My dumb monkey brain is a sucker for seeing numbers go up and getting awards, and comparing my improvement to friends and family.
The only thing that's ever gotten me to stick with a workout routine is finding one that my smartwatch can completely track and show my progress using some algorithm that distills it down to a "score". It instantly turns something that I hated doing into something where I'm reading up on how to get better.
The score is hit or miss, but it does show trends over time pretty well.
Call me when the watch comes with a buttprobe to actually track realtime caloric burn, that'll be interesting.
Peloton published the stats of their purchase cohorts in their S-1 (and probably in subsequent reports, but I haven't read them). At least among those who maintain a $39/month Peloton subscription ("Connected Fitness Subscribers"), the frequency of use increases over time. From https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1639825/000119312519...:
> We have consistently seen workouts increase over time. On average, our Connected Fitness Subscribers completed 7.5, 8.4, and 11.5 workouts per month in fiscal 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively. Usage drives value and loyalty, which is evidenced by our exceptional weighted-average 12-month Connected Fitness Subscriber retention rate of 95% across all fiscal year cohorts since fiscal 2016.
…
> Average Monthly Workouts per Connected Fitness Subscriber are higher for our most recent cohorts and engagement for each cohort has been consistent or improved over time.
S-1 page 63 has more. Also, at least as of the S-1, churn (called "Average Net Monthly Connected Fitness Churn") from those cohorts was also very low - roughly 0.5-0.9% per quarter or ~3%/year. That means Connected Fitness Subscribers includes the vast majority of those who purchased a bike.
In 2019 when the S-1 was filed, I put a few more details here: https://twitter.com/troyd/status/1167582830425075712
Now that I’ve finished my home weight gym, I will likely never start up my gym membership again.
And offset by the fact that trying a class & aborting after 45 seconds is a 'class'.
AND MOST IMPORTANTLY offset by the sunk-cost fallacy - you can't event get ride metrics off the thing without a subscription. Most people will guilt-pay the $40, just so their $2K bike works...
I don't know what Peloton displays to end users, but FWIW, the definition they use for prospective investors is much more stringent. From https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1639825/000119312519... page 66:
> We define a Workout as a Connected Fitness Subscriber either completing at least 50% of an instructor-led or scenic ride or run or ten or more minutes of “Just Ride” or “Just Run” mode.
Paying for something, and having an expected time to show up and participate is _powerful_.
Some people have the drive and motivation to actually make themselves stick with an exercise plan. For the rest of us, having peers involved, and paying money is the equivalent motivation as a grade on an assignment in school... you do the assignment because of the grade, not because you just wanted to.
Find a local FleetFeet or favorite exercise store and sign up for a summer run class for 4 weeks, and see your improvement and motivation increase.
They are great community events, and the organisers are proud that average finish time is gradually creeping up as more slower runners (and walkers) get involved. I started several years ago aged 52 and am now coming in at about 26 minutes, 10 minutes faster than my first run. Obviously they aren't running at the moment, apart from New Zealand, but check-out your nearest one. www.parkrun.com
You didn't pay for it, but the motivation is the community in this case. You've probably met some people there, and everyone shares in the experience. That's powerful as well.
Although, I still think paying for the classes to get started is a better way for most people. "Skin in the game" sort of thing, and can be a good mental excuse to leave the office and go to the class, instead of pushing it off to "tomorrow".
> Obviously they aren't running at the moment
That's sad... I can't see why people can't exercise with masks or whatever during Covid. A lot of people will lose all their progress and motivation.
This said, I probably won’t buy a Mirror (or a Peloton, or any other fitness-gadget) because I know that my issues with regularity and noncompliance to routine cannot be fixed with “mind hacks” or gamification. Whenever I have a “come to fitness-Jesus” moment, I just need a pair of shoes and shorts to go for a run, and a food scale, and I’m ok for a few months.
I always chose the classes done by this one enigmatic instructor, but would branch out to others sometimes.
You don't just get hooked on the exercise, you get hooked on the instructor and the social experience. I can definitely see this happening with mirror and lululemon. Sign me up.
I’m not sure I would put the Peloton and Mirror in the same category. The Peloton is an spin bike, and does a good job bringing the spin studio experience into the home. Spin is fairly popular way to exercise. The high cost of Peloton is also still less than any spin studio I’ve been to.
Both have gamification which I think is useful. I like metrics, so the Peloton works for me much like power lifting does. The part of the Peloton I don’t care about is the community aspect, but my wife is pulled to workout because her friends have worked out and will see if she stops.
On average, our Connected Fitness Subscribers completed 7.5, 8.4, and 11.5 workouts per month in fiscal 2017, 2018, and 2019, respectively. Usage drives value and loyalty, which is evidenced by our exceptional weighted-average 12-month Connected Fitness Subscriber retention rate of 95% across all fiscal year cohorts since fiscal 2016.