Thoughts on peloton

nea5025
nea5025 Posts: 11 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
Hello MFP community!

I’m in the market for an at home spin bike and subscription and have been seriously considering a peloton. I’ve also looked into proform and I’m leaning towards peloton.

If you have some honest opinions about either brand or even a different brand, it would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers!
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Replies

  • nea5025
    nea5025 Posts: 11 Member
    VegasFit wrote: »
    I'm an outdoor cyclist, road and mountain, but I've always enjoyed indoor spin classes. I can't see myself spending Peloton money on an indoor bike. I would put that towards a new road or mtb, but that's just me. I have the Echelon Sport from Walmart and I use the Peloton app. It's a great workout. I'm a fan of their strength classes too. There are a few groups on Facebook that discuss the pros and cons and bike reviews of non Peloton bikes.

    Thank you!
  • SModa61
    SModa61 Posts: 3,122 Member
    I am relatively new to spinning (doing a ride right after I post this). I purchased the Schwinn IC4. I am currently using it with Apple Fitness which sync with my watch and phone and I stream the workout on my flat screen TV. Apple fitness is $80 per year I think. The IC4 is supposed to be compatible with the Peleton AP as well. There are facebook groups that address this whole concept.
  • napaglo
    napaglo Posts: 2 Member
    edited April 2021
    It’s amazing!! The Peloton is the Best purchase I’ve ever made!! It’s totally addicting. Download the app and see everything that you get along with the cycling classes. I think there’s a free trial? It’s overwhelming and it’s awesome! We just ordered the treadmill we like Peloton so much.
  • iPaint82
    iPaint82 Posts: 52 Member
    VegasFit wrote: »
    I'm an outdoor cyclist, road and mountain, but I've always enjoyed indoor spin classes. I can't see myself spending Peloton money on an indoor bike. I would put that towards a new road or mtb, but that's just me. I have the Echelon Sport from Walmart and I use the Peloton app. It's a great workout. I'm a fan of their strength classes too. There are a few groups on Facebook that discuss the pros and cons and bike reviews of non Peloton bikes.

    Hey! How often do you ride? What’s your favourite bike? I just bought a gravel bike! Can’t wait for it to arrive
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    Everyone I know who bought a Peloton loves it and love the software that comes with it. I have literally heard no complaints, even about the price, which deterred me from getting one for my wife.

    The only exception are the bicycle enthusiasts, who prefer something more realistic to real cycling (maybe on their own bike on a trainer) and probably want to connect to Zwift.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    nea5025 wrote: »
    Hello MFP community!

    I’m in the market for an at home spin bike and subscription and have been seriously considering a peloton. I’ve also looked into proform and I’m leaning towards peloton.

    If you have some honest opinions about either brand or even a different brand, it would be greatly appreciated!

    Cheers!

    Tried my niece's last year when we were out to visit. If you enjoy spin and the group class environment, Peleton is pretty good...don't know anything about proform. I did find the instructors to be a bit over the top and kind of cheesy though.

    I do enjoy actual spin classes in person, but for indoor training at home I prefer cycling workouts and programs on Zwift and my road bike and smart trainer as a matter of both cost efficiency and training. But Peloton seems like a pretty good product.
  • barefootbridgey
    barefootbridgey Posts: 81 Member
    When I was shopping around for a bike, what drove me from the Peloton (other than the exorbitant price) was the proprietary classes. I know people like them, but i like the idea of being able to use my equipment for whatever programs I want, without having to use additional screens/devices.

    I LOVE the Les Mills cycling progams (not RPM, but Sprint and The Trip) and would strongly encourage giving them a go. I bought a $400ish bike on amazon, and a $60 projector with a firestick and can do whatever workouts I want...and spent WAY less money. I was already doing Les Mills on Demand, which I think is like, $100 a year or something lik that. Obviously, if you know you'll use and love Peloton, then go for it...but if you don't, there are more flexible options and progams...and cheaper bikes. I will probably eventually buy a Stages bike, but use the same set up, it's been good to me. But...then again, I don't care about measuring anything at all - I just want a good workout.
  • Drex_617
    Drex_617 Posts: 153 Member
    I agree with the peeps saying they’re awesome.. nothing beats the outdoors but, if you need to be inside it’s a great workout :)

    Good luck! Rock it!
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    iPaint82 wrote: »
    VegasFit wrote: »
    I'm an outdoor cyclist, road and mountain, but I've always enjoyed indoor spin classes. I can't see myself spending Peloton money on an indoor bike. I would put that towards a new road or mtb, but that's just me. I have the Echelon Sport from Walmart and I use the Peloton app. It's a great workout. I'm a fan of their strength classes too. There are a few groups on Facebook that discuss the pros and cons and bike reviews of non Peloton bikes.

    Hey! How often do you ride? What’s your favourite bike? I just bought a gravel bike! Can’t wait for it to arrive

    Hi! I try to ride 2-3 times a week. With the nicer weather there are more night options, group rides, I can join. All my friends are getting into gravel but I have not. Maybe some day. My bike of choice is Giant/Liv.
  • 33gail33
    33gail33 Posts: 1,155 Member
    I don’t have a Peleton but I recently bought a cheaper spin bike and I love it. What I did find is that I don’t really enjoy online classes much - I did a few YouTube videos to get an idea of it when I first started - but I prefer to just do my own interval workout listening to my music. I used to run and I find the spin bike a great workout, 30 minutes wipes me out.
  • sbaatc
    sbaatc Posts: 6 Member
    Seeing I just did a 45 min spin class on my peloton while my kids were playing video games... it’s the best purchase I’ve made for myself. The bike is expensive but solid. Classes are top notch and music you can sink into. $39 a month is nothing when it come to your health.
  • lorrainemarie_214
    lorrainemarie_214 Posts: 1 Member
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.
  • maja124moxie
    maja124moxie Posts: 14 Member
    I've had a Peloton bike now for 6 months. What I like about it is the ability to get a sweat on anytime of the day. It can be 4 AM or 9PM and I can get a good workout. It doesn't matter if it's snow on the ground or 100F, I can still get a good workout. It also provides a great low impact cardio that for someone that is out of shape helps get moving in the right direction. I found that with Peloton, it takes away a lot of excuses for me. I also enjoy the instructors a lot. Matt is my favourite!
  • Jennliftsandspins
    Jennliftsandspins Posts: 151 Member
    I did a lot of research on spinning bikes before deciding. For me a subscription service seems like a waste of money when there are so many great options on YouTube. So I went with best quality bike rather than concerning myself with the subscription and onboard screen.

    The highest rated one I could find was the Sole SB900. The actual cycle was rated better than Peleton, Escelon and Nordictrack. It is very heavy duty, whisper quiet with a smooth “ride”. Extremely comfortable. So sturdy it doesn’t wiggle, shake or budge with a really vigorous rolling hills work out.

    It’s only drawback is it has no subscription based workouts (you could subscribe if you have a smart tv or tablet) and the onboard computer is small with limited features (though it does have a tablet/phone holder). All I need it for is RPMs so not a drawback for me.

    I use YouTube for my spinning. My favourite is Kayleigh Cohen Fitness.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    Meh...I don't think it's that. People have their own inherent biases when they enjoy something or like something and just because one person loves one thing doesn't mean another is going to find that thing of particular interest.

    I'm a cycling enthusiast...I love to ride either road or mountain...doesn't matter to me other than what I'm feeling on a particular day. For me, my smart trainer along with Zwift was a game changer as far as indoor training is concerned. I could talk all day about cycling and my belief that it is the most fun and engaging way to exercise and how Zwift to some extent mimics that experience virtually and how great it is. As a cycling enthusiast, I also have numerous RL friends who do and feel the same, so where cycling is concerned, I live in my own little echo chamber. Outside of that, there are many who don't like to ride...don't find riding particularly enjoyable and for whom the nuances of something like Zwift for virtual cycling would be completely lost no matter how much I talked it up.

    When you're talking specifically about a piece of exercise equipment, I think the waters can get pretty muddy as well. I would wager that for every Peloton owner who loves it and uses it regularly and talks about it, there are 2 or 3 or 5 or more people for whom their Peloton bike is being used as an expensive coat hangar. Nothing against Peloton there...it's just statistically the nature of exercise equipment and trends in popular equipment. If a scientific poll was conducted I'd wager that there would be a much higher percentage of owners of any one particular piece of equipment who would say "don't waste your money" as it will ultimately just sit there doing nothing relative to a much smaller percentage of users who love said piece of equipment and use it on the regular.

    I feel like people who feel like they made a mistake buying their Peloton might be less vocal about it than those who talk about how it changed their life for the better. Who wants to loudly admit that they made a $2,000 mistake?
  • msmalich
    msmalich Posts: 6 Member
    I LOVE Peleton! I use the app with a Bladez spin bike I bought 2nd hand. I'm new to cycling, I started with this bike & the app back in November. I've lost 20lbs since then. I love that spinning burns more calories than walking on the treadmill ( I am not a runner!) in 1/2 the time. Also, this is the first time I've lost weight and toned at the same time. I love it so much I bought a real bike and have started riding trails in my area. The Peloton trainers are wonderful. They are all so body positive and make exercise fun!
  • msmalich
    msmalich Posts: 6 Member
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    I'm always looking for new Peloton friends! If anyone wants to add me, my screen name is NoGoatsNoGlory
  • hist_doc
    hist_doc Posts: 206 Member
    MikePfirrman wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    I feel like this would be true for most expensive purchases. Most people are going to do some research before they spend a couple thousand on a piece of exercise equipment, so the people who have them are a self-selecting group for whom the Peloton concept appeals. The much larger group of humans to whom it doesn't appeal are simply not going to buy one because we know it's not for us.

    It may be totally true that those who have Pelotons love them, but it would be a mistake for someone to buy one on that basis, assuming they will also love it. You'd still want to carefully consider your own preferences and habits to make sure that it's a good fit for you.

    I love the Peleton concept, but their equipment isn't actually all that great. You are starting to see stories online where Peleton owners have their equipment break and they can't get it fixed. They will eventually get it figured out, but there's nothing justifying the price for the equipment, other than the business model of community workouts.

    I don't know who those people are... I happened to have an issue with the audio on my screen after 2.5 years. Peloton replaced it at no cost. I was well out of the warranty period. After five years my bike was still in pristine condition--I am an avid spinner and use the bike almost every day. To me, that is a decent piece of equipment.

    Any piece of equipment is going to require care and maintenance. This isn't unique to Peloton. I also own a treadmill, which currently needs to have the bearings replaced. I am not writing reviews of the company complaining that they have somehow failed me as a consumer because it is difficult to have it repaired (which it is, given the manufacturer of my treadmill.)
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    hist_doc wrote: »
    MikePfirrman wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    I feel like this would be true for most expensive purchases. Most people are going to do some research before they spend a couple thousand on a piece of exercise equipment, so the people who have them are a self-selecting group for whom the Peloton concept appeals. The much larger group of humans to whom it doesn't appeal are simply not going to buy one because we know it's not for us.

    It may be totally true that those who have Pelotons love them, but it would be a mistake for someone to buy one on that basis, assuming they will also love it. You'd still want to carefully consider your own preferences and habits to make sure that it's a good fit for you.

    I love the Peleton concept, but their equipment isn't actually all that great. You are starting to see stories online where Peleton owners have their equipment break and they can't get it fixed. They will eventually get it figured out, but there's nothing justifying the price for the equipment, other than the business model of community workouts.

    I don't know who those people are... I happened to have an issue with the audio on my screen after 2.5 years. Peloton replaced it at no cost. I was well out of the warranty period. After five years my bike was still in pristine condition--I am an avid spinner and use the bike almost every day. To me, that is a decent piece of equipment.

    Any piece of equipment is going to require care and maintenance. This isn't unique to Peloton. I also own a treadmill, which currently needs to have the bearings replaced. I am not writing reviews of the company complaining that they have somehow failed me as a consumer because it is difficult to have it repaired (which it is, given the manufacturer of my treadmill.)

    If a piece of equipment is difficult to repair or presents challenges in finding technicians who are capable of doing the repair, I think that's a very relevant factor to note in a review. It's certainly something I'd want to know before I spent thousands on a piece of exercise equipment.

    It doesn't mean that a company has "failed you" (that's a very personal way to describe it), but it's a factor many consumers would take into account before making a purchase.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    hist_doc wrote: »
    MikePfirrman wrote: »
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    I feel like this would be true for most expensive purchases. Most people are going to do some research before they spend a couple thousand on a piece of exercise equipment, so the people who have them are a self-selecting group for whom the Peloton concept appeals. The much larger group of humans to whom it doesn't appeal are simply not going to buy one because we know it's not for us.

    It may be totally true that those who have Pelotons love them, but it would be a mistake for someone to buy one on that basis, assuming they will also love it. You'd still want to carefully consider your own preferences and habits to make sure that it's a good fit for you.

    I love the Peleton concept, but their equipment isn't actually all that great. You are starting to see stories online where Peleton owners have their equipment break and they can't get it fixed. They will eventually get it figured out, but there's nothing justifying the price for the equipment, other than the business model of community workouts.

    I don't know who those people are... I happened to have an issue with the audio on my screen after 2.5 years. Peloton replaced it at no cost. I was well out of the warranty period. After five years my bike was still in pristine condition--I am an avid spinner and use the bike almost every day. To me, that is a decent piece of equipment.

    Any piece of equipment is going to require care and maintenance. This isn't unique to Peloton. I also own a treadmill, which currently needs to have the bearings replaced. I am not writing reviews of the company complaining that they have somehow failed me as a consumer because it is difficult to have it repaired (which it is, given the manufacturer of my treadmill.)

    It's nice to know what you could potentially be getting into though, especially when you're talking about spending a lot of money...doesn't necessarily have anything to do with the company "failing you".

    When I was researching my direct drive smart trainer for purchase I discovered that the company who made the model I was looking at had an overall good track record (tons of positive reviews), but the particular model I was looking at had some defects in units made between certain dates...I believe it was somewhere towards the end of 2019 through Sept or October of 2020. It wasn't every unit, but it was clear from reading consumer reviews that the same issue was popping up with enough frequency to make me think. I also discovered through these reviews that while replacement did eventually happen, it took some time and was somewhat difficult because the primary market for this company is the UK and Europe and only sold this one particular model in the USA. There was also a note from the manufacturer stating they had resolved the issue and units manufactured after whatever date it was should no longer have said issue.

    I ultimately did buy it, but all of that information was pertinent to me and my decision. In fact, overly positive reviews and nothing but, "this is the best thing in all the whole wide world" generally make me feel uneasy. Having as much information as I could helped me make an informed decision.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    lorrainemarie_214 wrote: »
    If you can afford it, Peloton is definitely amazing. The Peloton community is incredible, the bike is an amazing piece of equipment, and Peloton offers so many varied classes with different instructors, and they add new content every single day! I've had my bike for 2 and 1/2 years and it was absolutely worth the price. I love their non-cycling classes, too, especially their strength classes!

    I think you'll find that people who have a Peloton love it. People who don't have a Peloton talk negatively about it.

    Meh...I don't think it's that. People have their own inherent biases when they enjoy something or like something and just because one person loves one thing doesn't mean another is going to find that thing of particular interest.

    I'm a cycling enthusiast...I love to ride either road or mountain...doesn't matter to me other than what I'm feeling on a particular day. For me, my smart trainer along with Zwift was a game changer as far as indoor training is concerned. I could talk all day about cycling and my belief that it is the most fun and engaging way to exercise and how Zwift to some extent mimics that experience virtually and how great it is. As a cycling enthusiast, I also have numerous RL friends who do and feel the same, so where cycling is concerned, I live in my own little echo chamber. Outside of that, there are many who don't like to ride...don't find riding particularly enjoyable and for whom the nuances of something like Zwift for virtual cycling would be completely lost no matter how much I talked it up.

    When you're talking specifically about a piece of exercise equipment, I think the waters can get pretty muddy as well. I would wager that for every Peloton owner who loves it and uses it regularly and talks about it, there are 2 or 3 or 5 or more people for whom their Peloton bike is being used as an expensive coat hangar. Nothing against Peloton there...it's just statistically the nature of exercise equipment and trends in popular equipment. If a scientific poll was conducted I'd wager that there would be a much higher percentage of owners of any one particular piece of equipment who would say "don't waste your money" as it will ultimately just sit there doing nothing relative to a much smaller percentage of users who love said piece of equipment and use it on the regular.

    I feel like people who feel like they made a mistake buying their Peloton might be less vocal about it than those who talk about how it changed their life for the better. Who wants to loudly admit that they made a $2,000 mistake?

    Watching the evolution of my brother-in-laws Peloton experience was interesting. He bought it in 2017 as a Christmas present for he and my SIL. He had it set up in his study to make it easier for him to get a workout in during lunch or taking a break from work. For the first few months, his FB news feed was Peloton, Peloton, Peloton and what workout he was doing or he had just completed this or that.

    A bit later it was moved to their basement recreation room as it would be more accessible for the whole family vs. being in his study. My niece who was 13 about that time eventually became the only user. We visited in late 2019 and the basement had more or less become my 17 year old nephews "teen cave" and the bike was piled high with dirty laundry. I wanted to take it for a little trial spin so we had to move those clothes and whatnot.

    My nephew is now getting ready to go off to college and my niece is into horseback riding and my BIL & SIL lost interest in the bike long ago. It is now sitting in a walk in closet off a hallway. BIL and SIL are now into the Mirror...which I don't understand that thing at all...

    Not that I can talk...between my wife and I, we've had a treadmill, elliptical, air rower, dumb trainer, and now a smart trainer over the last 10 years or so. I'm the only one that uses the smart trainer, and I use it 2-3 times per week...everything else just sat there and was sold off (donated the dumb trainer to my mom...which I believe it is sitting in the corner of her garage not doing anything). Even with the smart trainer and Zwift, I can only do so much as ultimately I am keenly aware that I'm not actually going anywhere and that I'm staring at a screen.

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