Ah, Valentine’s Day. I deride it as a commercialized ersatz holiday, but when my better half suggests that we ignore it this year…. I resist. I am prepared to admit that this is a teensy bit inconsistent. Whether you’re looking for love, found it, lost it, or are trying to keep it alive, there’s something for you in this playlist.
I Like the Way (Radio Edit) – The Bodyrockers (3:20): Welcome music. If this doesn’t get your legs moving… you’re dead.
All Summer Long - The Rock Heroes (4:56): Kid Rock’s song is an anthem to teenage summer love. Oh, and spliffs. Warm up and do some dynamic stretching.
Jessie’s Girl - Rick Springfield (3:14): A longer class needs a longer warmup. Take the resistance to 3/10 and quicken the pace by 10% at each chorus (0:22 – 0:45, 1:00 – 1:40, and 2:16 – 3:14), falling back for each verse. According to Wikipedia, Springfield developed a thing for his buddy Gary’s girlfriend (the song was originally “Gary’s Girl.”) But he never approached her, and to this day, she doesn’t know that she was the inspiration for his #1 hit.
I’m Ready – Wyclef Jean (3:55): Wyclef isn’t as shy about the real name of his crush: it’s Venus Williams. But his love is just as unrequited as Springfield’s. We’ve come to the first hill of the day: 8 minutes. We’re going to take the resistance up to 5/10 for an out of the saddle climb. Move into an aggressive stance for each chorus.
I Don’t Need a Man – The Pussycat Dolls (3:39): The PCD remind us that they don’t need a man “to make it happen.” So let’s make this hill happen: take the resistance to 7/10 and settle in. Increase it every 60 seconds until we get to the top.
Untouched – The Veronicas (4:14): Attacks! Starting at 0:10: a 20 second standing sprint, then a 10 second seated sprint, followed by 30 blessed seconds for recovery. Repeat 4x.
This is How a Heart Breaks – Rob Thomas (3:51): Recover for 44 seconds, then we’ve got two more quick, out of the saddle sprints 15/20 seconds at 0:44 – 1:00 and 1:32 – 1:52. Recover for 30 seconds and give me one last push for 1:15 at 80% of your maximum effort.
Lady Killer – Kreesha Turner (3:35): Take the resistance up to 7/10 for these lifts at 8/4/2 counts.
Seven Day Fool – Jully Black (3:25): Second hill of the day here: 11.5 minutes. We’re going to tackle it fast and cocky: out of the saddle with a relatively low resistance of 4/10. Stair climb at each chorus.
In Love with a Girl – Gavin DeGraw (3:30): Sit down and take the resistance to 6/10. At each chorus, stand and go double-time, increasing the tension when you sit down.
Cry Love – John Hiatt (4:21): Hiatt addresses domestic violence in this wrenching song. Sit down for a grind to the top of the hill starting at 7/10 and increasing the tension every 60 seconds until you hit your max.
I Don’t Wanna Be in Love – Good Charlotte (4:04): Chase 11 minutes of climbing with 11 minutes of sprints. 3×30 second sprints, one at each chorus.
Stoned in Love (Radio Edit) – Chicane feat. Tom Jones (3:41): Keep it going: 3×30 second sprints at each chorus.
Bad Girlfriend – Theory of a Deadman (3:26): Blessed recovery for 60 seconds – take a posture break and a deep swig from your water bottle. We’ll finish it up with two short, sharp out-of-the-saddle sprints for 20/15 seconds at 0:57 – 1:17 and 1:39 – 1:54, then a final 60 second push from 2:18 – 3:18 at 80% of your maximum effort.
Hey Julie – Fountains of Wayne (2:37): Stacy’s Mom got more airplay, but this single is sweeter. We’re almost there: let’s do some lifts on 2/4/8 counts.
Raspberry Beret – Prince (3:33): Keep the lifts going, 8/4/2 counts.
Finally (Classic Radio Mix) – Love to Infinity (4:09): Last drill: last chance to get all that energy out. Standing sprints from 0:20 – 2:35 – 15 seconds on/15 recovery. Take a minute to recover, then we’ll do one last 50 second seated sprint for the finish line.
If I Were a Boy – Beyonce (4:09): Beyonce muses on what love would be like as the opposite gender in this gorgeous hit that has topped the charts in Denmark, the Netherlands, Israel, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and the U.K. According to Wikipedia, the inspiration for the song was – wait for it – a hot dog. Songwriter BC Jean was in Times Square, NYC with co-author Toby Gad. She was craving a hot dog from one of the vendors and lamented that if she were a boy, she could probably eat one without regrets. She’d just been through a nasty breakup and wondering what it would be like to be a boy got her thinking she’d be a better man than her boyfriend. Jean and Gad went to the recording studio and wrote the song in 15 minutes – it just poured out. Cool down with some easy spinning.
Hey There Delilah – Plain White T’s (3:53): Unlike Rick Springfield, lead singer Tom Higgenson used his crush’s real name for this simple, alt rock hit. Like Jessie’s Girl, and James Blunt’s You’re Beautiful, it’s spawned a generation of women who wish the song was written about them. A bit of extra time for stretching.
Hey there and happy V-Day! I wanted to tell you that I love your site & often visit it for inspiration. Thanks for some great music suggestions; I enjoy spinning to songs a little off the beaten path.
Thanks Darcy! I enjoyed your blog, too. Great new music ideas. Excellent idea to include a page for songs we wish we could play, but can’t. I’ve added a link to your blog – thanks for linking to mine. (Readers, check out Darcy’s blog at http://www.spincycles.wordpress.com.)