Trust Me, I Tried It: The Peloton Tread Is More Than Just Your Average Treadmill

As someone living in Australia, there's probably a strong chance you hadn't heard of the brand Peloton until that scene in the Sex and The City reboot... you know the one. And if you had, it's probably because of its cult-famous spin bikes. However, this time last year, Peloton slowly introduced the Peloton Tread to the Aussie market, shaking up the home treadmill game.

I've had a love-hate relationship with running for as long as I can remember, I'm always dipping in and out of it. When Peloton reached out to me to see if I wanted to try the tread, I was at a stage where I was bored with my usual running routine. I'd just finished two half marathons and sworn off running for a while. But after sitting down for a run-through of the tread with the team, I decided that Peloton Tread might just be the fuel that reignites my love of running again.

Spoiler alert, it was.

My partner had generously given me some space in our garage for the Peloton Tread, but this thing was so damn sexy you honestly could have put it in any room. Unlike other, clunkier treadmills that are a bit of an eyesore, the Peloton tread is aesthetically beautiful (for a treadmill).

The modern design of the tread gives it a luxurious feel, it has a sleek, minimalist frame, and a 150cm grippy running belt absorbs a lot of shock from each step, reducing the noise and shakey-clunky feeling you get on older-style treads.

It also comes with Peloton's signature 32-inch LCD touchscreen display, which is the centrepiece of the machine. While most treads have a screen, it's what happens on Peloton's that separates it from the rest. Peloton offers immersive and interactive workout experiences that guide users through thousands of workouts, not just running (but more on that later).

The Tread also features two large, intuitive speed and incline knobs on either side of the machine that allows you to easily adjust your speed (right) and incline (left) without distracting you from your workout. The best part though, is that there's also a button in the middle of each knob that allows you to jump to the next speed or incline grade with minimal effort.

There’s also an option to use the auto-incline feature that automatically follows the instructor's cues during the workout and increases and decreases the incline without you having to touch a thing. A real game changer if you're someone who, like me, hates when you're sweaty fingers can't touch those speed buttons while you're running full pelt.

One thing I will say about the Tread is to make sure you've got the space for it. The total dimensions of the Peloton Tread are 68" L x 33" W x 62" H, and the brand recommends at least 24" of space to the left, right and front of the Tread, and 79" of space to the back for storing and training. The ceiling height minimum is 20" greater than the user’s height. We learnt this the hard way, my boyfriend is 6ft2 and was almost grazing the ceiling when he jumped on.

Let's start with the running classes. You'll find every style of running class you can think of (walking, running, endurance, HIIT, beginner, speed etc.) in many durations — 5mins, 10mins, 20mins, 30 mins, 45mins, 60mins, 75mins, and 90mins. So if you've only got 20 minutes to squeeze a run in, there's a class you can do on demand.

You can also choose which Peloton instructor's class you'd like to take, and the level of difficulty — beginner, intermediate, or advanced. And let me tell you, you'll 100% end up in a parasocial relationship with your instructor, I know I did (Hi, Selena).

I tried a few different classes and instructors over my first few runs, but I kept coming back to Selena Samuela. She's high energy, super motivating, and has epic playlists.

Surprisingly, you also don't just have to run on the Peloton Tread, they also offer strength classes, cycling, rowing, yoga, meditation, stretching, walking, outdoor runs and cardio with your Peloton All Access Membership. Now, obviously, you won't be able to do most of these on the tread itself, but you can play them on the screen while you workout next to the tread or on your phone or laptop if you're on the go.

There's one particular run series on the Peloton Tread that I fell in love with — 'The Artists Series'. Peloton builds whole workouts around popular artists music like Beyonce, Taylor Swift, ABBA, AC/DC, Alicia Keys, and more. I, of course, found this out and immediately did the Taylor Swift run and was flying!

Now, there are always days when you don't feel like doing an intense run, and Peloton accounts for those too by offering scenic runs throughout beautiful parts of the world like Hawaii, Canada, Iceland, New York, and more. Otherwise, you can just do your own thing with the ‘Just Run’ feature, which basically operates like a regular treadmill.

The Tread easily connects to your home internet connection over Wi-Fi, so you can stream all your classes without a hitch (as long as you have a good NBN connection). And because we all love to multitask, Peloton has also gone ahead and added some other streaming capabilities like Netflix, NBA League Pass, Disney+, and YouTube TV. Yep, that means you can sweat it out to your favourite TV series, movies and live sports — how good?!

You can also connect the Peloton to your Strava, smart watches, wireless headphones, heart rate monitors etc. so you can track all your health and fitness goals. The Tread also displays your in-workout metrics like heart rate, output, cadence, and resistance on the screen throughout your class. That said, if you don't want to see all those things because you don't find them motivating, you can easily swipe them off the screen and they'll just be tracked in the background if you wanna check them out later.

The last fun feature I wanna point out is the leaderboard. If you're someone who's motivated by a little competition, you can see other Peloton users who have either run before you or who might be running at the same time as you. You can see their mileage stats as well as give them virtual high-fives throughout the workout. I won't lie, it was actually super motivating to receive virtual high-fives when you're sweating it out.

I'll be honest with you, I didn't expect to love the Peloton Tread as much as I did. I’m typically more of an outdoor runner, I've always found treadmills to be boring and unstimulating. But having access to the Tread has converted me into a Peloton girlie.

The mix of different classes, instructors and playlists just made running so much more engaging. My attention isn't drawn to the fact that I've still got three-plus kilometres until I'm home, it's there, in the room, pushing myself because Selena is my number one hype girl, and has me running and screaming Olivia Rodrigo, not wanting the class to end. In other words, it's the first time on a treadmill where I haven't just been watching the clock, waiting to get off.

I also loved that if I wasn't quite feeling an intense workout but still wanted to run, there were slower-paced, chilled runs to jump on and stride through. Otherwise, I found myself doing the stretch classes and yoga beside the Tread.

The convenience was also such a huge selling point for me. I work from home full time, so being able to squeeze in a 20-30 minute run between meetings before or after work, or if it's raining (or too humid, thank you, QLD weather), has been key to maintaining my active lifestyle — and sanity.

My one request would be more Australian instructors and some Aussie workouts/playlists. While I love everything currently available, I do miss that local feel. Peloton, if you need someone to curate some Aussie playlists and classes for you, call me. Being an instructor looks like a damn good time to me.

Now, here's the tricky part. The Peloton Tread is definitely a luxury workout item and comes with a larger price tag than other treadmills on the market. Peloton Tread packages start at $4,445 plus $59 a month for Peloton All-Access Membership, which is required to access all the Peloton fitness content. The hefty price includes delivery and installation (which was super simple and efficient btw). Plus, you get a 12-month warranty on parts and labour, three years on the Tread drive motor and walking belt and five years on the Tread frame.

If you’re keen to try the Tread but don’t want to over-commit, Peloton also offers a 30-day trial in your own home, commitment-free. If you decide it’s not for you, you’ll get a refund on your entire order, and they'll send someone out to pack down and return the Tread.

After trailing the Tread for around three to four months, the price tag has become more justifiable to me, since you're getting SO much more than your standard treadmill. My partner and I figured out that on average over the last few years, I've spent around $250 a month on workouts, so $3000 a year. So, if I actually use the Peloton as much as I go to the gym or Pilates, I'll have broken even within 18 months or so. Not to mention, if he cancels his gym membership and goes halves with me, it becomes financially beneficial for us too.

You can check out the Peloton Tread packages and products in more detail here.