OT: Peloton reviews?

[Jletoile]

The people I know who own it, love it.

I have rollers and a trainer for my road bike and I find any kind of riding indoors to be so insanely boring that I would rather ride in a snowstorm than endure it for even an hour.

Personally, I would spend the money on something you can use outdoors, but you do sound like something of a candy ass, so the Peloton may work for you? Is there any place you can try it out first?

Do you know anyone who can use a trainer? I bought one, paid like $400 but never used.
I’m just giving it away and no of no one who uses one.

 

[Chuck]

Thanks. I'll look for that.

I've also had a notification on the touchscreen the past few days that says "Update available," but when I click on the "Update" icon it just brings me back to the classes screen. Any idea what's up with that?

Ours updates automatically. Sometimes I get on and the screen says that a new update has been installed. Maybe you can just set to auto-update.

I also agree on the power zone training. I like that once you’ve completed your test, your power zone numbers (showing what effort zone you are in), are shown on all rides. It just adds another metric to push you or even pull you back if you are going too hard.

 

[tykurez]

Expecting ours today and definitely excited about it - but it was supposed to be delivered by 10am and nothing yet and we spent over an hour on the phone this afternoon only for them to tell us they’d call us back within an hour with an updated window.

I imagine these things sold like crazy since the pandemic started.

 

[Improviser]

Yeah, that's the concern. That's what I said when my wife wanted a treadmill around 20 years ago. She stopped using it within a year or two but I still use it almost every day, and two of our daughters use it occasionally. I'm just trying to get a sense whether I would use this as much. It would be nice to have options to mix it up, which is why I liked having a gym membership. Now that that's no longer an option, I'm looking for something else to give me a break from running because my body is not built to do that much running.

Have you thought of an arc trainer? It is much less stressful on the joints than a treadmill. I bought one from usedfitnessales in Thomaston and they delivered and set it up. It took them under an hour but it is a heavy piece of equipment and should go in a basement, and you have to make sure the door opening is wide enough. About a grand, but for $600 more they can paint it and it will look super. Delivery and setup , another $350.

 

[8893]

Expecting ours today and definitely excited about it - but it was supposed to be delivered by 10am and nothing yet and we spent over an hour on the phone this afternoon only for them to tell us they’d call us back within an hour with an updated window.

I imagine these things sold like crazy since the pandemic started.

Did it get delivered? I have found their customer service to be very good.

Have you thought of an arc trainer? It is much less stressful on the joints than a treadmill. I bought one from usedfitnessales in Thomaston and they delivered and set it up. It took them under an hour but it is a heavy piece of equipment and should go in a basement, and you have to make sure the door opening is wide enough. About a grand, but for $600 more they can paint it and it will look super. Delivery and setup , another $350.

I have not, but that's one of the machines I used to use regularly at Planet Fitness--never knew what it was called until now. So far I am very happy with the Peloton--both the machine and the streaming content.

 

[tykurez]

Did it get delivered? I have found their customer service to be very good.

Yes it finally came. Was a pita getting upstairs but took it for my first spin last night and loved it.

 

[Deepster]

For what it's worth, the alternative view.....I have gotten into a real groove using my "rigged" up Peleton over the last month. I'm in tune with the bike enough where I'm very, very confident in my resistance %'s and I'm getting the full workout. For the amount spent and the amount I've used it in the last year, it's been a huge score for me and well worth the trial.

 

[tykurez]

Tips for sore perineum? Was never an avid biker - maybe I just need to get used to it.

 

[8893]

Tips for sore perineum? Was never an avid biker - maybe I just need to get used to it.

 

[tykurez]

Do you use one of these?

 

[8893]

Do you use one of these?

Yes. I bought this one after a week. One of my best friends works with a guy who is apparently big into Peleton and he asked him for any advice for me when I told him I had gotten one. The first thing he said was to get one of these.

 

[Improviser]

Tips for sore perineum? Was never an avid biker - maybe I just need to get used to it.

Good cushioned shorts and a heavy duty athletic supporter!

If Peloton has a stiff seat and I don't know that, try another exercise bike with a soft and wider seat. Bike in front of your Roku TV and play cycling videos on the YouTube Channel. If you can't stand the music coming from the video, mute the sound and play your own music if not from a sound system nearby, then stream music onto a portable device.

 

[huskyrob1]

The Subscription is probably more important than the bike. You can get any fixed gear stationary bike and do the rides through an ipad or smart tv. @Scot-e might be able to confirm this.

For all the money for the Peloton bike, screen, subscription, Wi-Fi, and God knows what else, I can get three pairs of high end Nike running shoes, two gym memberships (They're open now), and a $1500 off road bike or a commercial Stairmaster. About Stairmasters, I would get one over any Peloton or another high end stationary bike for the reason that walking or jogging up a steep hill or stairs is much more natural for the human body than ANY bike.

 

[Deepster]

For all the money for the Peloton bike, screen, subscription, Wi-Fi, and God knows what else, I can get three pairs of high end Nike running shoes, two gym memberships (They're open now), and a $1500 off road bike or a commercial Stairmaster. About Stairmasters, I would get one over any Peloton or another high end stationary bike for the reason that walking or jogging up a steep hill or stairs is much more natural for the human body than ANY bike.

I outlined how I did that earlier in the thread.

I rigged one up at home. I got an actual spin bike for 425.00. I got pedal sensors to give me my cadence and I subscribe to the Peleton app for 13.00 a month. Throw in brackets to hold my iPad and iPhone and I think it was under 600.00 in total.

Pros: I get what I need. I take part in the classes. The knob adjustments are "close enough" meaning, I know what it feels like to be between 30-40 resistance, I just can't tell if it's exactly 35 like a real Peleton does. I use it 3-4 times a week in the morning.

Cons: It's not exact. If you're a hard core type of trainer who tracks and logs all your stats, you wouldn't get that here. You also aren't in on the class leaderboards and the teachers don't ever call you out personally, if you care about that.

Works great for me.

 

[8893]

For all the money for the Peloton bike, screen, subscription, Wi-Fi, and God knows what else, I can get three pairs of high end Nike running shoes, two gym memberships (They're open now), and a $1500 off road bike or a commercial Stairmaster. About Stairmasters, I would get one over any Peloton or another high end stationary bike for the reason that walking or jogging up a steep hill or stairs is much more natural for the human body than ANY bike.

You don't have Wi-Fi already in your house?

I got the bike for half price and they threw in two months of the subscription for free because of their delay in being able to deliver the bike.

I am canceling my gym membership because I have no desire to be back in a closed environment with people sweating and breathing heavily. That savings alone halves the price of my Peloton subscription. Plus I can have endless users on my Peloton subscription, which is great for us because two of my daughters are getting into it now.

I have two to three pairs of running shoes in rotation at all times; they last less than a year.

I still jog/walk/hike several times a week, but I wanted the Peloton to give my legs a break from the impact. I would also have considered a home rowing machine, but the Peloton deal came my way first. I believe a commercial stairmaster like the one I use at the gym (Cybex Arc Trainer) is much, much more expensive than either a Peloton or rowing machine.

As others have noted, the Peloton screen and streaming content are really excellent. For me and my daughters who also use it, it makes a huge difference in terms of motivating you to get on the bike and providing instruction.

I'm also really digging the arms workouts. I've never been a weight-training guy and I scoffed at the fact that the heaviest dumbbells that I could order with the Peloton were 3lbs. Now two weeks in, doing some type of arms workout every other day, I am definitely feeling it. I'm also feeling a lot more of a core workout than I ever got with running, arc trainer or elliptical.

Instead of dreading my daily runs because I felt like I was beating my body up, I now look forward to mixing them in a few times a week, and I feel better before, during and after them than I did when I was running almost every day.

Hey @Deepster , you mentioned getting into a groove recently--who are your favorite Peloton instructors? As I sample them I notice that I have a much easier time syncing with some than others.

 

[ScottBonz]

Wife and I have a Peleton since January of 2019. Just hit my 150 rides (2-3 days a week) yesterday....some people on there have an ungodly amount of rides under their belts. Even if they started when the Peletons first came out...they are still nuts.

If any one wants to follow, my handle is the same on Peleton. If I get 3 in during the week its usually one intervals and arms, one hit training, and one power zone/sweat steady training. I usually ride with Jess King, Emma Lovewell (best music...indy and rock), Alex Touissant, Ben (HIT), and Matt (Power Zones).

I'd recommended to add some power zones or sweat steady rides. they don't have as big of a pay off on the leaderboard but definitely help with stamina. For me, its way easy to go out all out on a HIT with a good recovery between intervals than it is to have no recovery and go moderately hard for a longer period of time.

 

[Deepster]

You don't have Wi-Fi already in your house?

I got the bike for half price and they threw in two months of the subscription for free because of their delay in being able to deliver the bike.

I am canceling my gym membership because I have no desire to be back in a closed environment with people sweating and breathing heavily. That savings alone halves the price of my Peloton subscription. Plus I can have endless users on my Peloton subscription, which is great for us because two of my daughters are getting into it now.

I have two to three pairs of running shoes in rotation at all times; they last less than a year.

I still jog/walk/hike several times a week, but I wanted the Peloton to give my legs a break from the impact. I would also have considered a home rowing machine, but the Peloton deal came my way first. I believe a commercial stairmaster like the one I use at the gym (Cybex Arc Trainer) is much, much more expensive than either a Peloton or rowing machine.

As others have noted, the Peloton screen and streaming content are really excellent. For me and my daughters who also use it, it makes a huge difference in terms of motivating you to get on the bike and providing instruction.

I'm also really digging the arms workouts. I've never been a weight-training guy and I scoffed at the fact that the heaviest dumbbells that I could order with the Peloton were 3lbs. Now two weeks in, doing some type of arms workout every other day, I am definitely feeling it. I'm also feeling a lot more of a core workout than I ever got with running, arc trainer or elliptical.

Instead of dreading my daily runs because I felt like I was beating my body up, I now look forward to mixing them in a few times a week, and I feel better before, during and after them than I did when I was running almost every day.

Hey @Deepster , you mentioned getting into a groove recently--who are your favorite Peloton instructors? As I sample them I notice that I have a much easier time syncing with some than others.

I like Alex Touissant and Ally Love the best. I like instructors who lay out what's coming clearly. "You have 30 more seconds here, then we're going to increase the cadence to 90-100". I don't like the overly cheesy "You're amazing! You made a choice to get better today!" stuff at all.

 

[Mots010]

I jumped on the 90 day free trial back in April. I dont do the cycling, but rather the strength, stretching, yoga etc. I like it enough that we dropped our family gym membership. I'm going to start doing some of the running workouts this week to shake things up.

 

[8893]

I like Alex Touissant and Ally Love the best. I like instructors who lay out what's coming clearly. "You have 30 more seconds here, then we're going to increase the cadence to 90-100". I don't like the overly cheesy "You're amazing! You made a choice to get better today!" stuff at all.

They were the first two instructors I tried. I like them both also; agree they each have a very nice way about them.

I did a Cody Rigsby ride the other day and didn't like his cadence at all. Very hard for me to be in sync because, unlike the others, he didn't do a good job of clearly laying out what was coming.

I have done a few rides with Olivia Amato recently and I like her rides, but I didn't like her arms workout because I couldn't get in sync with her instruction or movements. She has good energy though.

I've been doing the Power Zone training and am in the second week of that now. Matt Wilpers has been excellent and really helpful in terms of understanding the movements and getting better and more efficient at them. Very thoughtful.

Christine D'Ercole has also been very good on the endurance rides in the power zone training, but she's probably a little too much positive reinforcement for your tastes. I don't really like her music though.

I don't like Denis Morton's music much, either, and I wasn't crazy about his instruction.

I have done one ride with Kendall Toole and two with Robin Arzon and thought they were both decent enough to try again.

Leanne Hainsby remains my overall favorite in terms of clear instruction, really good intensity, variety and positive reinforcement, but I could see how she would get on your nerves. I'm a sucker for a female British accent so it doesn't sound as cloying to me.

 

[Deepster]

They were the first two instructors I tried. I like them both also; agree they each have a very nice way about them.

I did a Cody Rigsby ride the other day and didn't like his cadence at all. Very hard for me to be in sync because, unlike the others, he didn't do a good job of clearly laying out what was coming.

I have done a few rides with Olivia Amato recently and I like her rides, but I didn't like her arms workout because I couldn't get in sync with her instruction or movements. She has good energy though.

I've been doing the Power Zone training and am in the second week of that now. Matt Wilpers has been excellent and really helpful in terms of understanding the movements and getting better and more efficient at them. Very thoughtful.

Christine D'Ercole has also been very good on the endurance rides in the power zone training, but she's probably a little too much positive reinforcement for your tastes. I don't really like her music though.

I don't like Denis Morton's music much, either, and I wasn't crazy about his instruction.

I have done one ride with Kendall Toole and two with Robin Arzon and thought they were both decent enough to try again.

Leanne Hainsby remains my overall favorite in terms of clear instruction, really good intensity, variety and positive reinforcement, but I could see how she would get on your nerves. I'm a sucker for a female British accent so it doesn't sound as cloying to me.

Alex Touissant always goes "1-2, 1-2" when there's a new cadence. That helps me especially since my rigged version doesn't have exact cadence settings. I'll try Leanne Hainsby this afternoon.

 

[8893]

Alex Touissant always goes "1-2, 1-2" when there's a new cadence. That helps me especially since my rigged version doesn't have exact cadence settings. I'll try Leanne Hainsby this afternoon.

Just beware that she is very much into the "You're amazing! You made a choice to get better today!" stuff. Like I said, it doesn't bother me coming from her as much as it might coming from someone else.

 

[Deepster]

Just beware that she is very much into the "You're amazing! You made a choice to get better today!" stuff. Like I said, it doesn't bother me coming from her as much as it might coming from someone else.

Fine. I'll just giggle and judge you the entire ride.

 

[8893]

Fine. I'll just giggle and judge you the entire ride.

I'll be interested to hear what you think. I'm guessing she could coax you onto the dance floor.

She has a very varied taste in music. She is also very into the HIIT, Tabata and interval training, so a lot of her rides feature sections with 2:1 and 3:1 intensity to recovery. The one I did last night also mixed in two arms segments, which I think she does very well. I really liked the playlist, too; think I'm gonna sync my Spotify to it so I can start saving songs I like.

 

[Deepster]

I'll be interested to hear what you think. I'm guessing she could coax you onto the dance floor.

She has a very varied taste in music. She is also very into the HIIT, Tabata and interval training, so a lot of her rides feature sections with 2:1 and 3:1 intensity to recovery. The one I did last night also mixed in two arms segments, which I think she does very well. I really liked the playlist, too; think I'm gonna sync my Spotify to it so I can start saving songs I like.

I think you love her.

 

[8893]

I think you love her.

We're not there yet.