SoulCycle Comes to London
“Give me a sexy shimmy!” my teacher Liv D. shouted in her beautiful British accent. At SoulCycle Soho London, I’d found the best of both worlds — the workout I love AND a British accent to coach me along!
I was visiting London for an article I’m writing about a weekend of wellness in the city, and a visit to the recently opened SoulCycle was part of the agenda. (So, note that the class was complimentary.) Currently, this studio is the only location in the U.K. But, in the months to come, the brand will open two additional locations around London.
The studio was only a 10-minute walk from my hotel, so I set off for my 9:30 am class around 9. (FYI, if you’re looking for a spot to stay in London, my go-to is The Bloomsbury Hotel. It’s chic and comfy, and centrally located for walking to areas like Soho, Covent Garden, and Seven Dials.)
After collecting my rental shoes and a rental water bottle (the studio offers these vs. selling plastic bottles), I dropped my things off in the locker room and headed downstairs to the studio. Oh, and don’t make the rookie move that I did and put your cycling shoes on before you get down the stairs. Whoops.
If you love SoulCycle in the states, you’ll feel right at home in the studio. And clearly, plenty of Americans do, because I heard many accents like my own chattering around me. As for the bikes, it’s the same setup as you’d find in the U.S..
Then, there was the energetic and awesome, Liv D. For 45 minutes, she pushed us up hills, through sprinting runs to the rhythm of the music, and made our arms shake during the resistance training song.
But, what I really loved was her sassy spirit. As I’ve already mentioned, during one song, we shimmied our shoulders and did a little body roll as we tapped it back. And then there was the random — but quite fun — moment at the end of the cool down and stretch song where she quickly switched the music to an upbeat tune and had us jump around like bunnies for about a minute. That was just what I needed before I faced a busy day!
Post-class, I grabbed a matcha smoothie at the smoothie bar that’s embedded in this location (BTW, you can pre-order before class) and sipped it while I looked through the boutique. I’ll admit that I justified spending an insane amount of money on a sweatshirt because, well, it said “SoulCycle London” on it. But, you know what? I’m going to wear that sweatshirt like it’s a badge of honor!
With that said, the next time you’re across the pond, give this SC outpost a go. It’s like a little bit of home — but with a brilliant British twist.