I want to tell you the reasons I love my Peloton bike.
***Use my code BP6DA8 for $100 towards accessories (or new bike shoes) with purchase.
UPDATE: September 2020
I felt as it was necessary to update my blog post as Peloton has absolutely transformed in the last several years. I wrote this blog post nearly two years ago; before the yoga and mediation classes, before the badges, before the shared screens. Peloton is sure keeping up with the times so it is my responsibility to do so as well.
It was March 2020, I was eight-months pregnant and the entire globe was experiencing a pandemic. Gyms were closed and my husband was forced to exercise from home. Enter the bike that goes nowhere that has transformed his mind, body, and spirits in the last several months. The Peloton bike gives us a quick break from playing with our children now 2.5 years old and 4 months old and get our well-deserved exercises. The endorphins the bike creates gives us the energy to do 1000 different things.
Since my original blog post, my parents, my twin sister, my little sister, and all of my good friends now own a Peloton bike. The bike has a feature that allows you to essentially Facetime your friend/family member on the screen if you are taking the same ride. We ride as a family and push each other.
Were you one of the many people who made fun of the Peloton bike? Did your view change when you were quarantined in your home for 3-5 months? The Peloton bike isn’t cheap but since the pandemic began, many people have said goodbye to vacations, gym memberships, leisure spending, so it has made sense.
In 2020, they’ve introduced a variety of new class types. Fun new ways to work up a sweat with Dance Cardio and Fit Family. The ability to build strength with barre and Pilates. The combination of cardio and strength both in one class with Bike Bootcamp.
Continued to introduce new platforms to experience Peloton with Android TV, Roku and Apple TV (especially useful for getting the entire household working out together).
Peloton pledged $1M to offer two months of Membership free to Members facing financial hardship at the start of the pandemic. Gifted 100 Bikes to hospitals and healthcare professionals through The Comeback program
- Peloton allows you to view the playlist to a ride ahead of time
- You aren’t sharing your equipment with other germy strangers who could potentially be spreading the virus
- Extensive library- in addition to spin, Peloton offers strength, yoga, cardio, mediation, running, outdoor audio, stretching, boot camp, walking all bundled in your membership, and has been filming throughout the pandemic in the instructor’s homes.
- If you don’t want to pay for the bike upfront– there is a 0% financing option! The bike comes down to $58 a month + if you want to add the subscription it’s $40. So for about $100, you too, ride with me #maximizermama
- Brings out your competitive side-Peloton has you earning medals and stickers!
- Tags, a new feature designed to bring members closer. Peloton has released tags to help share your personality, share your story, and connect with others around your interests.
- I love tracking my progress. Peloton keeps track of your rides, with charts, graphs, metrics, everything. Metrics while taking the class, metrics after, just way more feedback from the technology. Feedback is important; it lets you know how far you’ve come & how far you have to go.
Beginning of Original Post-January 2019
I first used the Peloton bike when I was four months pregnant at a gym in Vail, Colorado. They removed the clip-in pedals so you can insert your own sneakers into the pedals. I prefer
My first ever class was with Jess King, my sister’s favorite instructor. It was 45 minutes, intervals and arms. I burned so many calories, felt inspired, and hustled through a sweaty workout.
Peloton Cost
I flew back home to Tallahassee and told my husband about it. We
Peloton Description
The Peloton bike comes with a 22 inch, wifi-enabled tablet mounted to the handlebars. That tablet contains the force of 20+ inspiring instructors, endless classes, and an easy to use touch screen. The bike is sleek and well-built. You literally can take live classes from the top instructors in New York City (as well as London) in the privacy of your own home.
We put my bike in the front sunroom. When my daughter was first born, I could set her in the vibrator and wiz through a workout with her sleeping right next to me. As she got a few months older and started moving around, I even strapped her on my back in the Ergo Carrier and kicked butt with Jess, Robyn, and Ally Love.
I recommend buying their cycling
Follow the intro videos about setting the seat height and depth (Christine has a great one here), and know that one of the most common setup errors is that people don’t have the seat high enough. The seat is easy to change between riders.
***Use my code BP6DA8 for $100 towards accessories with purchase.
10 Reasons Why Peloton is Much More than a Bike .
1.The instructors. World-class instructors that have the power to inspire and push you through even the most challenging ride. And the workouts are intense. I was nervous that virtual instructors wouldn’t be able to push me during the classes. I was wrong. The size of the touchscreen (22” High Definition) makes me feel like we’re right in the NYC studio class and like the instructors are talking to us. And sometimes they are. They can monitor each person’s metrics, and if they see we’re slacking, they’re not afraid to call us out!
The instructors are looking directly into the camera and talking to you. They know your leaderboard name and your hometown.
2. The convenience. Everyone has 20 minutes. There is no excuse to not strap in. It’s hard to find an excuse for not walking 20 feet to work out (don’t get me wrong, we still try to find them…it’s just way harder). Once we clip in, we’re 3 touches away from starting a workout. You are saving the drive from the gym back home. It’s a time saver.
3. Variety. You have access to 20+ Live Workout Classes Daily and 10,000+ on-demand classes and counting. With your membership, you can get into running, boot camp, yoga, strength, and outdoor workouts. The classes range from 5 minutes to 90 minutes. I love the arm workouts and legs and glutes.
4. Hold Yourself Accountable by Tracking Progress. The Peloton bike has exact metrics for cadence, resistance, output (calculated based on cadence and resistance), distance, calories burned, and heart rate – all of which are clearly visible at the bottom of the touchscreen and the instructors will guide you.
5. Killer Music. Bonus: Each playlist in shared publicly in an album on Spotify. Under the username,
6. It’s a Community (and a Cult). CNBC recently published an article (February 2019) about this $4 billion fitness startup with a cult following. My sister and I are flying to New York in May for their Peloton Homecoming. More details to follow. By joining Peloton, you are joining a team. You will ride with others who will hold you accountable. The community is so supportive.
7. Ride in the privacy of your home. I scream. I’m usually wearing just a sports bra and shorts. I grunt. It is a judgment-free zone.
8. Constantly Evolving. When I got my Peloton in the fall of 2018, you could stream spin classes with fabulous instructors, scenic rides, and some beyond the bike now called “floor”. Now there are yoga classes, cardio, glutes, arms, core, full-body, it’s ever-growing. Taking Peloton classes is like watching a show with healthy, diverse, and motivating cast members.
9. Easy delivery and assembly. The in-home set up was efficient and very professional.
10. It’s a long-term investment in your health. You pay for yoga classes, ski passes, gym memberships, golf course fees, equipment, etc. This is YOUR long-term investment. I lost all my baby weight and am at a lower weight than I was pre-baby. I am in the best shape of my life.
Peloton Instructors
It is so hard to pick a favorite instructor. I personally like Robin the best but these instructors relate to everyone differently. They are all unique in their own ways.
Robin Arzon is saucy and fiercely dressed with bright lipstick and a colorful bandana or a funky hair extension. She looks like she could be off-Broadway. You literally feel empowered with you clip off after her class.
Robin taught the first-ever internationally-filmed classes streamed live from Pyeongchang during the 2018 Olympics. She’s the kind of person that will teach a 30 min hit class and run 15 miles home. Robin pushes me hard. She has Type I diabetes and is an ultra-marathoner. And she graduated magna cum laude from law school. She published a motivational guide “Shut Up and Run”. She tells her riders “You have the next 30 seconds need to get your life together”.
Today she shouted, “Welcome to the Discomfort Inn” and “Make this 2×4 space your kingdom.” She’s known to say things like “if you’re not breathless right now then you’re wasting your time”, “what’s 30 seconds to a hustler?”, “and we don’t look for shortcuts, we look for finish lines.”
Robin pushes me. She says, “that feeling is not available on Amazon Prime” and “it’s impossible until you do it, then you come back for tomorrow, asking for more” as she reaches her arms out. I want to pedal faster. Robin is unapologetic, a savage and kicks my ass. She pushes me past my limit and do a new personal record. I straighten my crown, she’s a queen.
Favorite Robin Arzon Sayings
“If it doesn’t raise my spirit, my endurance, or my bank account; the answer is “no.””
“RAH”
“Get your life together”
“Consider this ride a funeral to your excuses.”
“They can wait. This is your time.”
“You can buy the bike but you can’t buy the hustle.”
“Honor your hustle”
“Adjust your crown.”
“Rent is due every day in the house of hustle”
“Treat your body one on one. You are the true limited edition”
“The best ab workout is five sets of stop eating crap.”
“Fix your crown. Don’t let it slip.”
“You didn’t get on this ride today to become mediocre.”
“It’s okay to pace yourself but you are not allowed to be basic.”
“Add it back. I’ll wait.”
“I love you too much to let you be mediocre.”
“You just did that.”
“No challenge, no change.”
“This is where hustlers live.”
“You are always welcome to my party.”
“They write about the unstoppables. What will they say about you?”
“Add it back. I felt it.”
“We don’t need them to give us a gold star; we sweat gold.”
“I don’t think we should be fearless. I think we should eat our fears. RAWR”
“Your second wind is not at the bottom of a sports drink; it’s a lifestyle choice.”
“You’ll be too much for some people. They aren’t you’re people. We’re your f**king people.”
Jess King is healing and uplifting. She loves her mom, meat, and sweet potatoes. Jess King is charismatic and beautiful. She encourages you to express yourself as she sways her hair left and right. She seems approachable and someone I would want to spend time off the bike. Jess will tell you, be an assassin, send calories plummeting to their death. She reminds you to have the eyes of your elbows facing each other while building quiet intensity, softer, deeper, go go go.
Jess changed the shortened name of high-intensity training HIT to SHIT (seriously high-intensity training). Jess instructs you to feel all your power transfer to the bottom of your foot and push that power into the pedal.
Ally Love rocks an Afro and sends positivity and rides to encourage good vibes. She is a braid goddess. She really does it all-health coach, host, model, dancer, entrepreneur. Ally was a former model and dancer for the Brooklyn Nets. Ally gets as excited about country music as I do. She knows the words to every new country song and sings them with a wide smile on her face. Ally pulls inspiration from these country songs like Jon Pardi’s song where he says, you’re the rock to my roll, you’re good for to my soul, it’s true…She will go on and explain how no one is self-made and it takes help and support to get where you are.
There’s Jenn Sherman who connects to the older generation of riders and is known for her sing-a-long rides. I love jamming to her 80’s hits. Jenn is authentic and truly a Rockstar. Jenn Sherman was the very first instructor hired at Peloton. Jenn got an email about a startup in 2013 and thought it was brilliant so she responded back to the address at the end of the email. (It happened to be John Foley’s email, the founder).
Jenn is interviewed in the Peloton Blog. “When you teach to a room 60-deep with riders in our studio, and then layer on the people who are with you all over the country, and all over the world, who are reaching you via live stream and know that they are all riding with you, connecting in real-time? It’s indescribable. Home riders alongside those in the NYC studio are creating an incredibly unique, dynamic community and it feels personal because it IS personal: riders are competing, encouraging, and connecting with each other in a way never before considered and it’s doing incredible things in people’s lives on their own terms, in their own spaces, and at their own pace.”
Matt Whiplers with his southern vibe and an endurance athlete gives you the structure to catch and help you achieve your best personal record. Consistency is key, he helps you train smart and train hard. I love his power zone rides. Matt ran D1 cross country and track for Georgia State. Prior to Peloton, he was a CPA for Goldman Sachs.
Peloton has turned its instructors into celebrities. People idolize them. There’s Alex Toussaint with that voice that should do voiceovers. Like Denzel Washington-isk. . He loves 90’s hip hop. Alex will kick your butt while telling you how awesome you are. He is motivating, challenging, energizing and encouraging.
Hannah Marie Corbin plays my country music with a huge smile. She teaches killer arms classes too and reminds me of California. She always makes me feel like a boss for showing up.
Cody is a dancer and literally gets you to dance on your bike like you are in a soul cycle. He used to be a backup dancer for Britney Spears so I already love him. Cody is witty and in the know. It drives me nuts to laugh out loud at something he says and see the person in the front row remain firm, not even a little smile. Come on! My favorite Cody line, “if Britney can get through 2007, you can get up this damn hill.”
Cody is hilarious. He put a 90″s playlist together pre-Valentines Day pairing up vocalists who once were a celebrity couple. Brittany Spears & Justin Timberlake, Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber, Jessica Simpson and Nick Lache in 98 degrees. Petty (as he would say) and brilliant.
Emma Lovewell appears quiet so I haven’t taken as many of her classes but I know she grinds. Emma is no bullshit let’s do this. She brings the energy. She has great music and great messages. Emma grew up in Martha’s Vineyard, how dreamy. She moved to New York to be a professional dancer for the Rolling Stones and other artists. Emma was originally hired as a model for Peloton. Emma has a great health and wellness blog livelearnlovewell. She is part Chinese.
Christine looks tough and is tough. I love all her words. She is accessible, inspiring, and challenging. She is great at building a foundation as a cyclist. She is absolutely authentic. “I am bigger than a smaller pair of pants”.
Jennifer Jacobs has some great 80’s music rides and a fabulous smile. She is known to fellow Pelotoners as “JJ”. She pushes you to train head and has made my legs stronger.
Dennis seems like someone you would be friends with on and off the bike. Some women think Dennis is so damn sexy so you will have to check it out for yourself. He is funny and doesn’t take himself too seriously.
Olivia brings a cheerleader approach. She’s tough and so motivating. She’s like a mini Robin Arzon in the making and she will kick your butt.
There’s Ben and Leanne from the UK now I haven’t even tried but will soon.
Peloton Blog
If the bike cost is not in your budget, pay the $20 monthly subscription for the digital app only and use it on your phone with your own gym equipment. I use the app when I’m traveling and it’s part of the monthly subscription. And you don’t have to own a Peloton to follow their blog. Which is fabulous.
Selection of Rides
You’re probably going to sweat a lot so order a bunch of small towels. And you should have a mat under your bike so you aren’t leaving a puddle of sweat on your floor. The Peloton mat is very big and nice but a simple yoga mat works well.
HIIT-high intensity interval training such as intense periods of effort with a short rest. Robin and Jess love these types of rides and will kick your butt. This probably shouldn’t be your very first ride but is a great ride for an efficient workout.
Tabata– another favorite of mine. Similar to a HIIT ride but with patterns such as 20-second efforts followed by 10-seconds rest or 60-second efforts followed by 30-seconds rest. This term originated from a Japanese Scientist, Dr. Tabata in the 1990s.
Low-Impact-I want to be clear, this does not mean low effort. There will be very little in and out of the saddle and your resistance probably won’t go over 50, but you will still get a killer workout.
Live DJ-exactly how it sounds. Live DJ mixing songs while the instructor jams out.
Groove-kind of like soul cycle. You will be dancing.
HRZ Endurance Ride-Heart Rate Zone Training based on five zones to optimize your performance.
Intervals and Arms-Exactly how it sounds. Interval training with a couple of small arm workouts.
Power Zone Endurance-Experts effectively guide you through a specific output to build strength and endurance.
Climb Ride-hill based class
Sweat Steady Ride-series of sustained intervals
80’s, 90’s, Nsync, Country, EDM Rides, Rock, 80’s Pop, 80’s Rock, Classic Rock, 70’s Pop, 90’s Hip Hop, 90’s Rock, YDK, Disco, New Tracks, House, 60’s Rock, Cher, New Tracks, Club Bangers, Feel Good Ride, Epic Sing-Along Rides, Get Lifted, -all fun themed rides.
Peloton Tred
Peloton has recently introduced the Peloton Tread, a high-tech treadmill version of the Peloton bike. You can use the Tread App and run on a treadmill in the gym or outside using the Peloton app. Stream on your television.
Peloton vs. Regular Spin Class
Do you regularly go to a spin class? They’re not particularly convenient. Can rarely just “drop-in” especially if you live in a big city where spinning is wildly popular. Studios run on a schedule. And if you’re anything like me, you can’t just hop on any indoor bike without a custom-made playlist and an instructor you want to be friends with or look like.
The P
Peloton Workouts Are Efficient
I crave getting on my bike during the 45 minutes to an hour window my one-year-old sleeps. Or the hour before I pick her up at Daycare. The morning I get up and ride before work. I wish I had more time to do yoga classes. I will start incorporating them into my days. You can take a five-minute class to learn to do the crow. Or a 30-minute power yoga session.
You Actually Know Your Exact Resistance or Cadence
Any spin classes I have taken in the past have a knob to change the residence turning the knob to the right. You can’t actually track the accurate resistance or cadence. Peloton has an electronic control that displays your exact resistance from 0-100 and your cadence which is measured in pedaling speed. It shows the distance covered, the calories you’ve burned, and your total output.
Live Peloton Rides and On-Demand
If you are taking a live ride, you can compete with riders on the leader board. It inspires me to push harder and I get drenched. But the best part is that it inspires you to ride more and to ride harder, which is why I get such a good sweat-drenched workout. You can take a 30 or 45-minute ride. There are many options for shorter and even longer rides too. Peloton tracks my personal records for every length of ride. I always ride the hardest when I like the soundtrack.
Can Freeze Peloton Membership
Peloton allows members to freeze of up to three months in your first year, when I’m heavily pregnant, post-baby, or injured and then I can freeze it as long as I’d like afterward. You don’t anything out of the bike when you freeze your membership. It’s a nice option to have.
Anyone I know who has tried
If you have three minutes, watch Peloton’s video here.
Read my article on Parade.com here.
Is It Just Us or Is Everyone Obsessed With Their Peloton Bike? We Answer Your Top Questions.
Mackenzie Biehl has a million reasons why it’s hard to find time to exercise: She works 50+ hours a week in sales and marketing. She’s a co-host for her local TV channel. She serves on the board of directors for The Alzheimer’s Project. She runs a popular blog. And oh yeah, she has a toddler too. But none of those stop her from working out—or should we say, strap in—thanks to her Peloton bike, an indoor spinning bicycle that allows people to live-stream workouts or choose from an on-demand list. It’s a love affair that started when Biehl made the purchase in October 2018.
“It’s a time-saver,” she says of the 20-minute workouts she chooses to do 4x a week from the comfort of her own home. “It’s hard to find an excuse for not walking 20 feet to work out. And once we clip in, we’re three touches away from starting a workout.”
Watch my YouTube Parody Robin Arzon as a mom! I had too much fun with my black wig around Halloween.
***Use my code BP6DA8 for $100 towards accessories with the purchase.
XOXO
Mackenzie