Heart Fitness: The Peloton Bike Transforms My Life & Saves Us $9,755
Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: October 14, 2019
Not too long ago… I was out to dinner with Dr. Michael Mack, a world-renowned heart surgeon and long-time supporter of HeartValveSurgery.com. During that dinner, Dr. Mack mentioned that he just started using the Peloton bike.
“The Peloton bike? What’s that?” I asked.
Dr. Mack then described the Peloton as a new approach to “spinning” in which classes are beamed live from the Peloton studio in New York City – across the Internet – to a stationary bike at your home.
As a technology enthusiast, who has tried several fitness devices, I was instantly fascinated by the idea.
You should know, however, that I am not a spinner. Not at all.
Fyi, I’ve only been to one biking class in my life. So, while I thought the idea was interesting, I didn’t really pay it much attention. Plus, I had a great fitness routine at my local gym.
A Strange Peloton Coincidence?
A few days later… I was on a walk with Robyn, my wife, and Bodie, our dog.
As Robyn, Bodie and I were walking down the street, Robyn said something like, “My friend Mitch just got one of those Pelotons. He absolutely loves it. In fact, Mitch recently stopped going to spin classes – which, as you know, can be expensive.”
“That’s a crazy coincidence,” I said, “Dr. Mack mentioned the Peloton the other night at dinner.”
Unlike me, Robyn is a spinner. She does lots of different classes – Orange Theory, Soul Cycle, FitOn, pilates, etc.
The next words to come out of Robyn’s mouth surprised me…
“Ya know,” Robyn said, “If we got a Peloton, I’d stop going to those classes. Over time, that could save us thousands of dollars.”
My left eyebrow raised.
Robyn then laid it on good, “Plus, if the Peloton was at home… And, I wasn’t driving to-and-from exercise classes, I wouldn’t need to get up at 4:30am every morning – to take care of Bodie, take care of Ethan, and then hurry to work. It would save me soooooooooooooooooo much time.”
My heart strings were pulled. My wife’s arguments were sound. I was helpless.
When we got home from the walk, I checked out the Peloton website.
Sticker Shock Turns Into $$$$$avings
After learning about the Peloton, reading several reviews and watching a few videos, I clicked the “Buy” button to get pricing.
I then rubbed my eyes in disbelief. The bike was $2,245 and the annual fee was $468 to access all of the live and recorded classes.
My initial reaction was something like, “That’s crazy. No way!”
But then, Robyn did what she always does… She helped me see the big picture.
We quickly figured out that Robyn was already paying $159 per month for her Orange Theory membership. In addition, she was paying at least an additional $30 per month on other exercise classes. That calculated to about $2,268 per year.
“My goodness,” I thought to myself. “That’s a lot of money.”
However… After my heart surgery and Robyn’s brain surgery, we both know how important good health is to our lives and for our family.
We then estimated that Robyn spent about 12 hours per month driving to-and-from the various exercise studios. We concluded that for each of those hours we would assign a $50 value considering that Robyn could use that time for other things to support our family. That’s another $600 per month.
The financials really started to look favorable when we learned that the only cost to continue use of the Peloton is the annual $468 fee.
So, for the first 5 years, the Peloton bike would actually generate $9,755 in after-tax savings for our family.
“Sounds good,” I thought to myself, “But, what if this Peloton is just a fad? What if the Peloton ends up collecting dust in the garage?”
After some good conversations with Robyn, in which she assured me of her commitment, we bought the bike.
The Peloton Transformation Begins
The Peloton bike arrived 7 days later.
The two-person team that installed the bike was quick and very friendly. The bike only took about 15 minutes to setup.
To be honest… I wasn’t initially impressed. It was a bike with a video screen.
But then, I started to learn about the unique features of the bike and how seamlessly it integrates with the software and the content (the spinning classes).
I’m not a car guy. Not at all. I drive a Subaru. But, I am a fan of the Tesla for this exact reason. The more I learned about the Peloton, the more I started to see this bike as a Tesla for your health – complete hardware and software integration that leverages content as the feedback loop for repeat use. Brilliant!
Within minutes of installation, Robyn was on the bike. Thirty minutes later, sweat was all over the floor mat.
After her first ride, Robyn had joy written all over her face as she exclaimed, “I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!” (Woo-Whoo!! Points for Daddy!!!)
Then, to my surprise… Ethan, our 10-year old son, jumped on the bike.
Thirty minutes later, Ethan said, “DAD, THAT WAS AWESOME!!!”
Then, it was my turn…
I clipped in and picked one of the thousands of classes that are easily accessible by drop-down navigations of class length, instructor, class type, etc. I chose Alex Toussaint for my first class. (Alex, like many of the Peloton instructors, are known for their motivational sayings. “This Ain’t Day Care!” is one of my favorite Alex-isms. You should also know that Alex is typically in a very good mood when he gets his hair cut and talks about his “Mama”.)
Anyways…
The cycling began.
Within seconds, Alex welcomed me to the class. He then explained the core performance indicators on the bike – the resistance, the cadence (aka speed) and the output. As I continued to pedal, the video screen released a ton of data to help me manage and monitor my ride.
I was blown away.
I was entranced by the great music, Alex’s coaching, the real-time data monitoring and… The Leaderboard.
The Leaderboard is a special technology that enables you to pace (or compete) against every single rider who taken the course with or before you. The Leaderboard, for me, is another reason I was locked-in.
“Wow!” I thought to myself about 10 minutes into the ride, “This really could transform the fitness industry.”
My Peloton Addiction
Here’s the thing.
I’ll be completely honest with you.
I was initially skeptical of the Peloton.
I thought it was another, expensive fitness fad that would end up sitting in my garage – collecting dust and taking up space.
The truth is… The Peloton is the exact opposite of that.
I’ve quit my gym.
I exercise 6 to 7 days a week. Currently, I’m on a 35-day workout streak.
Robyn is happy. Ethan is happy.
And… My family is saving a ton of money. (When you factor in that I no longer belong to a gym, we estimate that our family will save $15,215 during the first five years that we use the Peloton. Oh yah… Did I forget to mention that the $468 annual fee is for ALL members of your family? That’s right! When you split the cost 3 ways for us, we’re only spending $156 per person per year.)
Thank You Peloton Instructors!!!
They don’t know it…
But, the Peloton instructors have become life coaches for me.
They are so inspirational.
And, they are so motivational.
I can not wait until the next time I’m in New York when I can go to the Peloton studio to take a live ride with Alex Toussaint (“Got my rhythm, focus, pace!”), Robin Arzon (“Eeee-Yahww. My crown is on!”), Emma Lovewell (“Wiggling my fingers. Wiggling my toes. Arms long. Legs long.”), Dennis Morton (“Cadence and resistance come together like Voltron. Put it on the wheel!”), Ally Love (“I am a boss. Sundays with Love!”) and Cody Rigsby (“I see you Boo! Get your life together!”) who are a few of my favorite instructors.
The Best Part About the Peloton????
The really, really, really best part of having the Peloton in our lives…
The other day, I had my annual physical exam with Dr. Swift.
He said that I’m in “great health”.
As for my heart…
Dr. Swift said, “Adam, Your heart sounds perfect. I can’t even tell you had heart surgery!!!”
Related Articles:
- Peloton Instructor, Robin Arzon, Sends Empowering Message to Heart Valve Patients
- Jess King, Peloton Instructor, Gives Inspiring “Shout Out” to Heart Valve Patients
Keep on tickin!
Adam
P.S. If you want to connect, my Peloton handle is “HeartValveGuy”. Shocker, right? 🙂
P.P.S. This is #NotAnAd.
Written by Adam Pick
- Patient & Website Founder
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