Did anyone buy a Peloton during the pandemic? I didn't. I was incredibly skeptical: I've been working on my fitness for more than 15 years and I have reached the home-workouts-are-boring stage of my progress. I did buy the Bowflex SelectTech dumbbells. They are very...decorative. So when a friend of mine highly recommended Peloton, I laughed it off. As an increasing number of partners at my old job would share their bike usernames during work calls, my ears perked up. Finally, on the second work trip for my new job, I came face to face with a real live Peloton bike. "Fine. What's the big deal?" I asked the empty hotel gym.
After 10 minutes, I got it.
See, spinning may be a great workout, but it's hard to get started. I tried a few times at the gym. If you don't know what you're doing, it feels like a loose, yet uncomfortable version of a stationary bike. However, the orientation videos on the Peloton get you started quickly. Adjust the seat, the handlebars, foot straps (since I don't have spinning shoes), and it feels okay. Watching and listening to these trainers make the difference. It's not the normal motivational approach...it's church-like.
Cult-like.
Don't believe me? Listen to Denis Morton for 90 seconds...
There's a reason I call him Pastor Denis. He and several others will slip in intense quotes and stories into these sweat session that will blow you away. At first my cynicism wouldn't allow me to take it in; quickly that would change. Two free hotel rides led me to the app. My friend was waiting for me with a 90-day pass and a coupon for the bike. The app was fine for now - I kept using the app on the spin bikes at my local gym. What astounded me and solidified my belief that Peloton is a cult was the fact that each workout was a punishment that I kept joyously signing up for. No other form of exercise for me gave me so few endorphins or instant changes (no pump or anything) but kept me coming back. It became a challenge I wanted to conquer. Plus the music and the trainers made the difference.
Do you know Tunde? How about Cody? Robin? Matt Wilpers? Even Sam Yo sometimes. Each one has their own approaches to making the pedals turn. Their playlist are incredibly different. Yet each will make sure you leave with some encouragement. Even though I work out at night and their "now you can start the day" messages aren't for me, the upliftment reminds me of the charismatic evangelical church I grew up in.
How bad is it? I'm using the Kon-Mari method to clean my apartment of clutter...so I can fit in a whole bike. I'm in.
From a learning perspective, they teach you how to progress in quick, subtle ways. Repeatable instructions as you start and change activities are subtle. Clear. Gentle drill-sergeant. Lesson learned: not all design must be fancy. If this fat rider can progress from low impact to riding with the music rides, anyone can. I've joined. And I encourage you to try it.
As a child, I remembered when anything not in the Microsoft Office suite was "playing on the computer." At least that's how my mother put it. So it's strange to think about how much social media has changed our lives. Mine in particular. There are so many examples I could share, but the first anniversary of one is coming up. Social media changed how I bathe. If you're like me there are certain news stories that you purposely avoid when they trend online. For me, the story of Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis discussing how infrequently they bathe their children and themselves was an automatic "pass." Every year this cleanliness debate comes up: some people admit to not showering daily or brushing their teeth or washing their clothes...then the rest of the Western Internet immolates them with critique. I've even participated in the outrage, but I realized a while ago it's not productive. Are you going to convince this famous or popular person...
Thanks to a wacky few weeks, I had to settle for the concept version of the Online Communities assignment. If I did have the chance to do the full version, I would have spent time capitalizing my decade of time wading into the fitness and bodybuilding communities. I have been obese since the summer after I turned 6 years old and have been under some sort of pressure to be fit. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Jason C-L ✈️💪🏾🙏🏾🧠 (@fitby40orelse) My desire to be fit was under tension: be slim and sporty like my cousins (and my father in my youth) or aspire to be as big as the bodybuilders in the grocery store magazines. Option 1 is what led me to several phases of movement: infrequent gym engagement, on-demand dance videos, the BeachBody movement (P90X and Insanity), yoga, running. It wasn't until I moved down to South Florida that Option 2 came back into my life. Through it all...I have been using social media to ge...
When we consider Web 2.0, the biggest draw is the global reach. The premise of the World Wide Web is to share information (originally a library system) quickly across the miles. All you need is a connection. Wireless Internet and smartphones means that getting connected should be easier. So imagine my surprise when reviewing the Pew Research study from this week's reading that this overview is based on 37 countries. Notably, there are only six sub-Saharan African countries and zero data from Central America and the Caribbean. While DataReportal reports a significant gap in penetration in these areas, these three gaps represent roughly 10% of Internet users. This makes me challenge even the conclusions about sub-Saharan Africa. Worse by erasing such a significant part of the developing world, we miss the high penetration of social media use in the Global South. Global Means Global. If we are truly learning to engage learners a...
Comments
Post a Comment