The sweat slid down the side of my face and intermingled with the faint residue of Sauve hairspray. My bun high and tight as I gazed at my reflection floating across the room. The sheer black ballet skirt floated softly as my toes pounded the floor silently. My worn and supple pointe shoes like a second skin. 

Dancing was like breathing. I had put in so many years of work into it that there were magical moments where I would loose myself in the music and no longer have to tell my muscles what to do. It was magic. Pure unadulterated magic. 

And that ladies and gentleman… 

That.

Is.

The.

Last.

Time.

I have ever enjoyed working out. 

I mean there was the one time I ran excessive amounts of laps in college because I figured out that it led me past the boys rugby team. I’d suck in and prance like my life depended on it. Not sure what exactly I was hoping for to be honest. A declaration of love from the very sight of me jogging? What a peculiar world my brain is. 

Other than that, working out has been synonymous with pain, stinky people, unhappiness and just generally the feeling of “well, I guess I have to do this for the rest of my life”.

Don’t get me wrong. I did everything I could to enjoy working out. I tried barre: the pulsing almost killed me. Weight training: I didn’t feel myself. Running: well we can’t all just run past sports teams for the rest of our lives. And no offense to crossfit people, but I’m just not THAT type of person. Ya feel me?

All I needed was an experience, a workout that made me feel the same way I felt doing ballet – a rush of endorphins and the feeling that you’re so lost in your craft that you don’t even notice you’re… literally dying. I needed someone to challenge me, I’m not the challenge myself kind of person. The list went on and on and no workout seemed to fit the bill… until…

-ENTER TO CENTER STAGE-

Peloton

I know… we all saw that ridiculous commercial and rolled our eyes. I watched as friends joined the “spin family” and became fangirls and fanguys over it. It seemed silly to me. My best friend got a spin bike for Christmas, not a Peloton, but a spin bike nonetheless and as per usual… whenever she does something, I have to do the EXACT same thing. 

I told myself I’d buy myself a cheap spin bike and figure it out, see if I even liked taking classes and then maybe from there I’d buy the Peloton bike. 

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined how obsessed I would become. 

It was probably because I found a pink, polka dotted spin bike. I mean it was all over for me after that. 

Then came my very first class after setting up my new bike and an instructor came on the screen and told me I was beautiful, that I was amazing for just showing up. I finished the class beaming, feeling like I had summited Mount Everest. It was exhilarating. I’ve faithfully been taking classes 4-5 times every week for 3 months and it is honestly the best part of my day. I get so excited to take a class, to jam out to whatever genre of music I am in the mood for. I never thought I would become this person, yet here we are.

So let’s get into the logistics. 

I bought my bike off of Sunny Health Fitness only because the bikes on Amazon were sold out (hey quarantine). I found a coupon code with a quick google search (SAVE10 and SUNNY15). They have tons of nicer, fancier spin bikes out there, I just chose to go the inexpensive route. 

My bike came out to $180. A Peloton basic package runs about $2,200 or $58/month. 

I pay for a Peloton digital subscription which is $13.77/month. Peloton Bike owners pay $39/month for their monthly subscription. 

That means I saved $2,020 on the bike purchase and $302.76 annually on subscriptions for a grand total of $2,322.76 IN SAVINGS

To be honest, I don’t even feel that I need a Peloton at this point. I get the Peloton experience without the cost? Who wouldn’t want that!?

A few things to keep in mind. You want a monitor like the one on my bike or similar. It tells you how fast you’re going so you can keep up in the classes easier when the instructor tells you to go a certain speed.

You also need to decide between a chain and a belt system. I have the chain and have zero issues, but a belt will supposedly give you a smoother feel. Not having clip in pedals has also not been an issue for me. I put tennis shoes on and slide my feet into the cages.

Additionally, for resistance, which the class instructor will tell you in numbers, I have learned to just adjust.  If the instructor says heavy/65-70 resistance, I turn it to where it feels like I’m peddling through mud. They also sell attachments on Amazon that you can put on your bike to help you with the metrics, but I honestly haven’t needed it.

Then you just need to set your bike up in front of your TV or laptop, it really makes it feel like an immersive experience when you do this, put your headphones in and ride! Bonus points if you set a fan to create a breeze to keep you cool.

So that’s it. How to get the Peloton experience without the Peloton pricetag.

Happy #ThriftyThursday everyone.

XOXO,

Christena

P.S. My two favorite rock star instructors are Hannah Corbin and Hannah Frankson. Y’all!!! Those two are incredible.