About a year ago, I had the great opportunity to spend a semester in Washington, D.C. as part of the Washington Semester Program with American University. I arrived in D.C. right before the inauguration of President Trump and my classmates and I always joked about seeing the Trumps and their staff, or the Obamas just casually walking down the road. We never thought a day would actually come where we would be face-to-face with these people.
While in D.C., I became very into SoulCycle. I went every Monday after class and even went on the weekends. Usually, they do not allow people to enter the workout room late, but I noticed the SoulCycle workers usher in a woman about five minutes late, prepared her bike quickly, then left. I did not think anything of this, and continued my workout. There is a part of the class when we use weights and do arm exercises with weights that range from 1-5 lbs. During this time, my instructor stated, “does anyone choose to switch their weights?”
The woman who entered late then raised her hand, and made a hand gesture on how much weight she wanted. I looked over at the woman and was completely shocked. It was Michelle Obama. After seeing her, I stared at her for probably the rest of class. The room was dark, so I wasn’t sure if I just was making up her being the previous First Lady in my head. But, It was really her. After class, Mrs. Obama quickly threw on a hat and ran out of the room into the business’s office area to change. After a quick change, Obama was escorted out of the building by Secret Service into a vehicle that was waiting right outside for her.
I was not the only one to notice we had a celebrity in our class, and many other people approached our instructor after the work out, all saying, “is that who I thought it was…”
My instructor said she cannot say much about it because she is under some kind of privacy contract, but that it was her and “she is an amazing person and amazing person to work with.”
Immediately, I called my mother and shared the news with her. After that, I did some digging. I learned that SoulCycle was Obama’s favorite form of work out, and even used to have private lessons in the White House.
I usually saw her every week at our workout class, unless she was touring somewhere or on vacation. We almost always had one bike between us and it was an honor to see her hard work. The last time I saw her, she was accompanied by some friends who surrounded her. In the front and back and on one side. I was on the other side. I so desperately wished to just say, “hello, how are you,” to her but I could not get the courage. She was talking with her friends about schools, so how could I interrupt THE Michelle Obama? Who am I to do that? Just a pleb in the face of royalty.
I regret not saying anything to her because there is a high chance we will never be in the same room ever again. I would have to summarize this experience as “the whole DC experience”. My classmate saw Kellyanne Conway with her kids at Chipotle, but that was only miniscule in comparison to my workout classes with Mama O.