My Peloton: 1 Year Check-In

Way back in December 2020, I decided to jump on the Peloton bandwagon. I started with using the Peloton app with a non-Peloton bike and then in May I upgraded to an actual Peloton bike. You can find all my previous check-in posts here:

Now that it has been a full year since I joined the ‘Peloton Cult’ I figured it is the perfect time for another update. For this update, I’m revisiting each of the questions I’ve answered over the past year with my updated responses.

Do I still like the equipment I bought?

In December 2020, I started out with a non-Peloton bike. Here is exactly what I bought:

I was happy with the non-Peloton bike for the first 6 months and it is still working just fine. However, I upgraded to an actual Peloton Bike in May 2021.

Why did I upgrade? Well, after 6 months of consistently using the app and guesstimating the cadence and resistance call-outs, I found that I was no longer challenging myself. Also, after trying a friend’s Peloton, I was shocked at the cadence and resistance monitor’s ACTUAL feedback. When Peloton reached out with a Memorial Day deal, I jumped on it and I have no regrets at all. The Peloton bike is super sturdy and I’ve gotten the hang of the clip-in shoes as well. I like the leaderboard option mostly because I like to compete against my own previous records. I also enjoy the live rides and encore rides, because other people riding with me and hi-fiving is super fun!

As for the CHAOKE bike, I still currently have it set up next to my Peloton. My husband has ridden it a couple times but honestly, it’s just not love for him. So, I think I’ll be listing it on Facebook Marketplace once we start our bathroom/closet renovation project and need the space.

Who are my favorite instructors?

  • Favorite for Cycling: Bradley Rose or Cody Rigsby
  • Favorite for Strength: Adrian Williams or Emma Lovewell (core)
  • Favorite for Yoga: Kristin McGee
  • Favorite for Mediation: Anna Greenberg or Ross Rayburn
  • Favorite for Stretching: Ben Alldis or Adrian Williams

Am I keeping motivated?

You guys. I have consistently exercised for an entire year. AN ENTIRE YEAR. I am the person who has started and then stopped a bazillion exercise programs and gym memberships and I’ve actually stuck with Peloton for A YEAR!

How I’ve kept motivated: I gave myself a goal to do something on the Peloton app each day. It doesn’t matter if it’s a cycling class with a strength class, or just a 5-minute meditation. Every single day, I take a little bit of time just to myself.

And it works! As of today, I have a 53-week streak and I’ve done something EVERY SINGLE DAY.

While I usually just pick a workout based on how I’m feeling that day, I also gave myself a challenge back in October to do Crush Your Core with Emma, a series of core workouts for 4 weeks. The workouts ranged from 5 – 10 minutes each day (some days were ‘off days’ or stretch days) and I did every single one and could really feel my core growing stronger. I plan to do this series again soon!

Do I still use the Peloton app, or just use the bike?

I actually use both the Peloton app and the Peloton bike (which has the app built in to the screen). I have the app on my phone and my kindle, so it’s super easy to grab it and settle down anywhere (even a hotel room) for a nice stretch. I’ve even enjoyed an uplifting mediation on a stressful drive home from work – I just make sure not to get TOO relaxed while driving!

How much weight have I lost?

As for weight, I’m not exactly sure. I’m not sure exactly how much I weighed in December 2020 but I think I’m 2-3 pounds down. As for measurements, I first measured myself at the end of January 2021.

Here are my measurement changes:

  • Bust: – 1/2 inch
  • Belly: – 1 inch
  • Butt: – 1/2 inch
  • Thighs: – 1 inch each

While I am much more active, I didn’t drastically change my diet so I wasn’t really expecting any crazy before/after change. However, I’m currently dealing with some food allergy stuff, so I may have to restrict and/or limit my diet in the near future once I figure out what I’m allergic to.

Overall Thoughts

I’m super happy that I made the choice to first buy the Peloton app and then purchase the Peloton bike. This is the first time I’ve ever stuck with a fitness goal for so long and I’m really proud of myself. I can certainly tell that my endurance has improved over the last year and I really do enjoy jumping on the bike to cycle along and sweat it out to a fun instructor. I’ve also really grown to enjoy the off-bike classes like Yoga and Meditation. Initially, I was thinking I’d end my streak at 1 year and just workout when I felt like it… but I’ve decided to keep it up with doing something every day for year two as well.

If you’re a Peloton rider, you can find me on the leaderboard at JoulesGetsFit.

If you are looking to purchase a Peloton, shoot me an email at pocketfulofjoules@gmail.com and I can send you a special referral code to get you money off your purchase!

Disclaimer: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means that clicking on a link may help me earn a small commission at no cost to you.

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My Peloton: 8 Month Check-In

I started using the Peloton app in December 2020 and you can see my first few blog posts here if you’d like to catch up:

I was happy using the Peloton app with my non-Peloton bike for the first 6 months. However, I started thinking about upgrading to an actual Peloton bike for a few reasons.

Why I Decided to Switch from my Non-Peloton to a Peloton Bike

Reason 1 – When I bought my initial non-Peloton bike, I knew that I would have to guesstimate the cadence and resistance call-outs. For the first 6 months this was not an issue at all and really helped me listen to my body to determine how hard I wanted to push each workout. However, after 6 months of consistent riding, I realized I was just kind of coasting and not challenging myself.

Reason 2 – I tried my friend’s Peloton. I didn’t think that I’d care at all about the leaderboard option, but I actually did find that it helped motivate me. However, I was SHOCKED at the cadence and resistance monitors. Even after 6 months of riding, I could barely get the cadence up to 100 on the actual Peloton bike. This is when I realized I hadn’t been working as hard as I thought I was… Her bike also felt super sturdy and MUCH nicer than mine. It was like comparing a Toyota Echo to a luxury vehicle (which I feel confident I can do, having owned a piece of crap Echo for a few years).

Once I started thinking about upgrading, I began checking out used Peloton bikes on Facebook Marketplace, but they still sell for $1,600 – $1900 with no warranty. However, the stars aligned and Peloton sent out a special deal to Peloton app subscribers on Memorial Day weekend. The deal allowed me to purchase a 2021 refurbished bike for $1,495 with free delivery and set up, and a 12 month warranty.

I thought it over and decided to pull the trigger on it. Keeping in mind that my monthly subscription fee would increase to $39 and I would need to purchase clip-in shoes (which I found on Poshmark for $55).

My new bike arrived the first week of June and I have been using it every single week since then – typically 3-4 days a week. I’ve also been keeping up with stretching, yoga or meditation on my off days. Since I started using the Peloton app in December, I have not missed a day in over 8 months!

Some thoughts on the Peloton bike:

The live class and encore option is awesome. I had no idea how fun it was to do a live class. It just has a different energy and I found myself very encouraged to give it my all. The encore classes are great too, because you have a smaller group of people that you can ride along with. I love racing someone near my output level and I really like racing my previous PR to see if I can beat it.

Video chat is so much fun. I don’t have the opportunity to use it often, but I love that you can video chat another Peloton rider while you are riding. For my sister’s rides, we all use Facetime to workout together. However, with the Peloton I can video chat my sister or friends who have a Peloton bike to cheer them on!

I actually enjoy the non-cycling classes too. When I started, I’d feel like my days where I did stretching, restorative yoga or meditation were just lazy filler days. However, after months of regular classes I really appreciate that my body NEEDS a stretch day. Or that a mediation can help me release the stress of the workday so I can fully relax at night. Now, instead of feeling like I’m cheating with my rest days, I really embrace them.

I’m working much, much harder than I was on the bike. I can now consistently get to 100 – 120 cadences without dying. I cycle anywhere from 20 minutes – 45 minutes and I’m still really enjoying it!

The instructors are so fantastic! Not only do they offer a wide variety of different class types from punk rock to Disney tunes, they are great at engaging with riders. I totally swooned when my Pelo-crush sent me a me a message on Instagram:

I am very happy that I started with a non-Peloton bike before making the full commitment. I had never regularly cycled before and it would have been a total shame if I lost interest after a month or two. This way, I was able to stick with it for 6 months and make sure I liked it before upgrading to the Peloton bike. Now that I have a Peloton, I’m super happy with the switch. For now, I’m still keeping my non-Peloton around for my husband to use when he joins me for the occasional workout.

If you’re using the Peloton app or bike, you can find me over there as JoulesGetsFit!

Let me know if you have any questions!

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My Peloton: 3 Month Check-In

I was actually going to skip my 3-month check-in, but I’ve gotten a few DM’s asking questions and wanted to go ahead and take this opportunity to answer them.

Previous posts:

I have previously posted about the equipment I’ve purchased and my thoughts on the Peloton app. My opinions have not changed and I’m still happy with everything so far.

Would I switch to a Peloton Bike?

One question I’ve received is whether I would switch an actual Peloton bike if I had the opportunity. And the answer to that is… I don’t know. My sister and my BFF both have an actual Peloton bike and I absolutely want to give it a try so that I can better see the difference between the official bike and my less expensive option. If I am super blown away, I’ll let you all know!

However, once life starts returning to ‘normal’ with me going back into the office, I anticipate using the bike a little less so I’m sure mine will still be perfectly fine.

How Much Weight Have I Lost?

This question is probably my fault because I posted on my Instagram stories that I was finally starting to lose a small amount of weight and it was helping to motivate me.

After I posted that, I got a few DMs asking how much weight I’ve lost. So, here’s the tea. NOT that much.

My main reason for hopping on the cycling trend was to help motivate myself to stay active. Also, I was getting lonely at home and wanted to enjoy some fun classes with peppy instructors. Working out with my sisters on the weekends (by way of the Peloton app + Zoom or Facetime) has been a total bonus.

Yes, I also wanted to lose a bit of weight. However, I’m trying very hard to focus more on the ‘let’s move’ part of things and less the ‘let’s lose weight’ part. It’s much healthier for my brain that way. Otherwise, I start obsessing about workouts and calories and it’s not a lot of fun inside my head.

While I am much more active, I’m not drastically changing my diet so I’m not expecting any crazy before/after changes. I’m trying to do the slow and steady thing, so that any weight changes I see stick around for good.

I did take my measurements at the end of January (about a month and a half after I started using the Peloton app) and plan to check measurements every month or two to see if there are any small changes happening.

So, for those curious, in the past 2ish months here are my measurement changes:

  • Bust: – 1/2 inch
  • Belly: – 1 inch
  • Butt: – 1/2 inch
  • Thighs: – 1/2 inch each

As for weight, I weigh about 4-5 pounds less than I did in mid-December when I started using the Peloton app. Considering that even getting the scale to move with a pound has been very difficult for me, I’m very happy with the results I’m seeing so far.

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