This Barry’s Coach and Spin Instructor Stays Fueled with Collagen-Infused Water
When she's not teaching at Barry's or Stride Spin & Fitness, Rachel Robinson is a coffee-drinking freelance social media pro.
Here’s how Rachel Robinson balances teaching, her own wellness, and a social life. / Photograph courtesy of Rachel Robinson.
Welcome to Sweat Diaries, Be Well Philly’s look at the time, energy, and money people invest in pursuit of a healthy lifestyle in Philly. For each Sweat Diary, we ask one area resident to spend a week tracking everything they eat, all the exercise they get, and the money they spend on both. Want to submit a Sweat Diary? Email lbrzyski@phillymag.com.
Who I am: Rachel Robinson (@rachelbmr), 22
Where I live: Graduate Hospital
What I do: I’m an instructor at Barry’s, as well as a spin instructor at Stride Spin & Fitness. I am also a freelance social media marketing manager.
What role healthy living plays in my life: When I was growing up, I HATED sports and gym class, but was drawn to dancing because I loved music and moving alongside a beat. When I was in college, I took my first spin class and was absolutely awful at it, but I loved every second of my time in the room, not only because of the physical workout, but the mental transformation. Being able to push myself to new limits, finding a strong community of supportive people, and having the mental clarity after taking 45 minutes for myself was the perfect self-care combination,
After spinning for about two years, I received an opportunity to train as an instructor right out of college. After a few months of training, I started teaching at Stride Spin & Fitness. Then six months into teaching spin, I received the opportunity to become a founding instructor of Barry’s Philadelphia. In both my fitness roles, I am able to connect with clients and push them to new limits every day, which is truly something that will never get old for me. I hope to spend the rest of my life showing people what they truly are capable of, even when they may not see it for themselves.
Health memberships (and what they cost): None! I spend my time sweating at the two studios I work at. Teaching does have its perks!
Monday
Robinson’s avocado toast for Monday’s breakfast is drool-worthy. / Photograph by Rachel Robinson.
5:45 a.m. — Alarm goes off. I am one of those people who cannot function until I drink coffee. You will probably pick up quickly that I may just have a minor caffeine addiction.
8:30 a.m. — Alongside teaching classes, I work as a freelance social media manager for three amazing clients, so my days don’t always follow a pattern but that works perfectly for me because I can get bored so easily. I do not have my first client meeting until 10 a.m. today, so I just get work done until I have to go into my client’s office and eat my breakfast. Avocado toast with an egg on top is my go-to. I also am a horrible cook so the more user-friendly my meals are, the better. I also have my morning collagen, as I am HUGE on collagen intake, plus water with two scoops of collagen and three Spirulina capsules.
10 a.m. — Meeting starts, coffee #3 happens (black), with a Trader Joe’s almond flour muffin that’s already in the office.
1 p.m. — Leave the office and head home to make lunch. Today, I’m having a kale salad mixed with avocado and hummus, chicken, salsa, broccoli, cucumbers, feta, and lemon juice. The avocado, hummus, and lemon replace a salad dressing for me, which is not only SO. GOOD., but an easy whole-food guarantee.
2 p.m. — Coffee #4. Oops. Working from home consists of social media planning, class programming, and playlisting for classes (obviously my favorite part).
4:30 p.m. — Time to teach at Barry’s. Today is my arms and abs class! Quickly becoming my favorite day of the week.
5:30 p.m. — After teaching, I take a Barry’s class as a client. Thanks for pushing me, Austin!
7:30 p.m. — Home for the evening, which means time to start prepping dinner. I air-fry some kale that is about to go bad (just being honest) so I can snack on it while making dinner (I am STARVING!). Dinner tonight is a turkey burger with a side of Brussels sprouts.
9 p.m. — The Bachelor is on (my guilty pleasure), so I make some popcorn for me and my friends and I to snack on while we watch.
Daily total: $0
Tuesday
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7 a.m. — Wake up and get ready to head to Barry’s. Drink my collagen water and Spirulina concoction.
7:45 a.m. — Stop at Starbucks on the way to the studio. Grande latte with almond milk ($4.27). I usually make it a vanilla latte but they forgot to add it and I didn’t want to say anything LOL
8:30 a.m. — Teach at Barry’s. Total body lower focus day. The 8:30 a.m. crew is always so hype!
11 a.m. — Time to leave for the suburbs. Stride is in Phoenixville (distance makes the heart grow fonder), so I usually head up early to beat traffic and work out of my favorite Starbucks ever in Collegeville.
12:30 p.m. — Lunchtime. Same salad as yesterday. I normally cook everything in huge portions so I can get multiple meals out of it. Currently working out of said Starbucks with a venti black iced coffee ($3.40) and will be here working on client stuff and some playlists until it’s time for me to teach.
4:15 p.m. — Leave for Stride.
5 p.m. — And now time to teach. I love my Tuesday girls!
7 p.m. — I have dinner with my family every Tuesday since Stride is near their house. My parents make chicken marsala. I didn’t get a photo but I promise it was great (my mom is going to read this).
10 p.m. — Home and in bed for the night!
Daily total: $7.67
Wednesday
If you haven’t gathered by now, Robinson LOVES her coffee! / Photograph by Rachel Robinson.
5:30 a.m. — Awake with coffee #1 and collagen water/Spirulina situation.
7 a.m. — I hit up Starbucks before starting work for the day. Venti cold brew with just peppermint syrup (try it and thank me later). I also brought strawberries with me, so I’m nibbling on them while I wait for my coffee ($3.40).
9 a.m. — On Wednesdays and Fridays, I work on my client stuff from home. The majority of my work on these two days — and in general — involves planning and updating social media calendars, boosting influencer outreach, and shooting content. I also try to squeeze in programming classes and creating playlists for Barry’s and Stride in between!
4:30 p.m. — Teach at Barry’s for chest, back, and abs day! Love love love the energy from my 4:30 p.m. classes.
5:30 p.m. — Now it’s time to take Sydni’s class. Thank you, sister! After class, I grab a lemonade lipo from the fuel bar ($6). Tip: Ask for the lemonade lipo and add strawberry collagen in it. Best. drink. ever.
7:30 p.m. — Home to make dinner. Salmon with a side of buffalo cauliflower that I threw in my air fryer. Can you tell I love this appliance?
9 p.m. — It’s a big week because The Bachelor is on for a SECOND night! More popcorn for my friends and I to watch with.
11 p.m. — Goodnight, world!
Daily total: $9.40
Thursday
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5:15 a.m. — You know the drill: awake with coffee #1 and collagen water/ Spirulina.
6:30 a.m. — One of my clients is filming a segment for the news this morning! Walking over to the office with coffee #2 in hand.
7 a.m. — Working out of the office, such a fun morning of filming! Plus, coffee #3.
9:30 a.m. — I finish in time to run over to Barry’s to take class. Alex had alllll the good music in class today. After, I grab a mochalicious (my favorite shake) from the fuel bar ($7). I decide to work out of the studio after class until it’s time to teach.
12:15 p.m. — Teach at Barry’s! Abs and ass day is honestly just good for the soul.
2:30 p.m. — Head home to quickly make lunch: turkey wrap with lettuce, tomato, and balsamic dressing. Also coffee #4… I should probably switch to decaf.
2:45 p.m. — Run back out the door to meet with another client to go over a project we are working on together. I bring a hot water with lemon and collagen (I don’t like tea so this is my version).
6:30 p.m. — Finally finished my work day, so I walk home to make dinner. Tonight I’m cooking chicken breast with a side of rice and broccoli.
7:30 p.m. — Time to decompress with some TV on the couch.
9 p.m. — I’m dozing HARD, so I head up to bed and call it a night.
Daily total: $7
Friday
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5:15 a.m. — TGIF! Start off my Friday like every other day: a coffee and my collagen/Spirulina water.
6 a.m. — Start working. I get SO much more work done early in the morning. I am most productive in a pitch black room with a candle burning and my laptop in front of me (probably why working in an office did not seem to work out for me). Coffee numbers two and three happen during this time.
8:30 a.m. — I head out to Phoenixville to go spin.
9:30 a.m. — Take a spin class at Stride (sometimes you just need to take a break!). I have a Wawa breakfast sandwich waiting for me after because I am one of those people who can’t eat right before a spin class. ($4.31)
10:30 a.m. — My noon meeting was cancelled, so I head back to my apartment in Grad Hospital to get as much work done as I can this afternoon.
2 p.m. — Lunch today is the same turkey wrap as the other day, complete with lettuce, tomato, and balsamic.
6 p.m. — My friends and I meet at Rosy’s Taco Bar for dinner. We decide to split some margarita pitchers, and I order their taco salad. Delish! ($25)
10 p.m. — Goodnight, friends!
Daily total: $29.31
Weekly totals
Money spent: $53.38
Workouts completed: Four
Classes taught: Five
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