CycleBar raises the bar in cycling fitness
CycleBar, an indoor cycling franchise that provides various high-intensity, low-impact exercise workouts, has opened a facility in Pearland.
The cycle theater and studio opened Sept. 30 at 2701 Pearland Parkway, No. 150. It offers engineered programs that challenge riders in immersive workouts for all fitness levels led by trained instructors.
Workouts are tracked by rider-specific CycleStat performance metrics and use audio, video and lighting technology that includes a playlist and tracks performance and growth.
Riders can measure performance or how many calories were burned.
CycleBar has more than 200 studios worldwide. The Pearland studio, which is owned by Michael and Tracy Stelmach, is the first in the area.
The facility provides complementary shoes, towels and water bottles as well as postworkout cooling-off towels infused with lavender. The studio also has a retail shop.
CycleBar offers five 45minute class formats to choose from, said Shannon Wood, general manager of the Pearland location.
“The classes are all different as far as the ride experience that people are looking for,” she said.
Ride options range from the classic ride, which consist of traditional challenges, to the more performance-based and motivation-centered workouts. Each bike is stationed to a TV screen that records results and stats based on power and wattage, and those results are emailed to riders as a workout summary.
There’s no need, said Wood, for the beginner to be intimidated.
“We have a community area where everybody changes out of their regular shoes into their cycling shoes, and that’s really a time that we introduce who our riders are,” Wood said. “When you come in, we show you how to check in, how to clip into your bike. We take care of all the uneasiness and make everybody feel welcomed.”
The bikes include weighted bars for extra resistance, and while all programs are instructor-led, each rider can match their bike to their own fitness level.
“You have the motivation and instruction of the instructor, but ultimately, you’re in charge of your own gear and your own power,” Wood said. “We don’t want to shy anybody away from any of the formats because it’s all-inclusive and for all levels. People can pick and choose their own instructor and format, so it is very much what works for them.”
Classes and memberships range in price from $69 to $159 monthly, and all new riders receive a free first session. CycleBar also offers $23 dropin rides where riders don’t have to pay a membership fee.
At the end of every month, the studio welcomes a local vendor into the studio to showcase that business.