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Angelina March 7, 2020 health and fitness

Peloton Tread Review

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

We have had the Peloton Bike since 2016 and several months ago added the Peloton Tread to our home gym.

The PROS of the Tread

First, let’s talk about the looks – yes, it sleek modern looking treadmill.

I love the big touchscreen on it. I also like the little shelf in front of the screen where there are two water bottle holders. I will frequently put some chapstick, my towel, and depending on the day – my kindle/book if I’m just doing some “lazier” walking. The screen can be tilted as well.

The knobs – the one on the right adjusts the speed and the left adjusts the incline. The incline goes up to 15% and the speed is 12.5mph! In the center of the knob is a “jump” button that you can manually set to different inclines and speeds. For me, when I hit the jump button on my incline it goes up 1% and my speed 0.5mph.

I really like the slat belt – it feels really solid under your feet unlike the other standard treadmill belts. I think honestly this is my favorite feature of the treadmill.

They have a variety of classes. They have sprints, intervals, runs, jogs, walk/runs, walking, power walking, hiking (so just walking at an incline), boot camps, strength training. Also there is yoga, meditation, and stretching.

I like the strength training classes – I know you can do these with the peloton bike, but we got the package with the peloton weights and we tend to do the strength classes more. We have other weights, but I actually recommend buying the Peloton weights because they are square and you tend to do a lot of push ups on the weights – our old weights were round and would roll so we couldn’t do some of their exercises properly.

A screenshot actually from the Peleton App on my IPad So you can see all the types of classes. Yes when you buy the Peloton bike or Tread you automatically get the app on your iPad as well. Perfect when you are on vacation or at another gym without the Peloton!

Here are my husband’s thoughts – the real RUNNER of the both of us:

The treadmill allows at high speeds to increase in increments of 0.1mph unlike most other treadmills when sprinting. It is unusual for treadmills to have the ability to do that when you are sprinting – usually they only increase in increments of 0.5mph.

The slat belt feels very sturdy but not clunky – it does not feel like a hard cement. The slat belt can easily take the impact of a heavier weighing person running full speed without any slippage or stoppage under your feet.

You need to find an instructor that works best for you and your exercise style – so if you have to try out every instructor 1-2x or more until you find your favorite, then so be it! There is an instructor for every one!

Below, just showing how much space we have behind the treadmill – enough to lay an exercise mat so we can do the boot camps and strength classes!

Let’s talk about the cons.

The price. Yes, it is expensive. I can’t really say the treadmill is “worth it” because of the price, but that said… it keeps us healthy and how much are you willing to pay for your health?? We already drank the Peloton Kool-Aid (Powerade?) with the Bike and were already paying for a Peloton subscription. If you have the bike, your $39/month bike subscription includes the treadmill subscription.

For me, the number of walking classes. I KNOW people buy treadmills to run, but I hate running but do like walking and wish that they had more walking classes of ALL lengths. I find that I sometimes have to do the run classes and just walk through them—not a HUGE deal, but hey, if I’m paying $4000 for a fancy treadmill, shouldn’t they produce content for everyone?

So our treadmill hasn’t had any mechanical problems, but my mom got the treadmill right when it came out and had some mechanical problems – the technicians have been out a total of 3 times. The screen wasn’t turning off. It was making a HORRIBLE clunking sound when the incline would go up/down. IMO, that is kind of ridiculous given the price and how new it was. I STRONGLY recommend purchasing the extended warranty because of this.

The scenic “runs or walks” are just copied over from the Peloton bike library – so they are filmed at a fast rate as if you were biking instead of running/walking. I wish they could slow the films down to go a slower speed for walking/running. Speaking of the scenic runs, there should also be a way to sort them. There is NO way to sort them currently (goes for the peloton bike too!)

I wish there was a way to hook the screen up to the tv – it is SO big, there should be a way to splint screen so you could watch tv on one half and then have the class on the other half.

I strongly recommend going to the local Peloton boutique to try it out before plunking down a few thousand dollars on this.

Here is my Peloton Bike Review.

Favorite Extra Equipment

This is the exact fan we use for the Peloton Tread – a big wind machine. Although one with a remote control like this one is nice too.

Heart Rate Monitor I use for the Tread and the Bike. I like it better than the chest strap.

Here is the equipment mat we use – cheaper than the Peloton one.

I love this sweat wicking temple tape headband.

Love these weights – a cheaper alternative to the Tread.

I have some of my favorite work out products here at my Amazon store.

You can use my referral code HMUX7R when you purchase the Tread – this gives you and me $100 off at the Peloton boutique! win win!

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Angelina June 21, 2019 friday favorites

Best Peloton Accessories

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you know how much I love the Peloton bike. I wrote about it here (Peloton Bike – 3 years later) and here (Peloton bike – 100 rides later). I have been on a big exercise kick for the past 6-8 months.

I’m going to share some must-have accessories for your bike!

Bike Seat Cover – now I personally don’t use it, but I know many people complain that the seat is too hard and a gel seat cover is a must. once you get used to the bike, you don’t need it! But many people love it!

Gym towels – these microfiber gym towels would be perfect for drying off!

Spintowel – I recently learned of this. It covers your bike handles with a towel and then also has a towel you can use to wipe yourself off with. It is made specifically for the Peloton bike!

Sweat wicking headband- The peloton makes you SWEAT. I have sweat dripping down into my eyes every time I cycle. These headbands are a must if you are a sweaty head like me!

Tower fan – speaking of sweat, you need to have a fan! I have an older version of this tower fan. Having the remove control is key! I keep the remote control behind the seat and can change the fan speed based on my demand!

Or a smaller fan – if you don’t want a big tower fan, this little fan is good too. The key though is the remote control! TRUST ME!

Scosche Heart Rate Monitor – this is the heart rate monitor that tons of riders use! If you don’t like the chest strap monitor that comes with the bike, then get this one!

Bike Mat – strongly recommend putting an exercise mat under your bike to catch your sweat! We have this one under our bike.

Delta Bike Cleats – You can buy pretty much whatever indoor cycling shoes you want, so long as they are delta bike cleat compatible. I bought Shimano cycling shoes and then these bike cleats. You don’t have to stick to the Peloton shoes.

Weights – If you are going to do some strength training classes off the bike, you likely need to buy some weights. I have purchased these weights in several different sizes. They do NOT fit in the little holder behind your bike. I use them for the strength training classes.

Earbuds – Spinning on the bike can be loud and obnoxious to other people who may be nearby. These earbuds are used by many riders and are loved. They are also great to wear especially if you have little ones around as, for instance, the music in Robin’s classes often contain explicit language.

Favorite Spin Pants – I love these Align pants by Lululemon.

Now I know that this isn’t for the bike per se, but these are must haves for yoga!

Yoga Mat – must have for yoga and even stretching exercises

Yoga Blocks and Strap – must have for yoga!

You can also check out my Amazon page – I linked even more items there!

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Angelina January 4, 2019 friday favorites

Peloton Bike Review – 3 years later!

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

Happy New Year! With the new year everyone starts thinking about health and fitness. So I thought I would write about my favorite piece of exercise equipment: THE PELOTON BIKE!!!

We have had the Peloton Bike for almost 3 years and we love it. We initially purchased it because we were having trouble making time to go to the gym because of our busy lifestyle. I first wrote a review at 100 rides later which you can read here.

I thought I would show you have we have set up our bike at our house now since we’ve moved. These are pictures of our exercise area.

As you can see in the picture below we set up our tower fan to cool us while riding.

The bike holds 2 water bottles. When we are not working out we leave our towel and heart rate monitor to dry on the handle bars.

The bike holds the weights behind you. This is convenient as some of the cycling classes have an arms session.

We also keep our remove control for the fan and the much needed chapstick here.

We have an exercise mat underneath the bike to catch sweat because this bike will make you sweat!

Below are some screen shots from the app but you can do the classes also on the bike. Since writing my previous review they have added many more exercise options such as boot camp, live yoga classes, running indoor and outdoor etc.

A new feature also includes training programs. I recently finished the 4 week Ride Tabata with Robin and it was great.

During each classes the bike measures many different metrics. I have includes a screen shot of one of my recent rides. These metrics include heart rate if wearing a compatible heart rate monitor, resistance, speed, cadence, and output based on wattage.

Also they have added new badges that you can earn. These are fun to collect. As you can see I don’t do any of the boot camps but I love riding.

Another example of some of the badges. In December they added monthly challenges which is a good motivator. You can ride with friends and also earn badges as noted by these social badges below.

While you are riding you can “high five” other riders who are currently riding. This is nice especially during the hard parts of rides.

During our workouts our cat sits in her tower and sleeps while we are sweating to death.

You can also use the app on your iPad. We use this for core workouts and yoga. It is also great if you are traveling. If you don’t want to splurge on the bike you can first download the app to subscribe to see if this is something you are truly interested in.

While the bike is no where cheap at $2245, we felt it has been worth every penny and between my husband and I we use it nearly everyday. The peloton membership is $39 dollars a month.

They now have introduced a Treadmill too, called the Peloton Tread. We have been debating about it… but I hate running so I don’t know how much I’d use it. You certainly don’t have to run while using the treadmill – you can walk on it and there are walking programs in addition to programs for training for 5Ks and marathons!

My review earlier has more basic questions and answers and more of my favorite accessories – if you are seriously thinking about the bike you’ll want to read that review too! You can purchase the bike here.

Favorite Extra Equipment

Here is the equipment mat we use – cheaper than the Peloton one.

I love this sweat wicking temple tape headband.

Shoe clips – hang two pairs of cycling shoes on the back of the bike on the weight rack – perfect if you don’t have a lot of space! We just store our shoes in a cabinet in the room.

These are the clips you need for your cycling shoes if you don’t buy the Peloton branded shoes.

Love these weights – they fit in your bike weight holder (at least the 1 and 3 pound did!)

Highly recommend a tower fan with a remote control like this.

I have some of my favorite work out products here at my Amazon store.

You can use my referral code HMUX7R when you purchase the bike – this gives you and me $100 off at the Peloton boutique! win win!

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Angelina July 31, 2018 health and fitness

About the time I tried Pure Barre

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

This is about the time I tried Pure Barre for the first time recently. You see, my friend invited me to go along. I had been wanting to try it after I have heard so many things about this almost cult-like exercise class, so I decided to give it a go.

You may have heard of Pure Barre before. What is it? It is a fitness regimen inspired by ballet. No, you aren’t going to be earning your toe shoes at the class!

The class uses isometric exercises for a full body work out to help your muscles get toned and lean – there is no “bulking up” here! Their motto is “Lift. Tone. Burn”. Ok, sounds good, let’s get started!

Before getting started, the instructor showed me what “tucking” was, a term commonly used in the class. “Tucking” involves pulling your butt under you and pushing your pelvis forward.

I arrived to the class with my special non-skid socks on. Yep, no shoes allowed in the studio. Your socks have to have grippers on them so you don’t slip. They sell them in the studio if you don’t have a pair.

The studio has floor-to-ceiling mirrors in the room which immediately gave my flashbacks to the time I actually took a ballet class in college. There is a barre along all of the walls. I randomly choose to sit at one of the places next to the bar. I notice everyone staring at me. I find out why… I’m sitting where the instructor sits. Oops, my bad. At least mistake #1 is done with now. Moving on.

Instructor comes in. Music is fun and catchy. Immediately start grooving to the beat for the warm up. End of warm up – I’m feeling beads of sweat form, okay good!

Next came upper body arm toning – using only 2 or 3 pound weights, depending on your skill level. No newbie to fitness, I grabbed the 2 pound weights. 2 pounds doesn’t sound like much… until you’re doing an isometric hold and then quickly 2 pounds feels like 20! Don’t leap before you can jump!

This is the equipment in the class. Equipment pic via Wiki

After arms came abs round one. Lots of planks (that’s why you need those socks!). The ab section was great, and frankly my favorite part of the class.

A post shared by Pure Barre (@pure_barre) on Jul 12, 2018 at 4:34pm PDT

Now, to the barre! We worked on legs and glutes. There were lots of “tuck and hold” and “tuck and freeze”. It took me while to get the hang of tucking, and frankly I know I need more work. Instructor helped me. There weren’t as many plies as I would have thought from a barre class (okay, because honestly I thought the whole class was going to be plies!), however there were enough where you could definitely tell that it was ballet inspired!

Then back to abs and back. And we’re done.

After each section of work out, there is a quick section of stretching those muscles you just used. I only wished the stretching was a wee bit longer, but I knew I could stretch after class.

The class went by really quickly. The instructor was super friendly and nice. She would go around and help people with their form.

What was different about this class compared to other exercise classes, is that you burn out and fatigue each muscle group. When your muscles start shaking, you know you’re doing well because that’s the goal! Try to power through the shaking. The class is low-impact so could work for those with joint problems. Only one of the exercises hurt my bad knee, so I modified and made it work for me.

Since the class is mainly about isometric contractions and holds, you could technically cheat your way through the class if you wanted to… but that’s not the point! If you work on proper form, it can get hard!

In fact, per my Apple Watch, I burned 420 calories!! I know some people only burn 200, hey, but you know what, 200 is better than none.

Was it the hardest work out? No. It didn’t have cardio, but I feel like this would be a great work out to compliment cardio days. But I definitely felt sore the next day – although not in the places I expected!

I think the biggest downside is the price – $23/class (you can buy month long or year long plans for more cost effective classes). However, that isn’t cheap! And for me, the nearest studio is quite a commute, so that is a big downside to me.

Final verdict: yes I’d do it again. It was fun!

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Angelina May 17, 2017 health and fitness

Healthy Eating Recipe Ideas – TFT

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

In this Post – Healthy Eating Ideas from Thursday Favorite Things blog hop and link party!

Edit again – link party is now added! Link away!!

This week I’m looking at healthy eating… I find I eat healthier in the Spring/Summer/Fall… basically when everything is fresh and in season.

Erin from Delightful E made share this delicious looking kiwi strawberry smoothie!

Aluminum Foiled Kitchen shared a Quinoa fried rice bowl recipe.

Five Spot Green Living shared a healthy Mexican chicken salad.

This AutoImmune Life shared a gluten free strawberry crisp recipe.

Hummus Pita Pizzas from Home Cooking Memories.

Have you fallen off the bandwagon for healthy eating? You can start with the recipes above and check out this guide from Penny Pincher Jenny.

We love all of your posts and enjoy visiting you – there is something for everyone at this party!

Don’t forget to check out our Thursday Favorite Things Pinterest Board!

I pin my features for the week to our board as well as many others! Make sure your posts have a high quality pin that screams “pin me!”

The party is starts on THURSDAYS at 6AM PST!

Please take the time to stop by ALL of your hostesses!

If the link party doesn’t load right away, just click “An InLinkz Link-up” Below.

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An InLinkz Link-up

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Angelina March 14, 2017 health and fitness

Peloton Bike Review – 100 Rides Later!

We use affiliate links in our posts and our site. This means if you make a purchase using these links, we may earn a small commission. You don’t pay a cent more than you would otherwise! Our full disclosure is available under About.

I am so excited to finally give you a review of one of my favorite things to do – ride my Peloton bike!

I have had it since end of May last year, and this week I finally hit my 100th ride milestone! With that said, I feel like I can now give you an insider’s look at the Peloton Bike!
PS – if you are wondering why it took so long to reach my milestone, it is because in the Summer I ride outside!
FYI – this is not a paid review. It is my own opinion on a bike I love!

I decided to purchase a Peloton bike after one of my coworkers raved about it.

What was funny was the night I brought it up to my husband – he laughed, and said he was going to talk to me about buying one too that day – and showed me on his iPad that he had the Peloton website up because he was going to talk to me about it!

So, great minds think alike!

So we purchased our bike and two weeks later it arrived. They came and assembled it in my home and I was off and running, err, cycling.

What is the Peloton Bike?

It is an indoor spin bike that has a screen attached to it that allows you to watch spin classes “On-Demand” OR they have LIVE classes that allow you to join in on from your home bike during their live studio classes in NYC! How cool is that!? Here is a 1 minute video introducing the bike.

So basically, you get to join studio spin classes from the comfort of your own home! For me, this is what makes the bike so special. I had a different cheaper spin bike without the fancy on-demand screen technology and I hardly ever used it.

But with this bike, my husband, Mother and I use almost every day between the three of us! The classes are so motivating and allow you to get a great work out – frankly, even better than when I go on to the treadmill at the gym!

You have to pay $39/month to get the on-demand service but given that a gym membership per person is usually more than that OR a single spin class is about that price, it is really not that expensive.

The bike itself is not cheap – nearly $2K, but it is a high quality spin bike and that is about the price of the competitors bikes as well. Here is a longer 5 minute video about the bike.

Here is another look at how the screen works. The left side of the screen shows the live rides you can choose from with the schedule. The right shows some of their thousands of classes you can choose from!

Let’s look at a ride I did last week. You can analyze your ride… you can see where their were pushes and rests. You can also look at your cadence, resistance, etc. If you have a heart rate monitor you can hook it up.

The Bike Itself

The bike is carbon fiber with a smooth, quiet fly wheel. It is a clip-in bike that uses LOOK Delta clips so you can use any cycling shoe that is compatible with LOOK Delta clips. This bike is top quality. I have had a cheaper bike that cost around $400 and this bike is soooooo much nicer.

Below is a picture of my bike. I consider my riding spot a French-Glam studio!

I had a spare piece of carpet that I put under the bike, but if you don’t have that, I strongly recommend buying a bike mat because the sweat does drip off of you!

The Classes

My favorite part of the bike, as I said, are the classes! There are many different coaches and they have different coaching styles as well as different skill levels.

The are beginner classes, HIIT classes, TABATA classes, Climb Classes, Arms & Legs classes, Pro Cycling, Scenic Rides, Themed classes and more! Additionally they have them for all sorts of ride lengths – 10 min cool down rides to 90 min power rides.

Additionally, they now have off-the-bike training programs, which is super cool! They have yoga, weight training, stretching, core training, etc! You can sort by class type, demonstrated below:

You can read about all of the coaches here, but these are my favorite coaches:
Alex- usually does Hip-Hop rides and his motto is: “Feel Good. Look Good. Do Better” and I love it!
Robin- she is energetic, plays hip-hop music too, and frequently plays a game called “Robin Says”… which usually involves lots of sweat.

Cody – his rides are usually to the beat of the music, so he doesn’t always give you the specific cadence, instead stating “one-two” to the beat of the music. He usually plays pop songs!

Hannah – She does tons of themed rides which is so much fun.

I actually do like all of the coaches, but these are the ones I do most of my rides with partially because of music preferences.

There is really no bad coach, just like people you meet in person, you will find ones that seem to fit with your groove more than others! And by groove I mean, music preferences!

When you purchase the bike, you have to buy one year of classes and after that it is up to you! But the classes are the really the reason to buy the bike.

my favorite shirt I bought from Peloton with Alex’s motto on it! It is sold out now.

Adjusting the Bike and Clipping on/off with your Shoes

The peskiest part of this bike is getting in and out of the clips! I don’t think clipping in is very difficult, but getting out of the bike is a little tricky!
I always get in and out of the bike the same way.

Clipping in is easy – just point your toe downwards and then rock back onto your heel and you’ll hear a “clip!”. Then swing your other leg over and do the same.

Clipping out of the bike is tricky. I start with my right foot and if looking down at it while on the bike, turn it inwards towards the 9 o’clock positions while moving your heel towards the 3 o’clock position “clip!”. Then repeat. Here is a video on how to do this.

Also, since three of us ride the bike, we are constantly adjusting our seat. We actually all keep the handle bars the same height. It is not too hard to move the seat up and down and back and forth. This video shows how you can adjust your bike to your needs.

When you first get your shoes, you need to make sure you have your clips properly positioned on your shoe so when you ride your foot is in the right alignment! Here is a video on how to attach your cleats to your shoes! Every so often I tighten my clips up so they don’t wiggle around using a screwdriver! Peloton also sells spin shoes.

Here are the shoes I wear and the clips I bought:
My shoes

Look Delta Clips – you need to buy these too and screw them into your shoe to use the bike.

Favorite Gear and Essentials for your Ride!

Clothing appropriate for spinning
You must have tight fitting pants/shorts because otherwise it will get caught in the bike and you don’t want that. My favorite leggings are pictured below, the Alo Moto leggings. Lots of celebs wear these.
I love Zella leggings. Here is a high waisted cropped version, a high waisted leggings.

Water Bottle
There is room for two water bottles and depending on the class length I may use both! Staying hydrated is extremely important for this high intensity class! My current favorite is the Hydroflask. I like this glass one, this metal one, this plastic one.

Fan
You HAVE to have a fan. I have an old fan, but if I were to get a new one I would get one with a remote control!
Wind Tower Fan with Remote Control (pictured below under $50),
Holmes Remote Control Power Fan that Rotates (12″, under $50),
Honeywell Air Circulator Fan (Amazon’s #1 bestseller for under $20!)

Heart Rate Monitor
So I strongly suggest using a heart rate monitor. I actually use my Apple Sport Watch as I don’t need to see my HR on my bike. The Fitbit can now connect to the bike as well as that is what my mom uses, read about that here.
Any heart rate monitor that is ANT+ compatible works with this bike. The Apple Watch is not ANT+ compatible so it doesn’t sync with the bike.
Below is the Apple Watch I have and I LOVE it!
This is the Peloton Heart Rate Monitor which I currently use and love that it tracks my heart rate on the bike itself. The apple watch actually gets the same readings as the Peloton HR monitor but the apple watch can’t currently sync with the bike as of yet.

Weights
Weights for a bike?! YES! Many of the rides also include a section of arms!
I started off with 1 pound weights (yeah, I’m a wimp!) but now I am up to a 3 pound weight!
Dumbbells, Set of 2, 3-Pound (Green) under $10 (I can’t find the ones I have anymore!).
Here are the ones I started with:Dumbbells, Set of 2, 1-Pound (Pink).
Here is 5lb: Dumbbells, Set of 2, 5-Pound (Dark Blue).
They recommended starting with 1 or 3 pounds because the moves are very repetitive so lighter weights with many repetitions is better than heavier weights with a few repetitions.

Towel/Mat
I strongly recommend getting a bike mat because the sweat will literally drip off of you! The mat goes under the bike. We have an old piece of scrap carpet but if we didn’t have that we would get the mat! Also, you will need a towel.
Here is a similar mat for cheaper and the one that I actually use: Equipment Mat

Extras

I love using a headband to wick away sweat! I use this headband.

When I’m all done with my work out, I spray the area over with my Baies room spray because while enjoy having a home gym, I don’t want it to smell like a gym!

But… I Have Never Done Spinning Before!

That’s what my mom said! We got her a pair of shoes at Christmas and now she loves it! I used to go to spin class for several years but fell off the bandwagon when I moved and I couldn’t find a gym close enough with a spin class.

If you are unsure about it, what you can do is join the iOs App. This way you can full access to the content without committing with $2k. One of my friends did this- she bought a cheaper bike and then uses her iPad to stream the classes.

Here are showrooms around the country where you can test out the bike. Here is their FAQs page for more info.

I hope you enjoyed my Peloton review. Basically the only downside is the cost – but IMO, it was well worth it!

Peloton Cycle / Spin Bike Review

You can use my referral code HMUX7R when you purchase the bike – this gives you and me $100 off at the Peloton boutique!

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Peloton Tread Review

Favorite Extra Equipment

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Best Peloton Accessories

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Peloton Bike Review – 3 years later!

Favorite Extra Equipment

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About the time I tried Pure Barre

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Healthy Eating Recipe Ideas – TFT

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Peloton Bike Review – 100 Rides Later!

What is the Peloton Bike?

The Bike Itself

The Classes

Adjusting the Bike and Clipping on/off with your Shoes

Favorite Gear and Essentials for your Ride!

But… I Have Never Done Spinning Before!

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