If you are new to Peloton, you may have noticed that they have a lot of different class categories, and not all of them are exactly what you think. We break down every single Peloton category in the on-demand library so that when you jump on the bike, tread, or grab some dumbbells for a strength workout, you will know exactly what you’re getting yourself into.
Peloton cycling classes
Warm-up and cool-down. These are 5- to 10-minute rides designed to help you either prepare for a workout or cool down after a workout. While it’s not always necessary to take these for every class, they can help quite a bit to prepare you to perform at your best.
Beginner. These classes are less intense and built for those newer members looking for a more relaxing ride. There’s also a category within this called “Beginner Advanced,” which is essentially the same thing, but a little bit more intense.
Low impact. These classes are almost always entirely in the saddle to give your joints a break and for those who aren’t really ready yet to stand up during their rides.
Power zone. Power zone rides are built around seven power zones and they are personalized around your own power zone score. To find your power zone score, you’ll first need to take the FTP test. The FTP test is a 20-minute all-out test to find your max riding capacity. Once you’ve taken the FTP test, you’ll be able to see all of your power zones during every ride. Then during power zone classes, you’ll know exactly what to do in the power zone category.
There are three different types of power zone workouts. There is power zone, which focuses mostly on power zones two and three. There is power zone endurance, which focuses on zones four and five. Then there’s power zone max, which focuses on power zones six and seven.
Climb. Typically during a climb ride, the focus is on increasing resistance rather than increasing your speed or cadence. Similar to as if you were climbing up a big mountain and it just got steeper and steeper.
Live DJ. Peloton occasionally has a live DJ come in on Friday nights to get the party started. What you will do in those rides will vary quite a bit from one instructor to the next, but if you’re in the mood for a fun class, with a live DJ, this is a good choice.
Intervals. Interval workouts are focused on shorter bursts of high intensity with periods of recovery to allow you to continue that intensity throughout the entire workout.
Heart rate. These are older classes with the newest class being from December 2019, and they are based around heart rate zones. Peloton has since focused much more on the community favorite, power zone training. But if you prefer heart zone training, you can still find these in the on-demand library and there are still a good amount of classes to choose from.
Theme. Theme classes are simple theme-based workouts, like club bangers, mood rides, holiday rides, and more.
Music. These are similar to the theme category, but instead are based on a music genre or a specific music artist.
Groove. Groove is an interesting one. This is a choreography-based class that’ll have you dancing on the bike to the beat of the music.
Pro cycle. These are all instructed by professional cyclists who share tips and tricks from the road to help you improve your performance on the bike.
Peloton running classes
The next overall Peloton category we are going to cover is running. Since many of the categories for running are similar to cycling, we’re going to skip all the ones that overlap and just focus on the ones specific to running.
Running. These classes help you improve your form so you can train with better efficiency and be less likely to accumulate injuries as you build up your miles.
Endurance. These are more focused on a lower intensity, but for a longer period of time.
Speed. Like the interval workouts for cycling, these are based around going faster for a short period of time followed by a recovery and it repeats over and over.
Peloton strength classes
The next Peloton category we are going to cover is strength, and some of these are pretty self explanatory. Bodyweight means bodyweight workouts, upper body means upper body workouts, lower body means lower body workouts, and core means, you guessed it, core workouts.
Arms + light weights. These are workouts on the bike with light, one to three pound dumbbells, for arm toning.
Strength for runners. These are strength workouts focused on helping to compliment runners for their specific training and injury prevention needs.
Resistance bands. These are upper body strength classes that utilize resistance bands to build muscular endurance in your arms, shoulders, chest, and back.
Barre. Barre classes are low impact, high-energy classes focused on lowering, pulsing, and isometric holds. There is a ton of booty and lower body training in these classes.
Pilates. Peloton pilates classes are focused on core strength, flexibility, and body awareness.
Prenatal. Prenatal strength classes are designed with modifications that are appropriate for expectant mothers, looking for a safe and effective workout.
Peloton yoga classes
Flow. Flow is an active vinyasa style yoga class, which focuses on flowing from one pose to the next.
Focus Flow. These are flow workouts that are focused on certain areas like your hips, core, or even developing the ability to hold a headstand.
Power. The power category is like a flow class, but at a faster pace with additional poses and repetition of movements. Previous yoga experience is suggested before jumping into these classes.
Slow flow. Slow flow is pretty much the opposite of power. Poses are held in these classes for longer periods of time, which allows for more instruction and a deeper stretch.
Restorative. Restorative classes ask you to hold poses for a long time. Sometimes as much as five to 10 minutes, or even longer. It’s pretty much a rest, but in a position that helps you relax and calm your nervous system.
Yoga anywhere. Yoga anywhere classes are pretty much broken into two types, standing and chair yoga. These allow you to do some yoga training, even when you don’t have the opportunity to set up a mat on the ground.
Yoga basics. These classes are broken down by movement so you can really learn and practice each one. This can really help if you’re finding the flow classes a bit too fast, or if you want to refine your technique further.
Peloton cardio classes
HIIT. HIIT classes are similar to the interval category from the bike and tread. These workouts are focused on shorter bursts of high intensity with periods of recovery.
Music HIIT. These are HIIT workouts often to the beat of a specific genre of songs or a specific artist.
Family. These are fun workouts designed for children to do alongside their parents. Jess Sims teaches all of them and they’re great if you’re having trouble finding time to workout while taking care of your kids.
Dance cardio. This is cardio while dancing to music. So if you like Zumba, you’re probably going to like these classes.
Peloton walking classes
Power walking. Power walking is focused on developing speed and going fast rather than making it harder through more incline.
Hiking. Hiking is similar to the climb from cycling, where you’re not going to be focused on going necessarily faster, but increasing the resistance by having more of an inclined angle on the treadmill.
Walk + run. These classes are great for less experienced runners, or for those of us who want more of a recovery run with a little bit of walking in between intervals.
Peloton hidden classes
Finally, the last and secret category on the Peloton, that I find particularly useful, are foam rolling classes. You can find these classes by typing in foam rolling on the search bar and they’ll all pop up. These are great for those of you who have a foam roller and want to be able to use it while following along with an instructor. Foam rolling is a really good way to recover after a workout, especially a cycling workout.
That’s it for all of the Peloton categories that you can find on the bike, tread, or digital app. Make sure to check out some of our other Peloton guides including our stacking, sessions, and scheduling guide, as well as how to cast Peloton workouts to your TV.
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