So grateful to Nina Pineda and ABC News “7 on Your Side Team” team for interviewing me about my low-cost Peloton alternative. It was loads of fun! In case you missed it, check out my 30 seconds of fame.
The holidays are right around the corner you might be considering a Peloton for Christmas. I would have predicted that the Peloton spin bike would be this year’s No. 1 gift for home exercise enthusiasts; however, with reported shipping delays of up to 3 months, it may be time to find another (and possibly more affordable) spin bike.
Peloton is undoubtedly the leader in the spin-at-home movement and they only grew in popularity during the pandemic. But as we know, not everyone can afford to buy a Peloton bike and then pay its $39 monthly fee. (I can’t, that is for sure – its just not in the budget.) As I’ve explained over the past couple of years, that is where the genius of their Peloton App comes into play. For only $12.99 per month, you can access all of the same live and on-demand classes on their own less expensive bike. If you follow my blog posts, I’ve been preaching about how great the Peloton App is for a while now. It’s truly wonderful.
If you are thinking of giving someone an exercise bike this Christmas but can’t go all in with the Peloton or don’t want to deal with shipping delays, there are many other types of bikes out there at various price points that can be paired with the Peloton App. I tried a bunch before I bought my Sunny and here is what I found.
Happy International Talk Like a Pirate Day! Arrr, me hearties! Let me spin ye a tale about the rise and fall of Peloton, a company that made a name fer itself in the fitness industry with its fancy stationary bikes and live and on-demand classes.
The most frequent questions I get about using the Peloton App with my Sunny Bike are about how to measure resistance. The questions generally go something like this:
- Is there anything similar to the Wahoo cadence sensor that will measure resistance?
- Should I buy these power pedals? (tip, these pedals are expensive but if you put them in your Amazon cart you will receive a notification when they run their flash sales where you can sometimes save up to 75%)
- How do I convert Peloton resistance when using my own bike with the Peloton App (conversion charts below).
- Is knowing your resistance worth the extra money to buy the Peloton bike?
- How do I measure resistance on my Sunny?
- How do I convert Peloton resistance to my Sunny, Keiser M3i, Echelon or NordicTrack?
- Why didn’t you just buy a Peloton?
My answer is always the same. Let go of not knowing. Work hard. Get sweaty. Let your fitness do the talking (and BUY THIS disco ball to bring some excitement to your workouts!). I chalk it up to FOMO (fear of missing out). But if you absolutely, positively need to know your Peloton resistance, I have some advice with several resistance charts at the bottom:
What works for me?
You’ve asked and I answered. With permission from Peloton App User #Libow, I’ve posted a pretty comprehensive review of about 40 different spin bikes to use with the Peloton App (at a fraction of the price). This list includes almost everything you will need to know to help you decide which at-home spin bike is best for you and your budget.
Read on to access the spreadsheet.
Hi everyone,
I get a lot of email asking about the Wahoo cadence and speed sensors that I mentioned in my earlier “Peloton on a Budget” blog post so I thought I would write a post dedicated to all things Wahoo.
When taking a Peloton class, knowing your cadence number is a must. While riding, Peloton instructors shout out how fast you should be pedaling – this is what is known as your “cadence.” The actual Peloton bike and other bikes like the Keiser M3i display your cadence. For everyone out there using the Peloton App with a budget friendly bike (like me), you need to get a cadence sensor. But with so many on the market, its difficult to know what to buy.
Hi Gang,
Its been almost two years since I started using the Peloton App with my own Sunny Spin Bike and my Wahoo cadence and speed sensors. What an amazing experience. I am in the best shape of my life and more importantly I have proven to myself that I have a passion for spinning – I am so happy with the variety of Peloton class options, have exercised my butt off and the bike didn’t turn into a clothes hanger.
Now I am considering an upgrade. Why? For no reason in particular. My Sunny still works great. I just want to move to more of a commercial grade exercise bike. I have stashed away $100 per month for the past two years and I am deciding between a Keiser M3i and of course, the Peloton.
After doing a LOT of research comparing and contrasting the two spin bikes – I thought I would share what I found.
After 550 rides with my first love – this Sunny Exercise Bike – I’ve finally taken the plunge and treated myself to a Keiser M3i. It is a beauty! My Sunny was still in great shape and in fact, I gave it to a good friend. I just wanted something new and shiny now that I proved to myself that I am in this for the long hall. According to my calculations, I think spent about $0.75 per ride with over 500 rides.
The 2nd most popular question I get (the first being about my disco ball) is about shoes and cleats. For the first couple of years after purchasing my Sunny I just wore my running sneakers and slipped my foot into the toe cage. It seemed fine and I was content but I did have a lingering curiosity. After 525 rides on my Sunny I upgraded to a Keiser M3i which, like the Sunny, had toe cages on one side of pedal but also allowed me to “clip in” on the other side. I finally took the plunge and bought some cycling shoes but holy smokes, the whole process was very confusing!! Only certain shoes are compatible with certain cleats that are only compatible with certain pedals. In fact, I initially even bought the wrong type. Ugh. It was like learning a whole new language! I thought I would share what I learned:
Peloton recently announced that you could now finance the purchase of a new Peloton bike. Is it a good deal? Here are my thoughts:
Buy Without Financing: As detailed in my earlier Peloton App blog purchasing a Peloton bike without financing costs about $3,000 when you add in delivery, $468 class subscription fees for the first year ($39 per month), $125 for clip-in shoes, exercise mat, etc. Way outside of my budget.
0% APR Financing: While a 0% down APR sounds like a great detail, the devil is in the details. For qualified buyers, Peloton allows you to make 39 monthly payments of $64 for the Peloton Bike+ or $49 for the Peloton Bike (the original). In addition to the cost of the bike, shoes, etc. to qualify for the 0% financing you need to commit to a 39-month class subscription of $39/mo. totaling $1,521. By my math the grand total over the 39-month period will be almost a $4,053 – $4,455 commitment when you add all the extras.