spin cycle; A full-body workout in less than ten minutes.(Product/service evaluation)(Brief article)

Byline: Jancee Dunn

It's daunting. It looks peculiar. But I can attest that the GyroGym, a nine-foot-high contraption that turns you into a spinning human gyroscope, provides a demanding workout. Patterned after a NASA design to train astronauts for the rigors of space, the GyroGym is a favorite in state-of-the-art home gyms of dancers, martial-arts experts, and snowboarders (it's great for sharpening balance). Expect to see the orb-which looks like the sort of equipment Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava would have designed-in fitness clubs this year. Never a regular at amusement parks, I gingerly stepped inside the exercise equivalent of a carnival ride, slid through a padded waistband, and tightened the foot mechanism. For the first few vertiginous minutes, I swayed tentatively back and forth. Then-whoosh-I spun like a pinwheel, using my body to make the turns. I assumed that centrifugal force would do most of the work, but it took an intense effort of my arms and stomach muscles to move the ...