My First 200 Rides on the Peloton

Who knows a great first sentence for the occasion?

On January 31, 2021, I completed 100 rides on the Peloton bike. The bike was installed in my house in late September 2020. So it took me a little over 4 months to get there. Guess I was a bit eager.

On November 13, 2021, I completed 200 rides. A little under 10 months between century milestones, which would indicate a bit of a slowdown in my cycling frequency. Not exactly (more on this later).

My first ride had an average output of 108. My 100th ride had an average output of 240. My 200th, 268. My stated goal was to crack an average of 300 output. I think. Here are the actual sentences I wrote in this regard:

Hopefully, I can get to my 200th ride. If that day comes, I hope to see a 300 on that average output.

Was I saying I wanted to notch 300 on my 200th ride? Or did I want to see a 300 at some point between my 100th and 200th rides? Who knows. Goal-setting specificity was lacking here. Nonetheless, I did post a 3-hondo once (337 in a 5-minute ride). I cracked 298 in a 30-minute boot camp ride, which entails about 13 minutes of cycling.

Another hundred rides and I’m sitting at 300. I’m going to learn my lesson now: I want to secure at least a 300 output on my 300th ride. There.

All that said, when it comes to this cycling experience, the road to now has been a continual daze. To sit in one spot and rotate your legs for 10, 20, 60, 90 — yikes!- minutes at a time is a wild thought. It seems like interminable torture. It is interminable torture.

So why do this? For health? Quality of life? Quantity of life? Looking good? I don’t really know. At some point in the past, I had a clear why when it came to fitness. But now, I find it hard to locate. What I do know with utmost certainty: I ain’t stopping.

Who cares about why something must be done when you understand it has to be done.

Anyway, here are my biggest takeaways from this journey:

• Start the first 3 minutes of every race like every hair on your body is on fire. End the last 3 minutes the same.
• Eventually, the goal is to go the whole ride in that fashion. That is the Holy Grail of cycling, the proverbial One Ring that was coveted by Gollum, Frodo, and all those other characters that recently made Peter Jackson a billionaire. The flow state.
• Endeavors toward health in all forms is the true rent we pay for this existence. Daily exercise is not extortive. I mean, it is, I repeat, interminable torture, but consider the alternatives. Until another method comes about that sheds our excess emotions, regulates our blood and heart rates, and tones our muscles to buffer falls and impacts, I’ma pay the fee.
• The fertile time to build solid cycling habits is when your mind is fresh and your body is rested. Focus on smoothing the pedal strokes, moving both legs in a circular (not linear motion), and pushing yourself slightly every time.
• When your motivation is suspect and waning, drag yourself to the bike. This is the time to go for the PR.
• Any day is a good day to go for the PR. Go hard, rest hard, in equal measure. Plan rest days, don’t let them “happen.”
• The body is a strange organism. Treat yours like the unique dynamic medium it is. Be scientific in figuring out what works for your body and how hard to push it for continuous growth. Be unsentimental in your analysis. This is your journey alone.
• If you made it this far, I’m assuming most of you have access to a Peloton or are considering owning one. Take some time to use the programs offered on this app, from Power Zones to boot camps to yoga to strength training. Classes are given in 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 45, 60- minute sessions. There are even 90-minute cycling classes available. Choose different instructors. Different playlist genres. Different everything. Variety is the spice of Peloton life.
• Speaking of boot camps, these don’t actually count toward your cycling total. So although my stats currently reads “200” under “Cycling,” my boot camp rides jumped to 42. I’m not sure how much sooner I would have reached the 200th milestone, but take this data for what it’s worth. By the way, if I ever get to 100 boot camp rides, there will be a massive reflection/celebration (the two are the same in my world) because them things are brutal.
• I did a 90-minute cycling class on my birthday. That may or may not have had an effect on my subsequent birthday activities.
• One time to the guy Marcus Robinson, the Gandalf to my biking journey. Peers pushing each other to heights previously unknown is the gift that keeps on giving.

The holiday season is upon us. These are perilous times for the disciplined-minded. Families gather, meaning more food and beverage consumption by the gallons. Hopefully, I can get sucked into a competition or program with peers to foster group wellness accountability. My prayer for the immediate future is simple: that with the love of family around us, our plates and biking metrics pile up in lockstep.