Now that I’ve had my Peloton bike and have been using the app for a while now, I thought I’d share another update! In case you missed it, I shared a very comprehensive review of the bike + app in June. I’d been using both for a month and did my best to try as many instructors as possible to make a thorough and well-rounded review. Click here to read that first if you’re new to Peloton or are thinking of making the purchase!
Since then, I’ve really established a routine and found my go-to instructors across the app. I’ve received requests to share how I put my workout schedule together and choose classes in the app as well, so I thought I would include all of that here for you to reference!
HOW I CHOOSE PELOTON CLASSES AND PUT TOGETHER MY DAILY WORKOUTS
As I mentioned in this post, I bookmark classes in advance to make selecting classes effortless each time I start a workout! If you use the bookmark feature, you won’t have to search through classes you’re not interested in to find the ones you like every single day. It just streamlines the whole process! I highly recommend using the bookmark tool if you aren’t already.
To begin a class search on any part of the app, I generally filter by class length first. See below for the next steps I take to find
FOR CYCLING CLASSES
I choose my Indoor Cycling classes a little differently than the Strength and Cardio class types! While I do filter by class length and my favorite instructors, I like to look at specific playlists and bookmark the ones that are my favorite. I don’t think about the playlists in the Strength and Cardio workouts as much – I’m focused more on the moves and directions from the coaches! But on the bike, I *need* a good playlist to really enjoy the ride and motivate me to push myself. So I generally start filtering by class times (20, 30 and 45 minute rides mostly!), then will filter by instructor (below are the ones I ride with most). From there I will click through each class to review the playlist, then bookmark it if I like what’s on it! I don’t usually filter by theme (like Tabata, HIIT, etc) – I’ll bookmark any class type as long as the instructor and playlist are both good.
My current go-to instructors are below! See my review post for what I like about each of them. I take classes from other coaches as well on occasion based on playlists (loved Jess King’s The Weeknd Ride, for example), these are the ones I bookmark most of the time.
- Alex Toussaint
- Ally Love
- Ben Aldis
- Cody Rigsby
- Emma Lovewell
- Hannah Frankson
- Kendall Toole
- Leanne Hainsby
- Matt Wilpers
- Robin Arzon
- Tunde Oyeneyin
FOR STRENGTH CLASSES
I generally filter by “Class Type” first, selecting the part of my body I want to focus on. For example, I would choose Lower Body for leg- and glute-focused workouts. From there, I will filter by “Class Length” and select the longest class options possible (15 minutes, 20 minutes or 30 minutes). I then will go through and bookmark ALL of the the workouts led by my favorite instructors. That way I have a large selection of leg workouts to choose from when I’m putting my combos together each day! My favorite Strength coaches are Adrian Williams, Jess Sims, Olivia Amato, Robin Arzon, and Selena Samuela. I have most of the longer workouts from all of them bookmarked!
FOR CARDIO WORKOUTS
Since I quit BBG when I got the Peloton, I’ve definitely noticed I’ve lost some of my endurance with HIIT! I recently decided to start adding in some of Peloton’s cardio classes ahead of my strength workouts to warm up my body and hopefully build myself back up. When searching for the Cardio classes, I generally filter by class length and choose 10-20 minute options for these classes. I have loved the Cardio classes by Jess Sims, Olivia Amato and Selena Samuela! I have most of their cardio classes bookmarked, in addition to ones Adrian Williams – just haven’t tried his Cardio classes yet… his Strength classes are always so challenging, so I’ve been a little gun shy to try his Cardio!
FOR OUTDOOR RUNS
Another thing I’ve been adding in about once a week is an outdoor run! I’m trying to ease myself back in after a year of no running, plus it’s so hot I can’t do much more than that outside at the moment! On the days I don’t do a Cardio class before my Strength classes, I’ll tack on a run at the end of my Strength workouts. I’m usually *very* slow when running outside and by myself, and generally cannot motivate myself to run intervals, sprints or even pick up the speed when running off a treadmill. What I love about the Outdoor Run classes on the Peloton app is that they are instructor led (audio only – no video), just like all of the other classes! They are so much more motivating and encouraging than I can ever be with just myself. The runs have a set schedule – usually a 4-5 minute warm up, then sections based on the workout. Whether it’s an interval run, HIIT run or just a fun run, they all offer something different to keep the run interesting! The coaches tell you when to pick up speed, when to slow down, etc, so you can just focus on the run and not be focusing on the time. Since I’m just easing into these runs, I’ve been opting for the short time options. I’ve filtered by class length, going with 20 minute runs for the most part! So far I’ve run with Robin Arzon and Selena Samuela (love both), but I’ve bookmarked classes with Jess Sims, Matt Wilpers and Chase Tucker for future runs.
MY CURRENT WORKOUT ROUTINE + AN EXAMPLE SCHEDULE
Below is a look at my current workout routine, featuring an example set of classes I might take on each day.
Monday – CARDIO & STRENGTH
- 20 Min Cardio Class
- 20 Min Lower Body Strength
- 20 Min Upper Body Strength
- 10 Min Core Strength
Tuesday – INDOOR CYCLING
- 20 Min Pop Ride
- 10 Min Arms Toning
- 20 Min Pop Ride
Wednesday – STRENGTH & OUTDOOR RUN
- 20 Min Lower Body Strength
- 10 Min Upper Body Strength
- 10 Min Core Strength
- 20 Min Outdoor Hip Hop Fun Run
Thursday – INDOOR CYCLING
- 45 Min EDM Ride
- 5 Min Arms Toning
Friday – CARDIO & STRENGTH
- 10 Min Cardio Class
- 20 Min Lower Body Strength
- 10 Min Upper Body Strength
- 10 Min Core Strength
Saturday: REST
Sunday – INDOOR CYCLING
- 30 Min Tabata Ride
- 5 Min Cool Down Ride
PS: if you ever want to see what workouts I’m doing, don’t miss the Peloton highlight on my Instagram profile! I update it with the latest classes I’ve completed. You can also follow me on the Peloton app – my username is @merrittbeck!
