I wonder if I should get a Peloton. I’m having back surgery next month and after the six to eight weeks of in-home PT and then the six weeks of in-office PT, I will need to get indoor exercise. We have a rowing machine that we got for free (being discarded when someone moved but need a replacement part that I bought) and a stationary bike (need to replace pedals to fit my biking shoes) but I don’t use them. Do you think a Peloton with the online component would work better?
My daughter loves hers and loves working out ‘with’ her friend who lives in Florida (so two hour time difference).
When you make an appt to work out, you are more likely to do it. At least I am. I sign up for classes at the Y because then I go. Could I do those same exercises at home? Sure. Do I? No.
I don’t have a Peleton, I have a Tempo, which is a free weight system,but I’m not sure I’d want to try to be in that position to bike after back surgery. Maybe ask your doc the best at home equipmemt. I’m thinking a treadmill.
Yea @twoinanddone. We have a PT come to our house twice a week (used to be three times) for the last 10 years to do core exercises for my back (after a month, ShawWife decided to join in). Could I do these on my own? Absolutely and I do sometimes when I am traveling. But would I do them on my own two to three times a week? Unlikely. And I was able to defer back surgery for 10 years as a result.
A Peloton indoor bike seems more like a “system” than a really good indoor bike. If you want the electronic motivation, and to pay X per month for the subscription, then Peloton may be for you. If you just want a really good indoor spin bike, then other options are available.
@VeryHappy, keeping a strong core is essential but the negative consequences of slacking off on the exercise would be experienced months/years later so it would be easy to slack. ShawWife and I do try to do the exercises if our PT is tied up and when we travel, but we try to hook him in via Zoom when we are at our vacation house or in Florida. Just increases the probability that we will do the exercise.
@1214mom, my interest is in the motivation. I asked ShawD if she uses her Peloton and she does, but she said you can purchase subscribe and use your iPad for viewing purposes. I think I will try that first.
How long do your exercises take? I “tie” it to another activity. For me, it’s cooking dinner, so I always exercise before I start cooking. Even if it’s not a heavy workout day, or if I’ve already got all of my steps in, I just do 5 minutes of bouncing on my rebounder to keep the habit sacred.
The exercises take fifty minutes to an hour, beginning with some stretching, 90 crunches of various types, a bunch of glute exercises, and ending with 40 pushups, some hip flexor (I think) exercises and then 7 minutes of planks (four 15 second low planks separated by 10 seconds, two 30 second low planks, one 1 minute plank (alternating every 15 seconds between low and high planks), two 30 second high planks, four 15 second high plank, and then two 20 second side planks on one side and then two more on the other). I am out of breath, sweating, and not in peak mental shape for a few minutes.
A bike mainly works the lower body strength and cardio endurance.
A rower engages the entire body, legs, back, arms, and core. For my money, if you’re choosing one piece of cardio equipment to use, then I think the rower is the better choice.
And you already own one.
One can pay for online coaching, live programs, etc. Dark Horse Rowing is an excellent choice.
I am a long time peloton owner. I would start with a trial membership that you can stream on your phone, ipad or a television. There are classes that use a rower, any bike or a treadmill and tons of weight, yoga and stretching classes
I have a good amount of experience with both, including being on rowing team and cycling club during college. As sushiritto notes, a rower puts far more stress on the back than a cycling machine. This can be a good thing or bad thing, depending on whether you are trying to stress or avoid stress on your back, following the surgery. Your answer might depend on how the recovery progresses. For example, you might prefer to initially work your back in a well controlled manner as part of the PT and be able to go high intensity in cardio, without being limited by your back. Or if you are well recovered, you might want to stress your back as part of your usual exercise.
Regarding stationary bike vs Peloton, the best exercise choice is often the one that you’ll stick with, without quitting. If a Peloton helps you stick with it, that would likely work better. However, it’s certainly not the case that everyone is more likely to persist with a Peloton than working out on their own. I certainly wouldn’t. You might think about why you stopped using the stationary bike and rower that you already own. Would the Peloton help with, whatever reasons you stopped working out in the past?
I personally find that indoor workouts are more enjoyable when I watch TV during the exercise, which can be another option. When I was in college, I’d push this even further and read while on the stationary bike, including reading textbooks from my classes. Getting in a habit of doing something I enjoyed while cycling, helped pass the time and made the exercise more enjoyable.
I bought a BowFlex stationary bike during the pandemic ($600 vs. the $1200 that Peloton was selling for at that time) and used it with the Peloton digital subscription. I used it on average 4 times a week.
My daughter convinced me to break down and get the actual Peloton bike this spring. For me, there was a big difference between using another brand bike with the App and using the real Peloton with their online classes. With the off-brand bike, I was having to guess at cadence & resistance. Once I started with the Peloton, I realized that I was guessing poorly. I now feel like I am getting a bonafide cycling workout. I wish I had done it sooner.
I’m not a crazy cyclist - I have joint issues so I do a lot of low impact classes, and I don’t have a desire to die while on it, so no HIIT or Tabata for me. I use it to keep my heart pumping, lungs breathing and joints moving. I am not an exercise class person, nor do I want to drive to a gym so this works for me. I supplement this work out with kettlebells as well to get some weight-bearing exercise in.
There’s a lot you can do with Peloton in addition to cycling (walking, running, weight training, barre, stretching). They have tons of classes.
I have friends who are so devoted to their Peleton than they have one in their beach house too. It doesn’t hold great appeal to me, but I don’t really like spin classes at the gym either. I prefer to bike on a real bike outside. With that said, cycling can be hard on the back and neck, and it sounds like your exercise program needs to be highly attuned to that. The rowing machine might be better. Does your PT have recommendations?
What will work for you is what you like to do and what will motivate you. If it’s having signed up for a class or session with your trainer, the format of Peleton could work. Then again, many gyms have on-demand classes as well as streaming options, and maybe mixing it with in person classes might keep it interesting for longer.
During the Covid shutdown, I got a stationary bike and used it with the Equinox app. Equinox offered SoulCycle classes, which I found more enjoyable and a bit less stress on the body than the Peloton classes. I’m not sure what all is available on Equinox now, but I enjoyed the options at the time.
"First, in contrast to cycling and running, almost every muscle group takes an active part in rowing. Blood variables change to the extreme during ‘all-out’
rowing because of the workload of the arm, back and leg muscles. "
"Surface electrodes have been used to record muscle activity during rowing (Ishiko 1968). Especially high muscle activity was noted in biceps and triceps brachia and latissimus dorsi. "
However, lower back issues are fairly common with cycling, which I expect you are referring to. Cycling back issues more often relate to posture and strain on lower back from the position maintained while cycling, rather than high utilization of back muscles. It’s more of an issue for outdoor cycling than cycling on stationary bike. There are recumbent bike options for persons who have lower back issues that avoid this position.
@sushiritto, I love rowing. Used to do single sculls every day when I lived near the Charles and not infrequently when I was living in Sausalito. Probably my favorite form of exercise. But, I think it will be many months before I could get clearance to do a rowing machine after my surgery, whereas I can start a stationary bike a couple of weeks after surgery.
@Data10, good question as to why I don’t use the stationary bike we have. I think it is reasonably high quality. I find indoor cycling (and indoor rowing) pretty boring. In addition, I have not put in clips – it has toe clips that are not comfortable. I could install my pedals in the bike (actually ShawWife is much better at that than I am). That might help. I tried watching TV but don’t find I exercises as hard. I used to try to read the Economist many years ago when I went to the gym. Now the Economist has an audio version. That might work.
In contrast, I like cycling outdoors and have a lot less trouble motivating myself to do it. ShawWife and I usually do it together and it is much easier to get myself going with her, but I will usually go on my own if she is not around. I thought maybe the online program would be more like doing it with others.
I have noticed a very active market on Facebook Marketplace for used pelotons (price about $400 to $500), which no doubt means many people buy them and don’t use them.
@Data10, my problems are lower back and until the surgery, the problem is with extension of the back so rowing could be a problem if the form is bad (mine is good). My surgeon discouraged rowing (pre-surgery) as he thought I could damage a disk – again, I think that is more likely if your form is bad, but he does not know my form. Pre-surgery, cycling has been great for my back as the bending stretches it out.
Post-surgery and full recovery, I suspect rowing will be good and I will have to see what cycling position works well. I have looked into e-bikes a bit (rented three) as I have read that people are more likely to bike if they have an e-bike. But I won’t buy anything until after the recovery from surgery to see what works for me.
@shawbridge my apologies, in terms of rowing, I should have conditioned my response with “once you’re healthy and cleared by your doctor.
I love to bicycle, but I wouldn’t log long bike rides now, because of possible impacts to prostate health. Nowadays, my programming uses an air bike for HIIT’s.