How The Peloton App Sparked A Love Of The Treadmill

26 Oct

Disclaimer: The opinions below are mine and mine alone. Peloton has not sponsored this post. However, should they wish to provide me with one of their amazing new treadmills I’d be more than happy to do a whole series on it!

Back in the day when I was running regularly I constantly said I hated the treadmill. It was even one of the 36 (More) Fun Facts About Me (Number 6)! As a road runner, I found the treadmill boring and tedious. The time would fly by out on the road but every step was torture when I had to step on the tread.

Then I stopped running one day. I got dressed and when I went to lace up my shoes I had a full-blown anxiety attack, so I ripped my shoes off and never ran again.

Fast forward a few years

Without running and having a full time desk job, the pounds started sneaking on. I had to do something.

We bought a spin bike that would work with the Peloton iPad app, I tired it a few times but had a hard time getting into it. The bike wasn’t really my thing since I was convinced it was trying to kill me every time I used it.

Then while Bill and I were away for the weekend I tired a Peloton tread workout in the hotel gym. It was love at first step. The instructor was fun and engaging and before I knew it I had finished the class and I felt amazing. We bought a new treadmill on our way home from that very trip.

The instructors

I have yet to find an instructor that I don’t like. They all make you feel like you’re right there in the studio with them. I often find myself talking to them and answering their questions…out loud.

“How you feelin’ Peloton?”

AMAZING!!!!

I feel like I know them, they talk about their lives, their families, their pets. In fact, during the height of COVID, I was invited into a few of their homes to take classes (virtually of course).

The instructors inspire me and push me to do better and be better both on and off the tread. I feel like I get more encouragement from the instructors through my iPad than I ever did when I went to actual fitness classes at the gym.

Seriously, these people are the best of the best at what they do!

The classes

There is quite literally something for everyone in the Peloton app. No matter where you are on your fitness journey, there are MANY classes for you to enjoy…BOTH live and on demand.

Oh my God, the live classes! I cannot express how exciting it was when my favorite instructor called my screen name (Mommyland05) out during my 100th class. He even made a comment about what Mommyland might be like, he imagined a Spa being involved. We all know that’s not the case.

Anyway, back to the classes.

The app has a great filtering tool so you can find the workout that fits with not only your ability but your available time.

The app has eleven workout genres so you can be sure to have a well rounded routine. Strength, Yoga, Cardio, Meditation, Running, Outdoor, Cycling, Stretching, Tread Bootcamp, Bike Bootcamp and Walking. Like I said, something for everyone. There are many classes that don’t require any equipment, so even if you don’t have a home gym there is something for you.

The equipment

While I wish I had a Peloton tread, I do not. My bike isn’t a Peloton either. I just can’t find it in me to stomach the price tag of Peloton equipment right now…Maybe someday.

I have a Bowflex tread and weights, and a Schwinn bike and the app works great with all of it. All the same classes and instructors that come with the Peloton equipment come right inside the app. No need to break the bank right away.

The bottom line

The Peloton app gives you world class fitness instructors and thousands of classes right on your tablet, phone or even some streaming devices, all for the more than reasonable price of $12.99 a month.

You also get a great community! You’re able to see the leaderboard and give out high fives to anyone and everyone on it. You can join a group who share your interests as well, just by searching the hashtags. All of the instructors encourage you to follow them on social media and they actually interact with you there.

Right now you can get your first 30 days with the Peloton app for free. Give it a try, what do you have to lose?

Are you already using the app? Tell me who your favorite instructors are!

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When Does This Parenting Gig Get A Little Bit Easier?

18 Oct

This shit is hard! It always has been too. From the time the morning sickness set in when I was pregnant with Cameron its been hard.

Before I go any further, let me say that I wouldn’t trade my boys for anything and I love them more than I ever thought possible. It is possible to be willing to jump in front of a bus for something or someone and still acknowledge the struggle.

Pregnancy

I was NOT one of those glowing women who just adored being pregnant. I was big, like REALLY big. I was uncomfortable. I was generally miserable. My first pregnancy was when the insomnia started, I can still remember wandering the house all night feeling panicked about becoming a mother. And the hormones, oh the hormones, I’m not really sure how anyone close to me survived.

Labor and delivery wasn’t a picnic either. Cameron’s head was so ginormous that he nearly ripped me in half. Logan was kind enough to take so long that the epidural ran out just as we were getting down to the nitty gritty.

Babies

I don’t function well on little sleep and those boys had me up all night and then most of the day. They also had no interest in nursing which only made me feel like more of a failure as a mother.

Worrying that I was going to break them, especially Cameron (since he was first), was something always in the back of my head. The constant worry that I wasn’t feeding them the right foods. Or that I was dressing them too warm or too cold for the weather.

Then there is the amount of work that goes into babies. So much laundry. So many diapers. The constant feedings. The playing and stimulation that goes with helping their little brains develop so they can get into a good school someday.

Children

Every time one of the boys would fall down I’d hold my breath. Was he hurt? Is he going to cry? Would someone see all the bruises this kid as acquired and think I was beating him? At one point Logan had two ER visits with head injuries within six months of each other. I thought for sure that CPS would be knocking at my door.

Diaper changes since neither of them decided to potty train until I forced it on them at the three and a half year mark. Being peed on. Catching shit in my bare hand. Changing dirty underwear a thousand times a day. I couldn’t wait for them to be potty trained, certainly life would be easier then.

HA!

The fighting and the biting between the boys (who are two and a half years apart in age) was almost more than I could handle.

Tweens

OK, they can wipe their own asses, it’s time, life will be easier. They no longer need me to provide everything that they eat, they’re more self sufficient, life will be easier. I have two kids in school all day, life will be easier.

Nope. The old difficulties were replaced with new ones. Bigger kids. Bigger problems.

Learning to navigate the internet with these children who have almost constant access to it. Dealing with them being influenced from the environment outside our home. Friends and peer pressure.

The beginnings of puberty…Need I say more?

The fighting and sometimes biting still didn’t stop.

Teens

This is the part that no one could have prepared me for. The sights. The noise. THE SMELLS!

Their education has become more important. In middle and high school grades matter a lot more than they used to. Will they go to college? Will they be able to get in? About the only thing I do know if that it’s paid for…Thank the good lord for my parents!

Now we have girlfriends and social drama added to the mix. As if all of that wasn’t difficult enough, we’re doing all this during a global pandemic.

Cameron will be able to get his learner’s permit in just a few short months. Then I will have the added horror of that child behind the wheel of a car. The saying Jesus take the wheel has never felt more appropriate.

Little kids, little problems. Big kids, big problems.

Like I said, this shit is hard! If you’re just starting out on your parenting adventure, I’m here to tell you that it’s not going to get any easier any time soon. Buckle up, you’re in for a bumpy ride.

Do you have adult children? Can you tell us, does it ever get easier to be a parent? Please let us know in the comment section on on social media. We all want to know, is there hope?

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