Wrapping up work some afternoon last November, I waltzed into the living room and found myself in the middle of one of those conversations where you weren’t actually necessary for the first half. “It will be great for you to train for ALC too!” She continued to talk excitedly about how we wouldn’t pay for the spin studio anymore, how convenient it will be, and how it would really be a good Christmas present. She showed me the price and I hummed to myself, giving the appearance of stern but deliberate thought “yeah, we’ll see.” Having already started to price out more cycling equipment, I didn’t want to give up the gag just yet.
In the world of cycling, everything seems to be godawful expensive, so a $2,300 indoor trainer which we could both get a lot of use out of, wasn’t actually that expensive. I wouldn’t call it cheap, but it was reasonably priced, and I quietly ordered a Peloton bike. Without the flexibility in either of our schedules to travel to a fitness studio or gym outside the home, the ability to get a good high-quality workout in our living room has become increasingly important.
After a couple of months, I am nearing my 50th workout, and I can genuinely affirm that the Peloton bike and it’s corresponding digital subscription of hundreds of spin, yoga, stretching, and strength floor classes, is completely worth the hype and the money.
The last time I felt this good about a seemingly high-end product was when I upgraded from my iBook to an Apple PowerBook and was shocked at how good it was, wholly justifying its own premium price tag.
Peloton is basically a minimal social network, coupled to a on-demand video library sourced through an Android tablet affixed to a stationary bike. It is not a technically complex product, but polished in all the right places to provide an altogether positive experience.
Instructors with live classes, encouraging and challenging the leaderboard of home and in-studio cyclists. Built in “Cast” support to display the content on a nearby wireless-connected TV for easy transition to floor exercises. Integration of power zones into the in-class UI to help tailor the workout to the rider. And a variety of content trivially available through the application.
The only downside we have seen thus far is that Peloton ships with outdated Look “Delta” pedals. These style pedals are no longer manufactured and if you find yourself wanting to use the same bike shoes and cleats between the Peloton and your road bike, you’ll want to buy new pedals for the Peloton.
If you’re in the market for a stationary bike, I highly recommend the Peloton. Or if you’re just looking for a new home fitness product, their Peloton Digital subscription which just provides access to their large variety of floor classes.
In my training for AIDS/LifeCycle over the past two months I have written over 280 miles on my Peloton bike but there’s a lot further to go!
I hope you will join me, and thousands of other supporters, to end AIDS!
My donation page, and fundraising progress, can be found here.