When it comes to exercise, I’m a big giver-upper. I’ve had countless gym memberships, enrolled in loads of classes and tried everything from padel to Pilates. The only thing I’ve ever stuck to consistently is running, but, as a fairly fair weather jogger, the monsoon-style rain we’ve been having in Manchester lately has had my trainers gathering dust. So when I was offered a Peloton to try, I was intrigued. It certainly ticks a lot of boxes… it’s indoors, for starters. And it’s at-home location would mean I could remain metres away from my four year old daughter even while working out. With legions of celeb fans including Miley Cyrus and Lizzo, and a community of millions of on social media, the Peloton certainly had promise. But would it live up to the hype?
Well yes, yes it would. After the Peloton arrived and was hauled up to my partner’s office (sorry, John!) I made myself a profile and hopped on. It didn’t take long before I was hooked, and decided to ride it daily for a month to see how it made me feel. As a busy mum with a full time job, free time can be scarce. The fact that the Peloton was in my home made it easy to use when I had a spare moment. There are so many classes to choose from, with some at just 10 minutes long, although of course you can dip in and out of any if you run out of time to complete them. When it comes to style of class and instructor, there is also a lot of choice to mix things up and keep things fresh. I loved Cody Rigsby for his feelgood music choices (Madonna, anyone?), and Peloton queen bee Robyn Arzon for her high octane motivation. For something a bit different, the musical rides were great too – with Hamilton, Encanto and The Greatest Showman topping my favourites list. As my month progressed, I soon found there were more than enough classes to do a completely different ride each day, and when it came to instructors I especially loved Kendall Toole, Leanne Hainsby and Emma Lovewell. I found the groove rides as therapeutic as they were good exercise, not so metric based and with little bits of choreo thrown in.
Original refurbished Peloton bikes start at £995, regular price £1345, while Peloton+ bikes, with bigger, rotating screens for whole body workouts, are £1695 refurbished and £1995 new. Membership is extra, starting from £12.99 per month. It sounds expensive, and it is certainly an investment. But if you break it down, it’ll cost you just under £100 per month for a year, after which you pay only the membership fee. My local gym isn’t far off that, although admittedly it has a pool – and you can’t swim in a Peloton. But I digress. At the end of the month, with a ride done every day, I felt fantastic. My mood was noticeably lighter, my fitness levels had improved and – best of all – I’d managed to fit in my classes so I was still spending just as much time with my daughter, enjoying our time all the more as I’d also done something ‘for me’ that day. A Peloton passionado, I might never go for a run again. Well, at least until the sun decides to show its face again. Am I a convert? Hells yes. Has it made me a better parent? Definitely.
