the class usually powers me to get an intense and challenging Ride that pushes, motivates and challenges me more than I thought I was going to! That's right. You are not alone in a spin class. There are many others there attempting to accomplish something just like you. Though everyone's goals may and probably are very different, the commitment and focus of a spin class will provide the energy that you may not always think you can muster. That commitment and focus by everyone in the class will help create a positive energy that is extremely obvious and beneficial not only in class but as you go about your life all day long! That's right. What you do in a 45-minute spin class can change your entire day for the better. And if you can take part in such an experience, and look and feel sexy while doing, then wouldn't you? Shouldn't you? I hope so! I'll see you in the Ride with Tommy soon! In good health! tommy

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, January 7, 2015

1. Dark Horse - Katy Perry featuring Juicy J
2. 7/11 - Beyonce (video)
3. Happy - Pharrell Williams
4. Clocks (remix) - Coldplay
5. Work B!#@h - Britney Spears
6. Love Me Harder - Ariana Grande featuring The Weeknd (video)
7. Give Me Everything - Pitbull featuring Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer (video)
8. California (There Is No End To Love) - U2
9. Mashup 2014 (Let Go) - AnDyWuMusicland
10. All You Need Is Love - Willy Chirino featuring Flo Rida & Black Dada
11. The Scientist More Than Words (mashup) - DJ Mighty Mike featuring Coldplay & Extreme
12. Love Story vs. Viva La Vida (acoustic mashup) - Taylor Swift vs. Coldplay

The first full week of 2015 continues with the new/revised/updated #totalrequestride. Last year, we played requested songs in class. Now, this year, with the addition of the new huge, flat screen tv's at the front of class, we are able to play requested videos! So to keep things exciting as we always do here at Crunch Fitness - Sunset, we are gonna get our Ride on with your favorite and requested videos as well as bright and flashing lights along with the form, pace and resistance that you have come to expect from an intense and fun Ride with Tommy! Boredom is never a word that we want to hear come forth from a member's lips! And with hopefully so many of us making our new year resolutions, what better way to increase the excitement to committing to improving your mental and physical health and well-being than to jump into all the excitement that we are creating here at Crunch? Get an intense workout! Make a positive difference or change! Have fun! Ride with Tommy! See you at Crunch Fitness - Sunset! In good health! tommy

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Track List - Saturday, January 3, 2015

1. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - U2
2. We Will Rock You (Fatboy Slim remix) - Queen
3. Black Widow - Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora
4. Where The Streets Have No Name - U2
5. Tainted Love - Softcell
6. Mash 'n' Stuff - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Deadmau5 vs. Weekender, Tag Team, David Bowie & Duran Duran
7. Never Been In Love Cobra Starship featuring Icona Pop
8. Ugly Heart - G.R.L.
9. Bad Girls (remix) - Donna Summer
10. Centuries - Fall Out Boy
11. All That Matters (The Beautiful Life) - Ke$ha
12. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Greenday
13. Take A Bow With Me (mashup) - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Rihanna & Sam Smith
14. Amnesia - 5 Seconds Of Summer

Well, there were some new faces in class this morning. It was the first Saturday class of the new year. I spoke about resolutions. How resolutions are not a bad thing. No one should minimize anyone's attempt at making new year's resolutions. Resolutions are one's attempts at improving their life in some way. Yes, it is disappointing if those resolutions are not kept or reached and are forgotten after only the first week or month or two of the year. However, any attempt at making one's life better or attempting to improve one's mental and physical health and well-being should not be discounted. It should be praised, admired, supported and encouraged. So don't listen to the naysayers! Don't pay any attention to the "liars and the dirty dirty cheats of the world", to quote the trendsetting, thought-provoking and omnipresent Taylor Swift. As I talk more and more in class about creating a positive energy, an environment in which riders can push themselves and strive for personal improvement and positive change, I want to challenge everyone in the new year to focus on positivity. I believe that when you focus on positivity, doing what you can to make an experience as positive as possible for yourself, the people around you will be influenced. The people around you will be motivated to do the same, even in in a small or incremental way. Many of us don't realize the power that we all have to change others. I'm not talking about big, showy, powerful, ostentatious, glitzy, over-the-top demonstrations of helping the needy or down-and-out. We all have the power to effect someone else's life for the better. By smiling at the person that you pass on the sidewalk. By saying "Hello!" to the person that you see at a reception desk or checkout stand. By waving to someone in the car next to you. By turning that resistance knob to the right just a little bit more. By running just a little bit faster a little longer with even just a little more resistance. By doing as much as you can to make your own life as positive as you can and in so doing, setting an example and sharing some of the positive energy that you have created for yourself with others! It really is as simple as that! So here in lies a challenge within a resolution. Let's all try to make a positive difference in our own lives. Let's make resolutions to make our lives better. Let's work hard to accomplish our goals. Let's see if we can help someone else's life be a little bit better just by trying to live better for ourselves. Can that be so hard?

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, December 31, 2014

1. Partition (remix) - Beyonce'
2. Jealous (remix) - Chromeo
3. Telephone (remix) - Lady Gaga featuring Beyonce'
4. Chandelier (remix) - Sia
5. Me And My Girlfriend - Jay-Z featuring Beyonce'
6. Turn Down For What - DJ Snake & Lil Jon
7. Larger Than Life - Backstreet Boys
8. Dirty Pop - Nsync
9. A Sky Full Of Stars (remix) - Coldplay
10. Wrong Message (mashup) - DJ Mixmstrstel featuring The Police, Nico & Vinz
11. Stay, Adam (mashup) - DJ Mixmstrstel featuring Rihanna & Blink-182
12. I Have Nothing (piano instrumental) - Tariq Wingrove

Well, this morning's #totalrequestride was the final Ride with Tommy! of the year! And it didn't go off without any hitches. As those of you that were there in attendance know, I was locked out of the computer so that I couldn't play the requested videos. And I had doubled up on videos since I missed last week's class. And I had also planned to play another video mashup of the year's top hits, but I couldn't do that either. So, all the fun and exciting stuff I had planned for class this morning, well, let's just say that I wasn't able to do it and leave it at that. I was disappointed. I always have it backed up on a cd (prehistoric I know!), but I didn't this ONE time! Ugh! Oh well, I pulled together some previously played music, including some of the requested songs for today's class, and I think we all ended up having an amazing Ride! So a great big 'THANK YOU!" to everyone who was there and who worked so hard to make 2014's final Ride with Tommy! a great one!

There will be no 7:00am Sexy Spin tomorrow morning, Thursday, January 1st. Be sure to check the front desk for the official class schedule and gym hours. I will be back in the instructor saddle on Friday morning at 9:30am! I hope to see you there!

I want to thank everyone who rode with me in the year 2014. As I often say, I wouldn't be there without you. So I thank you and want you to know that I do not take you for granted! I am grateful for the opportunity to teach spinning at Crunch on Sunset. I am able to do something I love that helps people and at one of the best and funnest (yes, I said funnest!) gyms anywhere! And I've taught at a lot of gyms so I really mean that when I say it!

I wish the best to all of you in 2015! Health, happiness, love, prosperity, friendships, great workouts, new goals, positive changes, less time in traffic, more time surrounded by good people, and all the best that life can possibly offer! And I hope that the Ride with Tommy! will be part of that. I will be honored to Ride with you, create Rides and challenges with you, and reach goals and see results with you.

I wish each of you a happy and safe New Year celebration. All of us can always celebrate something. So find that positive. Set the positive. Begin to see it. You deserve it!

In good health,

tommy

Sunday, December 21, 2014

Happy Holiday Subs for the Ride with Tommy! Dec. 22-29, 2014

Below, please find the list of amazing instructors that will be covering my classes for me while I am away celebrating Christmas with family. Thanks to you all for your support of the Ride with Tommy! and for your support of the wonderful subs while I'm out. See you on Tuesday morning, December 30th at 7:00am! Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukkah!

Monday, Dec. 22, 9:30am - Christina Fulton
Tuesday, Dec. 23, 7:00am - Beth Phillips
Wednesday, Dec. 24, 9:30am - Christina Fulton
Thursday, Dec. 25, 7:00am - NO RIDE!
Friday, Dec. 26, 9:30am - Kyler Madeira
Saturday, Dec. 27, 9:45am - Christina Fulton
Monday, Dec. 29, 9:30am - Kyler Madeira

Happy holidays everyone!

In good health,

tommy

Track List - Saturday, December 20, 2014

Saturday, December 20, 2014

Track List - Extra Special "Give The Shirt Off Your Back" Sexy Spin - Thursday, December 18, 2014

1. Wash All Over Me (remix) - Avicii featuring Madonna
2. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
3. Welcome To New York (remix) - Taylor Swift
4. Pop Danthology 2014 (mashup of 66 songs!) - DJ Daniel Kim featuring Ariana Grande, Iggy Azalea, Jennifer Lopez, Katy Perry, Maroon 5, Nicki Minaj, etc.
5. Jealous (remix) - Nick Jonas
6. 7/11 - Beyonce'
7. Workout (mashup) - DJ Robin Skouteris featuring Jennifer Lopez, Iggy Azalea, Sir Mix-a-lot, MC Hammer, Missy Elliott, Britney Spears, Eminem, C+C Music Factory, etc.
8. Beautiful (remix) - Kylie Minogue featuring Enrique Iglesias
9. Sledgehammer (remix) - Fifth Harmony
10. Waves - Mr. Probs
11. Halo - Beyonce'
12. A Thousand Years - Christina Perry

Well, we did it! Again! This year was another one for the books! The now annual and famous (or infamous) Extra Special "Give The Shirt Off Your Back" Sexy Spin is now behind us. And what a great one it was! Once again, we had a (very, very!) Sexy Santa help collect clothes for our clothing drive to benefit the LA LGBT Center's Homeless Youth Program. And we even had a second Sexy Santa come help out with awarding the prizes at the end of class! There are so many people to thank! First, thanks to everyone who attended and took part in such an exciting and fun workout (yes, workout! we don't sacrifice our workout...even on a fun-filled day like today!) Thanks to Kyle Pierce for being the Sexy Santa #1! Kyle is so very obviously sexy that I don't need to tell you how excited I was that he agreed to help out this year. And it wasn't easy. He is a first year law student and in the middle of final exams! Wow! Thank you so much, Kyle! And to Sexy Santa #2, who just so happens to be the Sexy Santa for Kitson's current holiday campaign for 2014! How cool is that? Thanks, Matt! Thanks so much to the businesses that donated items for the gift bags and drawings at the end of class! Sexy Nutrition, right across the street from Crunch on Laurel Avenue, provided an amazing gym bag with 4 t-shirts and some protein! (And isn't it just a natural to team up with Sexy Nutrition for one of our special Sexy Spins?!) Burke Williams donated a 3-day Spa Service pass for each gift bag! Veggie Grill donated a free entree for each gift bag! BodyFactory donated 3 free tanning sessions! And Universal Body, owned by Crunch member, Scott Sykes, and soon moving to its newest location right here at 8000 Sunset, downstairs from Crunch! A great new store featuring men's and women's clothing as well as gifts and nutrional supplements! And thanks to Davey Wavey, Youtube star and sensation for being a special guest! And thanks, of course, to everyone who brought clothes for the clothing drive. You all rock! You all are amazing! Thanks to all of you for your support of this special class and for the Ride with Tommy! all year 'round! Be sure to check out the Ride with Tommy! Facebook page for pictures!

I'll be out next week celebrating the holidays with my family in Texas, but check back here for a list of all my wonderful subs!

In good health,

tommy

Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Special Intro Teaser Class: The New "Threshold Ride", The New #totalrequestride, and The New "Ride Yogi Ride"

This morning was a special class indeed. The always amazing and high energy and beautiful Amy Rollman co-instructed the intro or "teaser" class that was made up of 20 minutes of the new "Threshold Ride", 20 minutes of the updated #totalrequestride, and then 20 minutes of yoga. What a lot of intense, different, challenging and fun things to do in one hour!

The new Threshold Ride will kind of take the place of the old Red Line Ride. It will not be heart rate based, but it will have a lot of information for the rider to soak up and learn so much about how the body works as you workout! We will be using the computers that are already on the new bikes along with the new huge 70" flat tv screens recently placed in the spinning room. In a nutshell, after a brief warmup, you will work as hard as you can for 3 minutes to set your threshold. Then, the rest of the class will be based on percentages of that threshold. You'll be able to watch and learn as you Ride, and then see some summary results that will enlighten you even more!

The new/updated #totalrequestride will be pretty much the same except that we will be including videos shown on the new huge 70" flat tv screens. Each week, 3 videos will be selected from requests all across the country and played in the #totalrequestride. Song or video requests should be tweeted to @crunchgym followed by the hashtag #totalrequestride. Each tweeted request enters the member into that week's drawing for an iTunes gift card!

Finally, another new class called Ride Yogi Ride will be introduced in the new year. Amy will be teaching this one and she is amazing! It will be a 45-minute Ride immediately followed by a yoga class in the group fitness room right next door to the spin room. How awesome is that?!

So thanks so much to Amy and everyone who attended this morning's teaser class. There were a few technical hiccups (and there will probably be a few more!), but I want to thank you all for supporting the Ride with Tommy! and Crunch Fitness - Sunset!

We will be offering another teaser class this Friday at 9:30am, too, so I hope to see you there!

In good health,

tommy

Monday, December 15, 2014

Track List - Saturday, December 13, 2014

1. The Walker (remix) - Fitz And The Tantrums
2. On Top Of The World - Imagine Dragons
3. Love Runs Out - OneRepublic
4. Summer (remix) - Calvin Harris
5. What A Feeling (remix) - Alex Gaudino featuring Kelly Rowland
6. Not A Bad Thing - Justin Timberlake
7. Mmm Yeah - Austin Mahone featuring Pitbull
8. Party Ain't Over - Pitbull featuring Usher & Afrojack
9. Chandelier (remix) - Sia
10. When Love Takes Over (remix) - David Guetta featuring Kelly Rowland
11. Life Of The Party - Shawn Mendes
12. Human - Christina Perri

This upcoming week will be a very big week for the Ride with Tommy! and indoor cycling at Crunch Fitness - Sunset!

Monday, December 15th, 9:30am will be the very LAST Red Line Ride offered at Crunch Fitness - Sunset. When we started this program almost 6 years ago, we were the first in the world to offer this type of class. Well, today, we will be using this technology for the last time. It has been a great program. I have learned so much. I have seen so many riders learn so much about how their heart works as they workout. It has been fun, educational and so very rewarding. But technology changes. And with the new bikes here at Crunch Fitness - Sunset, we already have new technology in place. We will be replacing the Red Line Ride with a new class called THRESHOLD! This class will be utilizing the computers you see on the new bikes. We will also be using the brand new huge TV screens installed in the classroom. There will be so much more to learn! And it will be so much fun!

And speaking of the new THRESHOLD! Ride, we will be offering a "teaser" class as to what the class will be like on both Wednesday and Friday of this week, December 17th and 19th, at 9:30am. It will be a special 1-hour class for these two days only. The first 20 minutes will consist of an intro to the THRESHOLD! Ride. The next 20 minutes will be made up of the new updated #totalrequestride using videos on the brand new huge TV screens. Finally, if you so choose, we will walk over to the Group Fitness room and have 20 minutes of yoga led by the amazing Amy! This "teaser" class will also serve as an introduction to a new class that Amy will be teaching that will consist of both the Ride and yoga. How cool is that?!?!

On Tuesday, December 17th, I will be taking over Crunch's instagram account! I will be the guest instructor of the day and offer a peek into what life is like as an instructor! Be sure to watch for it!

Finally, on Thursday morning, December 18th, I will be hosting the now annual and infamous EXTRA SPECIAL "GIVE THE SHIRT OFF YOUR BACK" SEXY SPIN! Sexy Santa will be there with his big bag to collect your slightly used clothing for the LA LGBT Center's Homeless Youth Program. And can I just tell you now, that this year's Santa puts the sexy in Sexy Santa! Just sayin'! And as always at the end of my extra special classes, there will be bike numbers drawn and prizes awarded! And don't forget that nobody leaves empty handed! Special prizes! Special guests! Special music! And the same intense Ride will not be sacrificed for the extra fun! And it is all for great causes: the LA LGBT Center's Homeless Youth Program, and the improvement of your own mental and physical health and well-being!

So I hope to see you a lot this week! And it is the last full week of 2014! How did that happen? Where did the year go? Let's celebrate all that we have accomplished so far and continue to commit, push, challenge, strive, drive and achieve in the year ahead!

In good health,

tommy

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, December 11, 2014

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Tuesday, December 09, 2014

I will be subbing the 9:30am class this morning, Tuesday, December 9, 2014

I will be subbing Guy B's 9:30am Ride this morning at Crunch Fitness - Sunset. I hope to see you there!

Track List - Saturday, December 6, 2014

Thursday, December 04, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, December 4, 2014

1. Send Me An Angel (remix) - Slyngshott featuring Bernadette DeSimone
2. Black Widow - Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora
3. L.A. Love (La La)(remix) - Fergie featuring YG
4. Main Chick (remix) - Kid Ink featuring Chris Brown, French Montana, Yo Gotti, Tyga & Lil Bobby
5. All You Need Is Love - Willy Chirino featuring Flo Rida & Black Dada
6. Steal My Girl (remix) - One Direction
7. Replay - Zendaya
8. Trumpets - Jason Derulo
9. Beautiful (remix) - Kylie Minogue & Enrique Iglesias
10. Jealous (remix) - Nick Jonas
11. I Want It That Wave (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Mr. Probz vs. The Backstreet Boys
12. Boulevard Of Happy Dreams (mashup) - DJ Poulpi featuring Green Day & Pharrell
13. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Green Day

Below is the link to yesterday's Sexy Spin track list! And just below that is the track list for this week's #totalreqeustride. There is a lot going on and coming up in the world of indoor cycling here at Crunch Fitness - Sunset and the Ride with Tommy! As most of you all know by now, we have all new bikes! That is awesome, exciting and very cool! There is also a computer on each of the bikes. We haven't used them yet (nor do we know how to use them...yet!), but very soon, as soon as Wednesday, December 17th in fact, we will be offering a "teaser" or intro class to the new technology that is part of the new Ride here at Crunch! The current Red Line Ride will be retiring on Monday, December 15th. Crunch was the first in the world to offer this kind of class. Now, after 6 years, we are undertaking a new way to learn more about how our bodies work when being worked out hard! So make plans now to attend the final Red Line Ride on Monday, December 15th, 9:30am. Then join us for the teaser/intro class to the new technology on Wednesday, December 17th, 9:30am.

Also, on Thursday morning, December 18th, 7:00am, we will be having our now annual and famous Extra Special "Give the Shirt Off Your Back" Sexy Spin! Really, give the shirt off your back! And bring any additional clothing you'd like to donate. Sexy Santa will be there to collect it all in his big bag! And it will all be for a great cause! Clothing will be donated to the LA LGBT Center's Homeless Youth Program. But we won't sacrifice the benefits that you expect from the Ride! There will be just more of everything! And special, too! Special guests! Special prizes! Special music! Having more fun! Doing more good! Join us, won't you?!?!

Wednesday, December 03, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, December 3, 2014

1. Against All Odds (remix) - Kira
2. Rhythm Nation - Janet Jackson
3. Every Heartbeat (remix) - Amy Grant
4. Spice Up Your Life - Spice Girls
5. Bang! Bang! (mashup cover) - Blake McIver
6. Blurry - Puddle Of Mud
7. Good Vibrations - Marky Mark And The Funky Bunch
8. Maps - Maroon 5
9. Break Free (remix) - Ariana Grande featuring Zedd
10. Secrets (remix) - Mary Lambert
11. It Gets Better - Blake McIver
12. Invisible ((RED) edit) - U2

Monday, November 24, 2014

Thanksgiving Week Subs for the Ride with Tommy!

As most of you heard as I announced at the end of my classes last week, I will be in Chicago visiting family for the week of Thanksgiving. But don't worry, as always, I have provided you with amazing instructors to help you stay committed to your Rides, your workouts and all the benefits that you need...especially at this time of year!

Monday, 11/24/14, 9:30am - Matt Ryan Conrad Krupka (this will be a regular Ride, not a Red Line Ride!)
Tuesday, 11/25/14, 7:00am - Kirk Allen
Wednesday, 11/26/14, 9:30am - Guy B.
Thursday, 11/27/14, 7:00am - Thanksgiving - NO CLASS!
Friday, 11/28/14, 9:30am - Kyler Madeira (this will be a regular Ride, not a Red Line Ride)
Saturday, 11/29/14, 9:45am - Matt Ryan Conrad Krupka (he also teaches the 11:00am class so do a double!)

I will be back in the saddle on Monday, 12/1/14 at 9:30am for another Red Line Ride!

Until then, have a great Thanksgiving! We have so much for which to be thankful! Enjoy yourselves! Have fun! Be safe! Stay healthy! Don't beat yourself up too much if you eat too much or don't work out as much as you could or should!

Until next time, in good health!

tommy

Track List - Saturday, November 22, 2014

Thursday, November 20, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, November 20, 2014

1. Of The Night (remix) - Bastille
2. Never Been In Love - Cobra Starship featuring Icona Pop
3. Love Runs Out - OneRepublic
4. Blank Space (remix) - Taylor Swift
5. September - Earth, Wind & Fire
6. Uptown Funk - Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars
7. Habits (remix) - Tove Lo
8. Rich Girl - Gwen Stefani
9. No Mediocre (remix) - T.I. featuring Iggy Azalea
10. Turn The Beat Around - Gloria Estefan
11. Last Days Of Disco - Robbie Williams
12. I Look To You - Whitney Houston

Well, this is the last week before Thanksgiving. The holidays are upon us. We've been working all year so hard at achieving our goals. We've worked so hard to lose a pound or two. Or an inch or two (around the waist). Or a percentage or two (of bodyfat). Now comes the hard part. Can we keep working at reaching our goals or at least maintaining what we have accomplished so far? It is so easy to stop working out and just eat as much as you want of whatever you want. Sure. That's easy. But it seems like forever to get back to the point where you are now after letting down your guard. So take a good look at where you are now. At how much you have accomplished. At how good you feel about yourself, mentally and physically. Now think about how you feel after stuffing your face and your belly with way too much food that is so not good for you. Think about how uncomfortable you feel when you eat way too much. Also think about how disappointed you feel when you don't work out after all these months of establishing a healthy routine or habit. Now think about both of those feelings. Not very positive. So I encourage you to celebrate all that you have accomplished so far. Truly celebrate it. But don't throw it all away over the next 6 weeks. Workout when you can. Eat healthy when you can. Don't beat yourself up for those times that you don't or can't eat healthy or when you miss your workout. Missing a workout or not eating right are two things that are so easy to do. But I encourage you to stay committed and focused on all the good you have done and all the good you can still do during this holiday season. Then you can hit the ground running again after the start of the new year. I will be out of town next week with family for the Thanksgiving holiday. I am so thankful for all that I have. I am thankful for so many things. I am thankful for being able to teach spinning in a great facility with and to great people. I am thankful for and honored by the trust so many put of you place in me. I do not take any of this for granted. I commit to working hard to being the best instructor I can be. And that's not going to change over the holidays. I will post my subs for next week here on my blog and on Facebook by tomorrow, Saturday. When I return, I will be providing you all with more details about the upcoming Extra Special "Give The Shirt Off Your Back" Sexy Spin where we collect clothing for the LA LGBT Center's homeless youth programs with Sexy Santa's help. I look forward to celebrating such an amazing time of year with all of you while we stay as committed as possible to keeping or building upon what we have worked so hard to achieve. Thank you all! In good health, tommy

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Saturday, November 15, 2014

No Ride Classes at Crunch Fitness - Sunset Saturday, November 15, 2014!

There will be no Ride classes at Crunch Fitness - Sunset this Saturday, November 15, 2014. Crunch will be holding a Spinning Certification course. This is a great opportunity for existing Crunch instructors to renew and refresh their certifications to teach, and it is also an excellent chance for Crunch to certify new instructors that may soon be on the schedule and that may very well become your favorite instructor in the not too distant future! I am sorry for any inconvenience this may cause. This provides you with the perfect opportunity to mix your workout up! Do something different! Change it up! Shock your body. Shock your system! And then I'll see you back in class on Monday for the next Red Line Ride at 9:30am! Have a great weekend!

In good health,

tommy

Thursday, November 13, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, November 13, 2014

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, November 12, 2014

1. Heroes (remix) - Alesso featuring Tove Lo
2. Rather Be - Clean Bandits
3. Shower (remix) - Becky G featuring Tyga
4. Adios (remix) - Ricky Martin
5. Good Time Gangnam Style - DJ Dan Mei featuring Psy, Alex Clare, Nicki Minaj, Ram Jam, Owl City & Carly Rae Jepsen
6. Booty - Jennifer Lopez featuring Iggy Azalea
7. Thong Song (remix) - Sisqo featuring Lil' Kim
8. The Monster - Eminem featuring Rihanna
9. Think About You (remix) - Jade Starling
10. 50 Ways To Say Goodbye - Train
11. Voices Of Babylon - The Outfield
12. The Writing's On The Wall - OK Go
13. Who You Are - Jessie J

New bikes! Requests. 50. 500. The rest of the new bikes have arrived and are in place! The spin room at Crunch Fitness - Sunset is now completely filled with new spin bikes! Beautiful, clean, bright, shiny, new, sexy spin bikes! Yes! Very exciting! And today is the first day that all of them are in place. So this morning's #totalrequestride was the perfect place to play members' favorite songs on the industry's new favorite spin bike! the Schwinn AC Performance Carbon Blue. Look it up! Here's a short video showing it off:

And as most of you know by now, I celebrated my 50th birthday last weekend. I mention this again for no other reason than to also mention that I burned my 500th cd for my class track list last week! Yes, I still burn cds! Yes, I will soon transition to an mp3 player. But for now, I'm 50! And I can kick and stretch and (spin and Ride and burn cds and) kick! 'Cause I'm 50 years old! Just thought that was funny. Thanks to everyone in class this morning! See you all again tomorrow morning for Sexy Spin at 7:00am at Crunch Fitness - Sunset! In good health, tommy

Saturday, November 08, 2014

Track List - Saturday, November 8, 2014

1. Weekend - Janet Jackson
2. All I Wanna Do - T. Mills
3. Life In A Northern Town (remix) - Dream Academy vs. Dario G
4. Melt With You - Modern English
5. We Can't Stop (remix) - Miley Cyrus
6. Molly - Cedric Gervais
7. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) - U2
8. Rocket Man (remix) - Elton John
9. Secrets (remix) - Mary Lambert
10. I Melt With You - Modern English
11. Life In A Northern Town - Dream Academy
12. Don't Tell Me We Can't Stop (live mashup) - Madonna & Miley Cyrus

Well, this is a time for reflection. At least for me. See, this weekend, Sunday, November 9th, I turn 50 years old. Yikes! Many people don't like to talk about their age. This is Hollywood! You can't tell anyone how old you actually are! It is more important to let anyone that asks know what age range in which you could play! I've never really been that reluctant to talk about it. Until recently. Maybe it was that discussion with my personal trainer. The one where I mentioned the year that I graduated from high school. And realized that my trainer hadn't even been born yet. Ugh! So thanks to the amazing Zack for helping me learn more about those all important twitch muscles...both slow and fast...and fast 1 and 2! And for teaching me the effectiveness of explosive workouts! Yes, for the first time in my life, I hired a personal trainer. "5 Weeks To 50!" I finally admitted that I couldn't make the kind of changes that I wanted in my body on my own. I could use help. Yes, I have been a fitness instructor for 16 years (I started when I was 15!) But yes, I had become way too comfortable in my workouts. And we/I need to make changes in our workouts to obtain changes in our bodies. In our minds. In our outlooks. In our confidence. In our results. So yes, I tried to make some changes in my body in 5 weeks. By the time I turned 50. I did make some changes, too. Not drastic changes that are extremely obvious to the casual observer. But positive changes that I noticed. That I felt. "I want to see my abs by my 50th birthday!" Yeah, I said that. Who am I kidding? I have never had really defined abs in my whole life! Ha! How would I obtain that definition needed to see my abs in 5 weeks?!?! Now that's funny right there. I don't care who you are! (yes, I'm quoting Larry the cable guy!) So yes I said that. But no, I didn't really mean it. Not really. Or when my amazing and beautiful husband wanted to do something special for my 50th. I didn't jump in wholeheartedly. I mean, don't get me wrong. I love a party. But one that celebrates my reaching the half century mark? Hmmm... I usually celebrate with an extra special spin class. And I still will. In a couple of weeks. I am going to combine my birthday spin with the annual Extra Special Christmas "Give the Shirt Off Your Back" Sexy Spin where I collect clothing for the youth program at the Los Angeles LGBT Center. There will be special music. Special prizes. Special guests. And of course, Sexy Santa. So make plans now to attend! (see what I did there? see how I still managed to promote my class as I am being reflective?) So, like I said, I have never really been one to be shy about my age. I really don't even like too much "touching up" in my headshots. I've always believed that the face that a casting director sees in the picture should be the same face that they should see when I walk through the door! (well, see how far that has gotten me...I mean..."We found your coat."...yeah, that line by Coat Check Guy on "Will & Grace" was the highlight of my television acting career...a highlight for which I am extremely grateful!) But it took a commitment by me to hire that personal trainer. I had to make a commitment to make a change. Funny, I have been talking in my classes for all of 2014 about making change. A positive change. Well, it was time I made that commitment in my own workouts. And I'm glad I did. And now, as I reflect, I realize that I am extremely lucky. I get to do something I love to make a living. Well, maybe not make a full "living." A partial living. Yeah. Like my granddad always said, "It's beer money!" That's what he called his oil income. Meaning he could use that money to buy beer. But he wasn't really a big beer drinker. Neither am I. I mean, if I drank much beer at all, I would be making the kind of changes that would change me right out of my 31-inch waist jeans! So, I do love teaching spin. And if I can make just one person happier in life. By reaching one of their fitness goals. By helping them change their outlook or self image. By encouraging them to have fun while working so hard on the spin bike attempting what so many call "torture". Then I have accomplished something. Something that I take very seriously and absolutely do not take for granted. And I consider myself lucky. I have an amazing and beautiful husband that always puts me first. I have two amazing twin 6-year old boys that keep me young. That keep me on my toes. That keep me guessing. That keep me questioning. That keep me laughing. Yeah, they do that a lot. And I have great family and friends. So, yes, I consider myself lucky. And I am grateful. And I am blessed. And I am happy. Am I doing exactly what I thought I would be doing when I set out to create my life 25 years ago? (again, I was 5!) No. But I'm doing what I love. I'm doing something good. And I'm good at it. So as I end this (long-winded...much like my talk in my classes) reflection, I want to say thank you to everyone in my spin classes. In my life. Today. Yesterday. Tomorrow. Thank you for letting me make a difference in your life. Thank you for making a difference in mine. Let's continue making a positive change as we head into the future! Whatever we do! And as always, in good health! tommy

Friday, November 07, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, November 6, 2014

Tuesday, November 04, 2014

NEW SPIN BIKES AT CRUNCH!

I am very happy to announce that Crunch Fitness - Sunset will definitely and indeed be getting new spin bikes! To take the time to install them properly, there will be no classes on Wednesday, November 5, 2014. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause. Classes will resume bright and early with Sexy Spin on Thursday morning, November 6th at 7:00am on the sexy, shiny new spin bikes! I look forward to seeing you all there! Yay!

Saturday, November 01, 2014

Subs for the Ride with Tommy! Saturday, Nov. 1 through Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014!

I will be out of town this Saturday through Tuesday, November 1st through the 4th. I have the following amazing instructors covering my classes for me:

Saturday, 11/1, 9:45am – Guy B.
Monday, 11/3, 9:30am – Guy B. (regular Ride, not a Red Line Ride)
Tuesday, 11/4, 7:00am – Kirk Allen

There will be no classes on Wednesday, 11/5 as we are receiving and installing all new spin bikes at the Sunset location!

I will be back teaching on Thursday, 11/6 for the 7:00am Sexy Spin.

I hope everyone had an amazing and safe Halloween! Please stay committed to your workouts, and I'll see you Wednesday!

In good health,

tommy

Friday, October 31, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, October 30, 2014

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, October 29, 2014

1. Send Me An Angel (remix) - Slyngshott featuring Bernadette DeSimone
2. Black Widow - Iggy Azalea featuring Rita Ora
3. L.A. Love (La La)(remix) - Fergie featuring YG
4. Main Chick (remix) - Kid Ink featuring Chris Brown, French Montana, Yo Gotti, Tyga & Lil Bobby
5. All You Need Is Love - Willy Chirino featuring Flo Rida & Black Dada
6. Steal My Girl (remix) - One Direction
7. Replay - Zendaya
8. Trumpets - Jason Derulo
9. Beautiful (remix) - Kylie Minogue & Enrique Iglesias
10. Jealous (remix) - Nick Jonas
11. I Want It That Wave (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Mr. Probz vs. The Backstreet Boys
12. Boulevard Of Happy Dreams (mashup) - DJ Poulpi featuring Green Day & Pharrell
13. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Green Day

Change. Way back in January, I began discussing "change" in my classes. For that month, I talked primarily about even the smallest changes you can make within yourself. In your own Ride. Then in February, we talked about making those changes a little bigger, getting out of your internal world and expanding the changes into the world around you. It is then that I first began to really emphasize the importance of taking care of your own business while, therefore, and without really any additional effort at all, helping create a positive environment in the room around you. Helping the people around you get the best Ride that they can by focusing on your own Ride and trying to accomplish as much as you possibly can. It is that focus, that commitment, to the Ride that I have created and provided for you that helps create the change in yourself that you want and for which you work so hard. It is also that focus and commitment that helps the people around you get the best Ride that they possibly can. If a rider sees another truly working to the best of his or her ability in the same class doing the same workout, it can't help but push and challenge that rider to do the same. If a rider sees another rider doing their own thing, not following the provided path and workout, and not committing and getting the most that they can, then that rider is distracted and prevented from achieving all that they can. See what power each rider wields? Many do not ever realize the change that they can create. Many never realize the help that they can provide the riders around them. Many never realize the results that they set out to achieve. So now that it is October, the tenth month of the year, and as the end of the year and the holidays are fast approaching, I think it is extremely helpful to remember the positive change that each of us can create. The focus and commitment of which we are all capable. The power that we hold. Yes, I have talked a great deal about change. With each Ride, I hope you also realize the power that comes along with that desire to create change. The power. The strength. The change. I hope each of you realize it. I hope that each of you achieve it. I hope that each of you reward yourself with it. Come and be a part of the Ride with Tommy! I hope to see you there! In good health, tommy

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Subs for the Ride with Tommy! Thursday, 10/23 - Saturday, 10/25

I will be out of town for the remainder of this week. Here are the amazing instructors who will be covering my classes and in whose extremely capable hands I will leave you!

Thursday, October 23, 7:00am, Sexy Spin - Kyler Madeira
Friday, October 24, 9:30am, Regular Ride - Guy B. (not a Red Line Ride)
Saturday, October 25, 9:45am, Regular Ride - Guy B.

Thanks to all of you for your continued support of the Ride with Tommy! And thanks to these awesome instructors for their help and for sharing their talent and skills!

I will be back in the saddle next Monday for the next Red Line Ride! Until then, in good health!

tommy

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, October 22, 2014

1. Bye Bye Bye (Timbaland remix) - 'Nsync
2. Animals - Maroon 5
3. Out Of The Woods - Taylor Swift
4. Rolling In The Deep - Aretha Franklin
5. Love Train - IDMC Gospel Choir
6. American Dream - MKTO
7. All About That Bass - Meghan Trainor
8. Thriller 2014 (remix) - Michael Jackson
9. Secrets (remix) - Mary Lambert
10. Bang Bang (remix) - Jessie J featuring Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
11. Jealous - Nick Jonas
12. Steal My Girl - One Direction
13. Life Of The Party - Shawn Mendes

New music! Not only was this morning's Ride a #totalrequestride, but it could have also been called a #newmusicride! Sometimes there is a lot of fun and motivating music released at the same time. This week seems to be one of those weeks! It is often fun to be on the cutting edge of new music released. As long as I feel that the music is appropriate to the activity or challenge in class. But new music can also inspire new energy. And as I always say, energy and focus and commitment and fun all work together to give you the results you want and need. I hope you found that in class this morning. I know I did! Thanks for being there! I will be out of town the rest of this week, leaving you all in the very capable hands of Kyler and Guy. I will be back on Monday for the next Red Line Ride. Have a great rest of your week and an amazing weekend! Until Monday, in good health! tommy

Monday, October 20, 2014

Track List - Saturday, October 18, 2014

1. Control - Janet Jackson
2. I Love Summertime Cool Kids (mashup) - DJ Titus Jones featuring Icona Pop, Lana Del Rey, Echosmith & Nonono
3. Superbad - Jesse McCartney
4. Baby Baby (remix) - Amy Grant
5. Be Okay - Oh Honey
6. Boom Clap (mashup) - DJ Mixmstrstel featuring Charli XCX, Gwen Stefani, Paramore, Kurtis Blow, Busta Rhymes, Ashlee Simpson, DJ Jazzy Jeff & L'Trimm
7. Come With Me Now - Kongos
8. Stay With Me (remix) - Sam Smith
9. A Sky Full Of Stars (remix) - Coldplay
10. Wrong Message (mashup) - DJ Mixmstrstel featuring The Police, Nico & Vinz
11. Stay, Adam (mashup) - DJ Mixmstrstel featuring Rihanna & Blink-182
12. That's What Love Is For - Amy Grant
13. I Have Nothing (piano instrumental) - Tariq Wingrove

I finally have internet again! After being without a home computer and internet service for a week, I am finally back online! I apologize for the delay in posting my tracklists. I know that it is not easy to remember which songs you heard and want to find out the title or artist much longer than a few hours after class! But here are Saturday's songs that I put together for what I hope was a challenging and fun class. I think you all did an amazing job and I had a great time leading you on the journey. A journey that hopefully led you to increased results. To a better sense of accomplishment and achievement. A feeling that, "Yeah! I did even more than I thought I was going to! More than I thought I could! I definitely made a difference today!" These are the kind of responses I hope that everyone has after a Ride with Tommy! Instead of thinking, "Well, I felt like I was working hard, but I probably could have done more." I want there to be no feelings of ambiguity. I want there to be a definitive and resounding "YES! I DID IT!" As I often say, I provide the path, the framework. It is ultimately up to you, the rider, to commit fully to the form, pace, resistance and movement. That is all you have to do. The instructor and the format, the music and the energy of the room and the rest of the group should help you take it to another level. So yes, I am the instructor. But everyone in class plays a very important part! Be a part of something special. Be a part of something that makes a positive difference! Ride with Tommy! In good health, tommy

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, October 16, 2014

1. Run This Town In D Minor (mashup) - DJs From Mars featuring Jay-Z, Kanye West, Rihanna & Johann Sebastian Bach
2. Money Grabber - Fitz And The Tantrums
3. Walking On Air (Dave Aude club mix) - Lance Bass & Anice K. featuring Belle Blue
4. Sugar, She Looks So Perfect (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring 5 Seconds Of Summer & Fall Out Boy
5. Wasted (remix) - Tiesto featuring Matthew Koma
6. Jungle (remix) - X Ambassadors & Jamie N Commons featuring Jay-Z
7. Like A G6 - Far East Movement
8. Cool Kids - Echosmith
9. 99 Red Problems (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Nena & Jay-Z
10. Somebody Loves Summer (mashup) - DJ Titus Jones featuring Calvin Harris, Betty Who & Whitney Houston
11. How Will I Know (acoustic ballad cover of Whitny Houston) - Sam Smith
12. Red Light Special - TLC
13. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (cover of The Smiths) - Joseph Arthur

Sexy. It is not just after breakfast anymore! That's right! You can be and feel sexy at 7:00am in the morning! I get told all the time that someone can't feel sexy that early. That Sexy Spin is too early. Well, evidenced by the many hot, sweaty, sexy and shirtless people that are in Sexy Spin every Thursday morning and have been there at least at some point in the past 6 years that we have been doing it, I totally beg to differ! Thanks to all the sexy people that have joined me at 7:00am on Thursday mornings at Crunch Fitness on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. It is one of my favorite classes to teach. As I have often said in the past, Sexy Spin is the same intense Ride that you have come to expect. It's just a little sillier...sweatier...shirtless...and a whole lot more sexy! I have so much fun creating the track lists for Sexy Spin. I try to be subtle...okay, sometimes maybe not sooo subtle...but I try to provide a little fun for those riders that are truly focused on the ride...the workout. It may be just a lyric. It may be the title of the song. It may be something I say, thrown in the middle of all the speak about form, pace and resistance. Yes, it can be obvious when there is a toned, muscular body glistening under the flashing, dark lights. Or it can even be a new-found sense of strength or accomplishment while performing a specific challenge. Or it can be the sense of confidence and achievement that you are doing something that you know is good for your body...and also your mind. So yes, Sexy Spin is great for the body. But it is also great for the mind. Provide yourself with a new outlook on you! Think more of yourself. Think of all that you can do that is so right for your body. Feel it. Enjoy it. Celebrate it. Feel sexy! Ride with me in Sexy Spin. Thursday mornings. 7:00am. Yup. 7:00am! In good health, tommy

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, October 15, 2014

1. Red Lights - Tiesto
2. Fancy - Iggy Azalea featuring Charli XCX
3. Mo Money, Mo Problems - Notorious B.I.G. featuring Diana Ross
4. Problem - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Ariana Grande, Iggy Azalea, Nelly, Christina Aguilera, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Missy Elliott, 'Nsync, TLC, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
5. Mmm Yeah - Austin Mahone featuring Pitbull
6. Relight My Fire - Dan Hartman
7. Bang Bang (remix) - Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
8. Booty - Jennifer Lopez featuring Iggy Azalea
9. Ugly Heart - G.R.L.
10. Fireball - Pitbull featuring John Ryan
11. Jesus Walks x Sound Of Silence (mashup) - DJ Novokane featuring Kanye West, Simon & Garfunkel
12. Take A Bow With Me (mashup) - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Rihanna & Sam Smith
13. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Green Day

#totalrequestride every Wednesday at Crunch Fitness on Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles. Tweet your requests to @crunchgym followed by the hashtag, #totalrequestride. Not only can you hear your favorite songs in class, but you are automatically entered to win an iTunes giftcard! Crunch is always introducing new classes to try to make your commitment to getting a better "you" as fun as possible. #totalrequestride is just that. A great way to meet your fitness goals while having fun doing it! Yes, there is an emphasis on the requested music, but there is still as always an ever greater emphasis on an intense, challenging and safe workout. So get your Ride on! Get your requests in! Get your results asap! Request it. Ride to it! You can do it! So let's just do it! Now! Thanks to everyone that has been a part of the #totalrequestride so far! I look forward to riding to your favorite music next week! Until then, in good health, tommy

Friday, October 10, 2014

Guy B. will be subbing the Ride with Tommy! tomorrow morning, Saturday, October 11, 2014, 9:45am

Thanks so much to the awesome instructor, Guy B., for covering my class tomorrow morning, Saturday, October 11, 2014, at 9:45am. I really appreciate being able to entrust the mental and physical health and well-being of my class into such capable hands! And I truly appreciate all of the riders who consistently take part in my classes and provide such amazing energy, focus, and commitment.

I look forward to riding again with you all on Monday's Red Line Ride at 9:30am!

See you then but until then, in good health!

tommy

Thursday, October 09, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, October 9, 2014

1. Ye Of Thrones (mashup) - DJ Nada One featuring Kanye West & Game Of Thrones Theme
2. This Is How We Do - Katy Perry
3. Ugly Heart (remix) - G.R.L.
4. Bang Bang (remix) - Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
5. Booty - Jennifer Lopez featuring Iggy Azalea
6. Call Me A Hole (mashup) - DJ PomDeter featuring Carly Rae Jepsen & Nine Inch Nails
7. I Can't Stop Drinking About You (remix) - Bebe Rexha
8. Toxic - Britney Spears
9. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) - U2
10. Every Heartbeat Personal Jesus (mashup) - LPVMusic Promotions featuring Amy Grant & Depeche Mode
11. Fireball - Pitbull featuring John Ryan
12. Jesus Walks x Sound Of Silence (mashup) - DJ Novokane featuring Kanye West, Simon & Garfunkel
13. Take A Bow With Me (mashup) - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Rihanna & Sam Smith
14. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Greenday

This morning's Sexy Spin was so sexy and fun and challenging and intense and sweaty and fun! Where else are you gonna hear Carly Rae Jepsen and Nine Inch Nails together? Or Amy Grant and Depeche Mode? Or Simon & Garfunkel and Kanye West? Mixing it up. Working hard. Having fun. Ride with Tommy! Thanks for being there and being a part!

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, October 8, 2014

1. Ye Of Thrones (mashup) - DJ Nada One featuring Kanye West & Game Of Thrones Theme
2. This Is How We Do - Katy Perry
3. Ugly Heart (remix) - G.R.L.
4. Bang Bang (remix) - Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
5. Booty - Jennifer Lopez featuring Iggy Azalea
6. Call Me A Hole (mashup) - DJ PomDeter featuring Carly Rae Jepsen & Nine Inch Nails
7. I Can't Stop Drinking About You (remix) - Bebe Rexha
8. Toxic - Britney Spears
9. The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) - U2
10. Every Heartbeat Personal Jesus (mashup) - LPVMusic Promotions featuring Amy Grant & Depeche Mode
11. Fireball - Pitbull featuring John Ryan
12. Jesus Walks x Sound Of Silence (mashup) - DJ Novokane featuring Kanye West, Simon & Garfunkel
13. Take A Bow With Me (mashup) - DJ Radio Sheezus featuring Rihanna & Sam Smith
14. Just Give Me A Mirror When September Ends (mashup) - DJ Shahar Varshal ft. Pink, Michael Jackson & Greenday

Here is the track list for the #totalrequestride at Crunch Fitness - Sunset. Bang Bang. Check. Fireball. Check. Toxic. Check. Thanks for your requests! Great Ride. Check. Great fun. Check. Results. Check!

Saturday, October 04, 2014

Track List - Saturday, October 4, 2014

1. Scream - Michael & Janet Jackson
2. Break Free - Ariana Grande featuring Zedd
3. Shake It Off - Taylor Swift
4. Maps (remix) - Maroon 5
5. Fancy Groove (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Madonna, Iggy Azalea & Charli XCX
6. Hard - Rihanna featuring Young Jeezy
7. Rather Be - Clean Bandits
8. Survivor - Destiny's Child
9. Really Don't Care (remix) - Demi Lovato featuring Cher Lloyd
10. Best Song Ever (remix) - One Direction
11. Back For Good - Boyce Avenue('s cover of Take That)
12. Time After Time - Cyndi Lauper featuring Sarah McLachlan
13. Against All Odds - Phil Collins

Variety. Mixing it up. Change. Never getting stuck in a rut. Never settling on the status quo. That is what I strive for in my own workouts. That is what I strive to provide for my classes as an instructor. I hope that is what every rider gets as they consistently take my class. Yes, there are some basics that I build my class around: hills, runs, jogs, jumps, presses, movement. I feel it is vital to mix it up in class so that your body has to work to adapt to these changes - these obstacles - that are created. And we create them together. I provide the layout of the class. The framework. The "choreography". But to make it a hill - a steep hill - the rider must commit to turning the resistance up. The rider determines how steep or how challenging the hill really is. To make it a run that really pushes the heart rate up, the rider must commit to a fast pace as well as resistance. Yes, I said it. I emphasize running WITH resistance. I try to discourage running without any resistance. Anyone can do that. Yes, it is better than staying at home and sitting on the couch where your only exercise is picking up the remote. But to run at a fast pace with at least a little resistance can really push that heart rate up and increase the calorie burn. Jogging also requires resistance. Jogging without resistance is just going through the motions. I encourage more from riders. I want them to always push through at least some resistance, while they are jogging - even while they are running - to keep those heart rates up and to burn more calories. To get stronger. To work your muscles. To work the most important muscle - the heart. To get your body used to working with resistance while committing to the pace and keeping a focus on form. And then increasing the challenge by adding some simple movement without taking away from the three basics of form, pace and resistance. Movements need not be big. Small controlled movements are all that is needed. But remaining in control. Keeping focused. While changing it up. By forcing the body to react to the changing workout in different ways. Mixing it up. Variety. Results. Thank you to all riders for your continued support of the Ride with Tommy! I hope that we continue to create change together. Positive change. We can do it. So let's just do it! Have a great weekend! See you on Monday! In good health, tommy

Friday, October 03, 2014

Track List - Sexy Spin, Thursday, October 2, 2014

Wednesday, October 01, 2014

Track List - #totalrequestride, Wednesday, October 1, 2014

1. Crazy In Love - Beyonce'
2. Booty - Jennifer Lopez featuring Iggy Azalea
3. Anaconda - Nicki Minaj
4. Maps (remix) - Maroon 5
5. Fancy Groove (mashup) - DJ MixmstrStel featuring Madonna, Iggy Azalea & Charli XCX
6. Break Free - Ariana Grande featuring Zedd
7. Shake It Off - Taylor Swift
8. All About That Bass - Meghan Trainor
9. Bang Bang - Jessie J featuring Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj
10. Really Don't Care (remix) - Demi Lovato featuring Cher Lloyd
11. Best Song Ever (remix) - One Direction
12. Waves - Mr. Probz
13. Back For Good - Boyce Avenue('s cover of Take That)
14. Against All Odds - Phil Collins

This morning's #totalrequestride once again provided the opportunity for us to come together as a group and create so much! Together, we can create an environment to inspire, motivate and instigate change. Positive change. Make a difference. Way back in January of this year, I began focusing a lot of my classes on change. Not just any change, but a positive change. In other words, a change that you want. A change that you are willing to work towards. A change that is not easy, but when you make strides toward realizing that change, you can't help but feel a certain level of satisfaction. Not satisfaction that allows you to rest on your laurels, or to sit back and fall back into old habits or to begin to take it easy again. No, I want you all to feel a level of satisfaction that comes with hard work and the feeling as you begin to realize the change that you can actually see and feel, that you are inspired and motivated to continue to work hard and do even more! Then, that inspiration and motivation provides the instigation of more work and more results! I hope that you jump on that Ride, that you continue on a path that leads to each of you getting what you want out of your workouts. I hope that I, as the instructor, provide you the opportunity to make all of this happen for you. I hope that the class that I put together, the building blocks that I place before you, provide you with the tools to construct the results that you want. I hope that the motivation and inspiration that I get from each of you, in turn, provides each of you with the necessary motivation and inspiration for you to work harder, commit more, and have even more fun as you workout. When you enter the spin room here at Crunch, I hope that you leave all the negatives that can get in your way, outside of the door. I hope that you leave all that is bothering you or clouding your vision and focus, outside of the door. Once you step into the spin room, I want you to feel safe that what is about to happen is just what you want and need. I want you to trust that together, we can make it happen. Together, we can create that positive change. We can do some on our own, but we can do so much more together. We can do even more by committing to the work, focusing on it, and willing change to happen. If we bring that which weighs us down into the class with us, if we allow our own selfish motivations and narrow vision to prevent the creation of that positive energy that fills up the room and allows us...each and every one of us!...to reach our fullest potential, then we are truly providing not only ourselves, but everyone in class a disservice. So again, I encourage every rider to open yourself up to the vast range of possibilities that lie waiting for you to reach for and grab them! It begins with a mindset. It continues with an openness and willingness. It ends with a satisfaction, a realization that you did all that you could do, or even more than you thought you could. More than you thought possible. I wish this for you. I promise to help make this possible for every rider. Here's to change. Here's to making it happen. Here's to all of you. Thank you. In good health, tommy