TikTok is fueling a SoulCycle comeback
“As someone who has tried almost every workout class on the planet, there is nothing like SoulCycle,” said TikTok creator Matt Trav in a video posted in early January. “The average human being cannot understand what blowing out the candle during the soulful song can do to the human psyche.”
Nearly 40,000 people who liked the video seem to agree. “Absolutely nothing can beat NYC SoulCycle circa 2016,” one commenter wrote. “Literally like going to church,” another added.
Across social media platforms, that renaissance is already underway. Devotees have been sharing nostalgia-laced photos from years past, unearthing old merchandise, and swapping stories in comment sections. Some have been documenting their first-time experiences, while longtime riders welcome newcomers with open arms.
“Come with me to soulcycle as someone who was severely addicted . . . after a 6 year hiatus,” one TikTok user wrote, adding, “Soul cycle is back btw.”
Once at the center of the fitness zeitgeist in New York City, the 45-minute workout class was branded a cult during its 2010s heyday. Its clientele included a number of A-list celebrities, and its instructors became bona fide stars, building obsessive fan bases who followed them across the country for a chance to snag a front-row bike in one of their classes.
“At SoulCycle, we very quickly became the club you can’t get into, and that has a lot of appeal to a lot of people,” cofounder Ruth Zukerman said on the Wharton Business Daily podcast in 2019.
The same exclusive culture that fueled its rise also helped drive its fall. “How SoulCycle lost its soul,” a 2020 Vox headline read. The next year, a New York Times article reported allegations of sexual harassment, racism, and fat-shaming by members of SoulCycle’s elite ring of “master instructors.” In 2022, the chain shuttered about 25% of its locations, a ripple effect from the COVID-19 pandemic.
A decade after its peak, SoulCycle is back, and its return reflects the cultural moment.
The revival coincides with a broader 2016 nostalgia takeover on social media. Alongside a renewed fascination with so-called millennial optimism, hyper-filtered, grainy throwback images have flooded feeds as millennials and older Gen Zers reminisce about the music, fashion, and even workouts of a decade ago. It was the era of Snapchat filters, skinny jeans, and SoulCycle.
High-intensity workouts have since fallen out of favor, replaced by reformer Pilates and hot girl walks. But as saunas and ice baths become the new social clubs, and wellness-focused Gen Zers trade alcohol-fueled nights out for early morning workouts, it’s no surprise that a candlelit class set to blasting music and bound by a cultlike sense of community is being embraced by a new generation.
As one TikTok user suggested: “Out of all the things to bring back from 2016, I vote to bring back SoulCycle.”