Member Spotlight: Heather McInally
We LOVE our #spengafam here at SPENGA-Highlands Ranch! We are thrilled to introduce our Member of the Month, Heather McInally!
You inspire us with your effort in session, and your kindness and energy outside of it. Keep up the awesome WERK, friend! Here is a bit about Heather:
What made you want to try SPENGA in the 1st place?
SPENGA. The description popped on my phone about a new gym.
- Spin (oooh, I want to try this but an hour spin class is too boring, and I have an ancient tailbone injury that acts up if I’m on a bike very long…20 mins sounds perfect!)
- Strength (yes! I know I need to start lifting weights but I don’t know where to begin so I’ve just stuck with yoga for the past 20 years hah…)
- And Yoga…(Yay this place has yoga too? …that will be like my reward for making it through spin and weights).
Well, this seemed like the gym made for me. I drove by and soon called to sign up as a Founding Member, months before SPENGA opened. I would be a hard sell as I already had my fav yoga place/instructors…But I knew I needed more than what I was doing. I needed someone to push me, to try something different, and I was finally ready to invest time and energy in ME…so I signed up!
What is your favorite part about SPENGA?
Favorite part of SPENGA? Being pushed beyond where unusually let myself stop. I am not a natural born athlete…I relate more to a sloth...I eat slow, I walk slow, I’m late pretty much anywhere I go, I love Ashtanga and Yin (slow) yoga, I am possibly a bit of a procrastinator, and oh, how I love to sit and sip tea and talk about big things for hours with my people…. SO- SPENGA challenges me in ways I’ve never challenged myself and I feel proud (and surprised!) when I break a sweat, increase my Spin zones, and lift heavier than the week before! I love the instructors. And getting to know some of the “regulars” in my classes is fun. I love feeling strong! I knew I was strong, but it didn’t necessarily look like it or feel like it. But now I’m seeing it! I love that it’s only 20 mins of each thing. I was a Birth Doula for 10 years and coached women through unmedicated childbirth. Some of the greatest tools we used were breath, the mind, and relative time…you can do anything for 60 seconds…for 5 mins…for 20 mins…So even on those days when I don’t feel like getting on that bike, I remind myself that it’s only 20 minutes and I know I can do anything for 20 minutes so I give it all I’ve got!
Ride, Rep, or Revive?!
Um, Namaste. Revive. That being said, I feel most proud of my Ride and Rep time at SPENGA!
How has SPENGA impacted you?
Honestly, I didn’t appreciate it until it was “gone.” During the spring Covid lockdown, I realized how much I loved SPENGA and how much I missed it. I tried running with my neighbor but that didn’t last long (maybe if Stephanie was behind me yelling at me for slowing down it would have gone better.) I tried home workouts but with 5 kids & a curious dog underfoot those were a 3-ring circus. So since SPENGA re-opened, it has been my 1-hour a day of sanity, normalcy, smiles, and connection with those other than my (amazing, but home-all-the-time) family. I crave it. I need it, and for the first time in my life I love working out :) (What?! Did I just say that?)
Best piece of advice for someone just starting out on their fitness journey, or for someone interested in trying SPENGA.
Whether you’re just starting out, or you’re a fitness junkie, whether young or old, nursing an injury or full-out athlete, SPENGA is a place where you will be challenged but not discouraged. There’s always the opportunity to modify, or feed the competitive spirit. Give it all you’ve got for 20 minutes. And then another 20, and one last 20.
SPENGA is my favorite place to forget about the crazy world outside…and then feel ready to take on that crazy world when I walk out the door. Best Werkout Ever.
XOXO, Heather
