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The Spinning program is the concept of Johnny Goldberg (a.k.a. Johnny G), endurance cyclist, martial arts expert, personal trainer and world class athlete. Johnny G first developed the program in the early 1980s while training on a stationary bike for the Race Across America (RAAM).

Utilizing a stationary bike as a serious athletic tool not only paid off for Johnny G, who eventually placed tenth in the 1989 RAAM and first in the RAAM Open West, but for his clientele that he was training. It was during the 1980s that Johnny G coined the term "Spinning" and began the ten year journey that would eventually lead to one of the most successful fitness programs ever.

What makes the Spinning program so successful is that it is both a workout and a philosophy. Johnny G knew from his own personal experience as an athlete and as a trainer/teacher, that it takes both mental and physical training to change a body and lifestyle. He developed the Spinning program, the original indoor stationary bicycle fitness program, to integrate a detailed set of general exercises including heart rate training and motivational empowerment, to enhance participants physical and mental well-being.

In 1989, Johnny G opened the first Spinning facility in Santa Monica, Calif. He initially utilized modified Schwinn DX900 stationary bikes for his classes, but the intensity of the program proved the bike to be inappropriate for the Spinning program. The wear and tear on the bikes led Johnny G to realize he needed equipment that had more durability and adjustability. So, in his home garage, Johnny G designed the first prototype Spinner, using the geometry of his racing bicycle.

The concept for the Spinner was simple. No computers, bells or whistles. Instead the bike was created like a racing bicycle with a weighted front wheel, a fixed gear, and an adjustable seat and handlebar.

Flushed with the initial popularity of the Spinning program in Santa Monica, Johnny G utilized his prototype bikes and motivational techniques to successfully build a name for the program as well as a clientele.

In 1992, Johnny G met and befriended one of his students, John Baudhuin. Together the two decided to form a company, Mad Dogg Athletics, Inc. to manufacture the Johnny G Spinner and to begin the commercial distribution of the bike and the Spinning program. That year Mad Dogg Athletics also registered and trademarked the Spinning name and the Johnny G Spinner.

Both Johnny G and Baudhuin built -- by hand -- 150 Johnny G Spinners, otherwise known as the "yellow beasts."

In 1992, the Spinning program was introduced to gyms in New York, and the program immediately began to garner positive media attention. By 1993, Johnny G and Baudhuin knew that they needed to find a company to help them manufacture and distribute the Johnny G Spinners. But many of the equipment manufacturers they approached turned them down, citing that consumers were not interested in a stationary bike that did not have a computer attached to it.

Schwinn Fitness
Undaunted by their initial efforts to find a company to market the bikes, Johnny G and Baudhuin went to Boulder, Colorado to meet with Kevin LaMar, vice president of Schwinn Fitness. LaMar was impressed with the Spinning program and its concept, and in October of 1994, Mad Dogg Athletics and Schwinn Fitness signed an agreement. Schwinn agreed to develop as well as distribute the Johnny G Spinner by Schwinn to gyms across the country and the world.

That same year, Johnny G and Mad Dogg Athletics developed the Spinning Instructor Certification Program. Johnny G and Baudhuin enlisted a group of health and fitness experts to help create the certification program, which teaches instructors how to utilize heart rate training, how to develop a class that is fun and safe for all levels of students, and how to master the "Spinning" program movements and rhythms.

By 1995, Mad Dogg Athletics, Inc. was ready to showcase the Spinning program to a large audience, and introduced the Johnny G Spinner by Schwinn and the program at the International Health Racquetball and Spa Association (IHRSA) Fitness Show in San Francisco. Johnny G conducted Spinning classes and demonstrations for eight consecutive hours, drawing large crowds who gathered to watch in awe. By 1996, nearly 1,000 fitness facilities in more than 25 countries instituted the Spinning program.

In January 1996, Schwinn introduced the second generation of the Spinner, which incorporated over 30 production improvements from the original model introduced in January 1995. The new bike features stainless steel components and a corrosion-resistant black powder-coated finish. Today, the program is taught in more than 30 countries by over 4,000 instructors worldwide. While there are many "knock-off" of the Spinning program, no other fitness expert can make the claim of inventing it. That alone belongs to Johnny G, who spent several years creating and perfecting a bike and program, that one day would become a fitness phenomenon.