Favorite Peloton Classes

If you either read my weekly workout recaps or know me in real life, you probably know that I have quickly become obsessed with the Peloton app. Going from one of those "I don't need an expensive bike" people to "OMG this app has EVERYTHING" happened quickly during the first month of the lock-down (when Peloton smartly extended their 30 day free trial of the app to 90 day). I signed up immediately and the rest is history! While I haven't completely become a Peloton groupie by purchasing their equipment (my Schwinn exercise bike works just fine with their classes), I am indeed a fangirl.

I've made my way through nearly 500 classes since then, and wanted to share my favorites in every category! If you're just starting out or looking to switch things up, I hope this post is helpful! I would also love hearing your favorite classes or instructors, so please leave them below (and follow me! My user name is gretchruns :)

One more note- while working on this post for the past week or two, Peloton has already started new class types including Bike Bootcamp, Barre, and Resistance Band classes. Thinking I'll need to do a part two pretty soon! So- if you see any of those missing here it's because I haven't had a chance to try all of them yet. Now- onto the list!

Strength

Crush Your Core Program

If you don't know where to start, there are lots of programs and collections offered. I've only completed two of these (the other is further down in the list!) but they're a great way to have all of our workouts laid out for you. This program is all about the core and led by Emma. I like her style a lot because she's pretty no-nonsense..gets right to business and gives you an efficient and quick workout. This is a great program if you want to get that six pack!

20 min Strength for Runners with Becs (8/20/20)

I love how this class focuses on moves that are beneficial to runners, and it was such a fun class! Becs is a great instructor who is always cheery and bubbly. I think this is a good class to do weekly to keep up those leg muscles and stay injury free. I also noticed that under strength there is a filter for Strength For Runners classes with a total of 46! Time to make my way through all of them!

20 min Hip Hop Full Body with Adrian (8/9/20)

Full body workouts are so fun for me because they seem to move really quickly and you end up feeling so accomplished. Adrian is the newest instructor on Peloton and has quickly become my favorite- he's a perfect mix of fun energy with tough workouts. I think all of his workouts are fun, but I loved this playlist and the moves were right up my alley.

Yoga

45 min Yoga Flow with Chelsea (7/13/20)

For me, 45 minutes is the perfect length of a yoga flow. Sometimes 30 minutes goes by too quickly, but with 45 you can really relax and get into the moves. Chelsea's classes are all laid out really well and she has a great way of explaining every move to make sure you're getting the most out of the class. This was my favorite because it was labeled as "beginner" but was still a great workout and one I can see myself going back to.

20 min Restorative Yoga with Kristin (6/15/20)

I absolutely love all of the restorative classes. Anytime I feel burnt out or exhausted (either mentally or physically), these are always what I turn to. While all of the instructors are great, I like how Kristin always changes up the moves and doesn't stay in each posture for too long. 

10 min Desk Yoga with Aditi (3/10/20)

Peloton offers a "Yoga Anywhere" series, which are shorter classes that you can do, well, everywhere. They're all great for a mid-day stretch, but I liked this one so much. It used the desk as well as a chair to stretch in different ways and it felt amazing!! Anytime I'm in need of a pick me up after a long day of meetings I immediately turn to this.

Cardio

20 min Dance Cardio with Cody and Emma (3/5/20)

If anyone from Peloton is reading- please add more Dance Cardio classes! These are by far my favorite classes in the app, but there are only a few of them! I'm guessing that these came out right before everything shut down and the instructors aren't able to give a class together yet. These are SO much fun - I  love every single class and have done them more times than I can count- but this is probably my favorite. I like how Cody and Emma both break down the moves so that even someone as uncoordinated as me can easily get it and feel like a dancing machine!

Running

30 min Juneteenth Run with Chase (6/19/20)

Even though I don't have a treadmill, I sometimes download the tread classes and take them outside. This is one that everyone should take, even if you just listen to it while walking or sitting around the house. Chase basically gives a history lesson of what Juneteenth is and everything that happened before and after. The music is timed perfectly with his stories, and it's a really moving and informative class. I really enjoyed it!

20 min Premiere Run with Adrian (5/26/20)

I'm really hoping that Adrian will start doing Outdoor workouts soon so I can take more of his classes, but of course I had to download his very first class. This was a great intro to him and you immediately get his goofy personality. He also chooses some great songs and the workout itself is both enjoyable and tough.

60 min HRZ Endurance Run with Becs (6/11/19)

Love me some classical music, and Becs pulled a bunch of them into one long class. She picked some of the more upbeat and well known songs, including some from movie scores,  so I think this is a class most people will enjoy. I actually took this class when I did the 5k time trial for my birthday!

Outdoor

45 min Latin Fun Run with Jess (11/7/19)

I think that this was the first outdoor class that I took, and was when Jess Sims became my favorite instructor. She has such a great teaching style- she somehow mixes story telling with instruction and motivation so seamlessly that I end up going faster than I thought possible without even noticing, and run 45 minutes without ever wanting to stop. This playlist was SO GOOD and I just want to take this same class every single day.

20 min 90s Fun Walk with Robin (5/1/20)

In addition to runs, there are also walks (and run + walk) in the outdoor section. This is the most popular workout in the section and it's easy to see why- the the playlist is SO fun and the walk is a great rest day workout. If you're just getting started with a workout routine or are new to Peloton this is a great introduction!

20 min HIIT Run with Jess (5/29/20)

It took me a while to try out the speed workouts, but now they're one of my favorites. Time seems to go by so quickly with these workouts (especially the 20 minute ones!). I like this one mostly because it's my favorite instructor, and also the playlist is all Jock Jams songs! I was reminiscing hard and pushed myself during this workout. It's one I can see myself going back to multiple times!

Cycling

Club Bangers Ride with Alex

In the app, there are a lot of different special classes led by instructors. Ally has "Sundays with Love", Jess King has her "Experience", and Alex has Club Bangers. These are super high energy and fun classes, but with a motivating workout led by Alex. I love his instructor personality, because he's all about finding your best effort.

30 min Britney Spears Ride and Warmup with Cody (7/15/20)

Anytime someone tells me they just joined and they have a bike, I immediately tell them to take this class. Cody is (in my opinion) the most fun instructor, and is always the one that can snap me out of a negative mood. Do I get the best workout with him? No, but I always have the best time on his rides! This one was definitely the highlight of all the rides I've taken with him- he was In the Zone and I didn't stop smiling the entire ride.

30 min Speak Up Ride with Tunde (6/3/20)

Earlier this year, after more and more police brutality was revealed, Peloton started a series of rides, yoga, and meditation with Tunde and Chelsea. These were intense, heavy classes, but were so important to take. These are classes where you can listen and learn, and I think everyone should take them.

Meditation

The Power of Sleep Program

This is the other program that I followed in the app, and it's amazing. I never really got into meditation before (in college I took an 8AM tai chi class where we started class with a meditation and I always fell asleep). This completely changed my opinion and has greatly improved my quality and quantity of sleep. The classes start easy with just 5 minutes, but quickly progress and you learn lots of techniques to help relax you. I loved this and also love all of their sleep meditations.

10 min Breathe In, Speak Up Meditation with Chelsea (7/25/20)

This class went along with one of Tunde's Speak Up rides (along with a restorative yoga practice), and was the perfect complement. While Tunde talked more about the pain and suffering, Chelsea followed that up with some hope and wishes for a better future. These were great to take back-to-back.

Bootcamp

30 min Broadway Bootcamp with Matty (2/15/20)

I've honestly only taken two bootcamps so far, mostly because they're intended for the treadmill and I haven't figured out the best way to combine them with outdoor running yet. But, when I took this class there were some indoor cardio suggestions which worked decently well. This was such a fun class for me because I'm a big fan of musicals, and Matty isn't afraid to let his nerdy flag fly with this one. He brought so much joy in this workout that I forgot how hard I was working.

30 min Bodyweight Bike Bootcamp with Jess (9/15/20)

To be fair, this class is actually in the Cycle section of the app, but I had to include it here since I haven't taken enough regular bootcamps! I'm so glad that they added these so that us tread-less people can enjoy a mix of cardio and strength. Plus- I get to take more classes with my girl Jess! This was my intro to the new class being offered, and I can not wait to take more. It's such a great mix of different exercises and muscles being worked, and I think will really help me when I'm training for races in the future.