My love of this place has been well known for a while- having eagerly bounded my way into the Shoreditch studio for almost a year now, I have to admit that upon hearing of the new BOOM Cycle Holborn studio opening, a little bit of wee may have come out in excitement.

And so I was completely delighted when little old Project HB was invited down for press night! I pelted out of the office job doors at 6.31pm and sped to Holborn as fast as my vertically challenged little legs could carry me.

There were people outside taking photos of the huge neon BOOM! Cycle sign, creating a buzz before I’d even stepped a toe inside. BOOM! have secured an impressive slot for studio number two- proctor street boasts Gymbox and the huge Runner’s Need store- this location is synonymous with sporty, and perfectly placed as BOOM’s first venture into Central London.

Through the door, down the stairs and I was immediately greeted by a man so good looking, I thought they must have hired models in for the night. Turns out this lovely fellow actually works for BOOM!- Oh guys, you are just too good to us. And how have I not seem him before?!

There were a hefty number of bodies in the lobby- chatter was buzzing, cameras were flashing, and twitter handles were being swapped. Along with this, pumping music was coming out of the darkened studio, whetting our appetites.

The previous class had been a Body BOOM! class (so a spinning class with hand weights) and about half the crowd in the lobby had glistening foreheads and a post-work out glow, suggesting they had already had their BOOM! Holborn experience. The rest of us were champing at the bit to get started, and people began heading inside to choose their bikes and settle in for a sweatfest.

I managed to say a big congratulations to Hilary and Robert, the owners of BOOM before descending into the studio- they looked amazingly chilled at the whole affair, but I guess that’s one of the main reasons that this studio has been so successful, what with two cool cucumbers at the helm.

Anyway, in I went, and what, prey tell, greeted me as I walked into that studio?

A FRIKKIN’ DJ, THAT’S WHAT!

This time a little bit of wee really did come out, but it’s ok because I wasn’t sitting on a bike quite yet. Our DJ was hotting up the decks ready to help us through 45 minutes of unadulterated sweat. Shara took to the stage, turned on her mic, and got us up to speed, pedalling in time with the bass. The sound and the atmosphere was akin to a nightclub- really it was.

I haven’t been taught by Shara during a BOOM! class before but one thing is certain: This. Girl. Beasted. Us.

The bikes have individual light up displays, allowing you to track time and effort on them, but there was no actual clock in the studio for our workout. This actually kind of helped because it meant I could do nothing but get into the moment and ride out the class in all of its sweaty, hardcore, electrifying glory. We took on hills, flats, speed and more hills. We isolated out legs and powered on through the pain, we bounced our elbows and shoulders in time to the amazing sound system, and we yelled out whooping countdowns and “YEAH!!” encouraged by Shara.

There was one pretty funny episode where Shara enthusiastically yelled out “Who’s ready to do 8 more?!?!!!” (I forget of what, but I know it was something painful!)….. and she was met with silence. After the silence, the whole studio immediately burst into giggles as we realised we had been exercised into stunned silence!! (Just for the record, Shara took the silence as agreement and we did 8 more). This woman took no prisoners.

The tempo started to wind down after 45 minutes, and we were off the bikes and onto wobbly little legs, enjoying the sensation of stretching out our bodies. We were all looking a bit stunned at the crazy workout we had just accomplished, but everyone was dripping with sweat and beaming with endorphin-happiness. BOOM! have definitely worked out the magic formula to getting people working out and genuinely enjoying it.

Just time for a couple of photos with some of the girls there and then out of the studio and back out into the lobby to chatter excitedly about what the hell had just happened to us in there. Now for photos, drinks, protein icecream (a very important part of any warmdown- thanks Vita Coco and Whey Hey Icecream!) and we were handed out possibly THE MOST exciting goodie bags I have ever received! Gone are the days of a slice of cake and a PEZ toy, this goodie bag meant business.

Thanks BOOM! Brilliant night!!

THE VERDICT: I really was so happy that little old Project HB got to try out BOOM Holborn before it’s official launch in late Jan/early Feb 2014; this place really is just about to get even greater. With city domination on the horizon, these guys are well on the way to teaching London that, when it comes to a night out in Ministry or a spinning class with BOOM! only a fool would choose the former :)