Great Falls is now home to a boutique spin studio. THRIVEcycle opened its doors in late 2023. For owner and instructor Jennifer Renaud, it’s more than just a workout studio, it’s an opportunity for empowerment through self care.
“THRIVEcycle is a safe place where people can be themselves,” Renaud said. “It’s about being you, building yourself and being a better person once you leave. That is so important to me.”
If you’ve never taken a beat-based spin class before, let us set the stage for you. The room is dimly lit, giving you just enough soft glow to safely mount your bike and manage your bike’s resistance. The instructor is at the front of the room, on a bit of a – for lack of a better word – stage. They guide you through sequences on the bike that are in time with the beat of the music, and they adjust the lighting in the room throughout the workout to enhance the experience. Although you are part of the group class, the experience becomes highly individualized once the workout starts.
Renaud fell in love with this style of spinning in Missoula. She and her family moved to Great Falls in the spring of 2023 from Missoula and she was on the hunt for a studio similar to the ones where she had been both a student and an instructor in the past. When she couldn’t find exactly the environment she was looking for, it was her kids that encouraged her to start her own.
“You always tell us to follow [our] dreams,” she recounts her children telling her. “Start your own!”
It made her pause and reflect. “I tell them often that they can do anything,” she said. “I didn’t want to put my foot in my mouth, because they were right.”
So, with her family’s prompting, she decided to add entrepreneur to her list of titles, behind Brand and Marketing Associate Strategist for Providence Health, spin instructor, mother and wife.
Once she started the work to open the studio, in her words, “things started to fall into place.” She was able to secure a space in the Montana Building, becoming neighbors to Crooked Tree and Fire Pizza.
She originally planned for a very slow start and a ramp up, but the Great Falls community responded in a big way, exceeding Renaud’s expectations about the interest in the studio. She opened her doors and saw great enthusiasm over the Thanksgiving holiday, and that enthusiasm has carried through December and January.
“The support has been unbelievable,” she said.
To kick off 2024 she created a New Year January Challenge, but she makes it clear that it’s less about driving physical changes, and more about building a community that helps someone want to come back consistently.
“Everybody goes through ebbs and flows,” Renaud explains. “Self care is so important, it doesn’t even need to be here. Just take time for yourself, take a walk around the block, do yoga, go outside to take 15-20 minutes to reset. Here at THRIVE, we want to create an environment where you find your people, so you want to come in. It’s fun, and you’ll know you’ll have people cheering for you.”
In fact, it’s the community here in Great Falls that has wowed Renaud and validated her choice to start the business.
“I've had so many women tell me they never knew they needed this in their life,” she said. “And it makes me so happy that I get to touch so many people's lives. That is what keeps me going.”
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What else keeps Renaud going? Food. She loves it. For her own self care, you might find her sitting in her darkened studio savoring a cold brew and a bacon egg and herb biscuit from Crooked Tree.
“I know it sounds silly, but it fills my soul to eat good food.” she laughs. By charging her battery, she can give her patrons the energy and enthusiasm they deserve. She hopes when they leave the studio, they pass on that energy and confidence as well.
Interested in trying out a beat-based cycle class? THRIVEcycle offers new-rider specials and free community rides. Learn more at https://www.thrivecycle.studio/
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