My morning was a little rushed since I wanted to squeeze in a 6 a.m. Pure Barre class and still have time to shower, let Sadie out and inhale breakfast before arriving at work at 7:45 a.m.
It was a go, go, go kind of morning and I was grateful for an easy breakfast that included a bowl of my egg white oatmeal and a mug of hot coffee.
After work yesterday, I attempted to find a replacement for my beloved discontinued peppermint crème coffee from Fresh Market. I popped into Marshalls since a few of you suggested combing through the gourmet foods section of Marshalls or TJMaxx in search of seasonal flavored coffee. I stumbled upon Christmas Perk: Mocha Mint coffee and decided to give it a go!
I wasn’t sure how the mocha flavor would taste since I really, really love the stand-alone peppermint flavor of the peppermint crème coffee, but I was pleased! I’ve had chocolate flavored coffees before that have tasted bitter and gross, but this one was quite good and I loved it with a splash of new-to-me So Delicious coconut milk creamer (<— another recommendation from you guys)!
I’m still planning to check out some of your other peppermint flavored coffee recommendations and will be sure to report back. I’m glad there are a few of you out there who share my adoration for yummy holiday-themed flavored coffee!
After breakfast, I worked through the morning and helped my boss at the gym with the December group exercise schedule. I’ll be teaching more classes next month and I’m especially excited to be adding an additional indoor cycling class to my morning schedule… even if it is a 6 a.m. class!
I’m home now on a brief early lunchtime break and will be heading out again soon. I’m planning to use this time to put together my next rockin’ playlist for tomorrow’s spin class. I’d love to hear any recommendations you may have for songs that never fail to psych you up during an indoor cycling class!
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When I bike indoors on my trainer, I listen to Nine Inch Nails during all the hard intervals, but I feel like most gyms wouldn’t be too keen on hearing “Closer” over the speakers.
Yummmmm!! And if you’re needing a Peppermint Mocha, Starbucks is doing a ‘buy one get one’ special between 2pm-5pm this week!
Butterfly by Crazy Town is a fun song for spinning!
oh my gosh, i totally forgot about that song!
Two songs that always seem to appear in my spin lists and ALWAYS get me fired up are Love Runs Out (OneRepublic) and Can’t Hold Us (Macklemore). Hey Brother (Avicii) is another good one when I’m pushing tempo. I’d love to hear some of your recommendations …. I tend to do my own Spin “classes” at the gym, since they don’t offer spin classes. 🙂
thank you for the recommendations, mary beth!
Have you tried buying peppermint extract and then making your own “flavored” coffee. I’ve made awesome peppermint mochas at home with the extract. So cheap and you can control how strong the flavor is.
I’ve been loving “Shawty Got Moves” from Step Up for working out recently! It’s a definite pump-up song.
this song always pumps me up 🙂 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO87LPL8HHw
I’m sorry but Destiny’s Child “Survivor” will never let me down!
Boneless by Steve Aoki is such a fun song for spin! I’m thinking about getting certified to instruct spin classes as well!
my spin favs are: here i go again by whitesnake or hey baby by dj otzi
I was at the Fresh Market last night scouring the shelves for you.
Today my spin teacher played “bye bye bye” and I loved it! He even was singing along!
ha! that’s awesome!
My all-time favorite spin song is Part of Me by Katy Perry. No matter where I am, every time I hear it I just want to jump on a spin bike!
I just took a Taylor Swift themed spin class featuring mostly songs from her new album plus a few pumped up T.Swift remixes. It felt both silly and super energizing. 🙂
That coffee sounds fabulous!!!
Yay more group ex time! GO Julie! 🙂
I love some kelly clarkson & pink for pump up stuff, and Britney of course. Gotta have some old school in there! haha
Wake Me Up by Avicii
its snowing outside here (in colorado) which i am NOT ready for…maybe ill buy some seasonal coffee…it might put me in a better mood haha. boo winter.
i still love the song Timber by pitbull…it just makes me wanna dance!
i love that one, too!
Dunkin Donuts Mocha Mint coffee is my favorite! I always grab a bag as soon as Target has it in stock.
Hey Mickey! – from bring it on 🙂
One of my favorite spin instructors always has very upbeat, catchy tunes. Some of my faves are Fireball by Pitbull, Shake It Off by Taylor Swift and Dance Again by Jennifer Lopez. Good luck!
I don’t know what sort of music you listen to, but my class goes crazy for Kick Start My Heart by Motley Crew and The Pretender by Foo Fighters (sprint).
I LTB’d through my first 6am pure Barre this morning with a friend, and thought of you! I think it may have been a tad too early for this night owl though. Still a great way to start the day 🙂
How’s It’s Done by district 78! (Got it from SYTYCD) 😉
Would you consider doing a post about prep for and your first few spin classes as an instructor? I am considering a certification and am just nervous about the amount of prep and the first few classes.
sure!! i love this idea. i don’t have a specific spin certification (it’s absolutely on my “must do” list), but my gym is okay with me teaching w/ my personal training certification + group ex cert. (the YMCA where i used to work was this way, too.) i may hold off w/ sharing anything until i have my spinning certification but i’d love to cover this!
Coconut milk is delicious, I love a dash in my coffee!
Ohhh peppermint mocha sounds amazing! I love this time of year: gingerbread lattes, salted caramel lattes, pepperment mochas….so yummy!
I don’t know if it’s quick enough for a spin class, but I’m loving the new Lips Are Movin’ song by Meghan Trainor! Too catchy! And I don’t know if you’ve listened to Taylor Swift’s new album, but New Romantics is a really upbeat one that I’m OBSESSED with.
I don’t know what it is about Taylor Swift’s “Shake it off” but it is so dang catchy! That would definitely have me pedaling faster in 6am spin!
That’s so exciting you will be teaching spin class! I absolutely LOVE indoor cycling classes – they are my favorite type of workout and always leave me feeling energized and excited to tackle the day. The playlist can definitely impact the overall feel and performance of the class. I don’t think you can go wrong with any Calvin Harris songs or Avicii. I think varying the beat of the song selection for hills vs. sprints is also important so everyone is in the right mindset. Hope this helps a bit!
Good luck!! 🙂
Your new coffee find sounds yummy! Glad you found something you like! Congrats on another cycle class! I teach a 5:30 AM BodyPump class, and initially I was a little intimidated by the early class, but now it’s one of my favorites! It’s so nice to be able to be done at 6:30 AM and help people begin their days on a positive note.
Question — at your Pure Barre studio, is it a different routine every day? I recently started going in Chicago, but the class format is the exact same every day, with a few tweaks in exercises. Wondered if this was normal for all Pure Barre locations.
yes, it’s very similar every day — the flow is the same (warm up, thighs, seat, core work, etc.) but i absolutely love it! they do a good job of changing the exercises for each section at my studio though. i think that helps!
Julie, music is so important in a spin class…I’m sure you will be fine..what are the ‘drills’ you are doing though..to the music and what cadence.
sometimes the music depends on your audience. on Sundays, I have people that want rock, and my wed night class likes mostly pop stuff. (and nobody likes rap etc) you can always ask them for song requests ..and possibly work w/those.
Definitely check out Calvin Harris ‘Blame’, Don Omar ‘Danza Kuduro’ and David Guetta ‘Bad’.
Also, I think you and @hungryrunnergirl should be comparing playlists since she just recently started teaching spin again and is posting her weekly playlists!!
Target coffees will change your life. The dark chocolate truffle coffee changed my look on flavored coffees. I used to hate them because they tasted artificial and just… gross. ALL of the coffees I get from Target have been winners, especially this one! If they come out with a peppermint one, I would HIGHLY suggest trying it! I swear to you… the flavoring is amazing.
And Nelly – “Shake your tail feather” got me going this morning! Throwback!
I had Starbucks Chestnut Praline Latte … MEH. Didn’t really taste like anything….
Glad to hear you found a new holiday coffee!
Shut Up and Dance – Walk the Moon (current favorite!)
I Will Never Let You Down – Rita Ora
Centuries – Fall Out Boy
Drunk on a Plane – Dierks Bentley
Show Me What I’m Looking For – Carolina Liar
New Romantics – Taylor Swift
Summer of ’69 – Bryan Adams
Dare You to Move – Switchfoot
I Wanna Get Better – Bleachers
Obviously, some of these are better for climbs, some are great for jumps and sprinting. Love spin!!
thank you!!
All I Ever Wanted – Basshunters. Sush a good pump up song
Glad you found a replacement coffee. I love coconut creamer and need to pick some up soon! How in the world did you manage a 6am workout and then get to work by 7:45. I struggle with 6am Barre and then getting to work at 8:30! You must be speedy!!
working at a gym = no make up + hair in a ponytail. that helps!! 🙂
Talking Body by Tove Lo is a great cycle tune! I just heard it at my most recent Soul Cycle class and nearly 7 participants went up and asked the instructor for the song name & artist. So it was a major crowd pleaser! 🙂
I love the Chocolate peppermint coffee creamer by Cofeee Mate is my fave!
For some reason, your posts weren’t coming to my inbox for the last 2 months!!! But now they’re back and it feels so good to have PBFingers back in my life:;))
On another note, I wouldn’t be able to resist throwing some new TSwift on that playlist……..
i’ve had her on every playlist i’ve used at my new job so far. 🙂
I hate coffee but am tempted to drink it because there is a new coffee creamer coming out called “Sugar Cookie!” I saw it in a magazine ad…I drooled.
btw – totally random – but totally miss your book clubs!!! Bring it back someday!
Thunder Clatter by Wild Club and Come with Me Now by Kongos are two of my all time favorite cycle songs. That coffee sounds really good!
I love trying new coffees! I put a limit on how many we buy in a season because my husband would collect them all! And then they all end up half-used in the back of our cupboard. He’s a coffee addict!
It’s super old but I love hearing “How Far We’ve Come” by Matchbox Twenty during spin… LOVE the fast parts of the song, it always gives me that extra push to get through the workout.
Do you and Ryan still work out together during the week? Did he end up joining a gym? I loved how ya’ll used to pop out of bed together and motivation each other to the gym! Miss those stories =)
we still wake up at the same time, but he goes to a different gym. pure barre isn’t really his thing. 🙂 i miss our gym dates, too, though!! if my pure barre obsession ever fades, i’m sure they’ll be back!
I looove the DFA Remix of Paper Planes for spin class!! It’s from the Slumdog Millionaire soundtrack…which also has a bunch of great songs on it.
I just added Geronimo Sheppard to my morning workout it was a good mix and my ladies loved it, clearly it’s a quick road. I also like Come with me Now, and sometimes for fun I throw in Bang Bang and give them a little free ride for a few minutes.
I definitely looked through these comments for ideas for my indoor cycling classes! I’m ALWAYS on the lookout for new music, and I ask pretty much everyone! One fun one I used for my last class was You Give Love a Bad Name by Bon Jovi.