A Guide to the Peloton Discover Your Power Zones Program

If you’re a Peloton user, chances are you’ve heard about the popular Discover Your Power Zones training program.

First introduced a few years ago, the Discover Your Power Zones program has quickly gained a dedicated following among Peloton members that wanted to learn more about Power Zone Training.

And for good reason – it offers an effective and personalized approach to power zone training, helping users achieve their fitness goals and improve their overall cardiovascular fitness. 

In this blog post, we’ll dive into the details of the Peloton power zone program, explore its benefits, and discuss how it can benefit your fitness journey.

Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced rider, there’s something for everyone in this transformative program. Discover Your Power Zones is a great starting point for Power Zone workouts.

Discover Your Power Zones program is designed to help you reach your fitness goals and take your training to the next level. Whether you’re looking to improve your endurance, strength, or overall fitness, this program provides a personalized approach that can benefit any type of rider.

By dividing your workouts into specific power zones based on your current fitness level, the program helps you train smarter and more efficiently. This not only leads to better results, but it also helps you avoid overtraining or burnout. 

With the Discover Your Power Zones program, every ride is personalized to your own fitness level, making it a rewarding and sustainable training option for Peloton users of all levels.  

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So why wait? Discover your power zones today and unlock your full potential on the bike. 

What is Peloton’s Discover Your Power Zones Program?

The Discover Your Power Zones program by Peloton is a training program that aims to optimize your cycling performance and overall fitness through personalized power zone training.

This program divides your workouts into specific zones based on your individual abilities, allowing you to train smarter and more efficiently.

By tailoring each ride to your own fitness level, this program ensures that every cyclist, regardless of their  experience or fitness level, can reach their full potential on the bike.

With its proven results and personalized approach, Peloton’s Discover Your Power Zones program has become a popular choice among users looking to take their training to the next level.

The Discover Your Power Zone training program is the first level in the Power Zone collection and is a great way for beginners to be introduced to Power Zone training.

The program guides you through beginning Power Zone training to  build your foundation of fitness. As you progress through the program, you will discover your five individual power zones determined by your personal best effort during a standardized test ride called the Functional Threshold Power test or FTP test.

These power zones will then be used to tailor each workout to your specific abilities and goals, ensuring that every ride is challenging yet achievable.

The program is a 5 week program that has 25 classes. Classes are taught by a range of Power Zone instructors including Matt Wilpers, Olivia Amato, Christine D’Ercole, Denis Morton, and Matt Yo.

The class is structured to introduce you to Power Zone training and includes taking an FTP test in the first week, then working on improving over the next 5 weeks to take the test again.

Is Discover your Power Zones good for beginners?

Power zone training is an effective way for beginners to start their cycling journey and improve their fitness.

The Discover Your Power Zones program by Peloton takes into account each individual’s abilities and caters the workouts accordingly, making it a great option for those new to cycling.

By starting with the foundational level of power zone training, beginners can build up their fitness levels gradually and safely.

Additionally, the program helps cyclists discover their personal power zones, allowing them to accurately measure and track their progress over time. This not only keeps beginners motivated but also ensures that they are pushing themselves at a level that is appropriate for their fitness level.

With its personalized approach and proven results, it’s no wonder that Peloton’s Discover Your Power Zones program is highly recommended for beginners.

How Power Zone Training Works

When you start Power Zone training, you’ll take an FTP test. This FTP test is a 20-minute ride where you try to hold maximum power output for the entire ride. At the end of the ride, your average output from your FTP test results is used to determine power zones.

These power zones range from zone 1 being the easiest to zone 7 being the maximum. 

When you take Peloton power zone classes, the instructors will call out which zone to hit and a power meter at the bottom of your screen will display exactly which output you need to hit those zones. 

Types of Power Zone Classes

There are 3 different types of Power Zone classes:

Power Zone Endurance Rides: these rides are generally between zones 2 and 3 and are a great way to build endurance. These classes can be extended workouts and range anywhere from 30 minutes to 120 minute rides. These rides are great for active recovery.

Power Zone: General Power zone classes can vary between hitting all the zones. These workouts are usually pretty balanced between Zones 1-7 and are a great sweet spot in power zone training.

Power Zone Max Rides: These are the most intense power zone training classes. These rides will often hit zones 6 and 7 and are taken usually only once a week. 

Discover Your Power Zones Class List

Here is the current program:

​Week 1

• Day 1: 15 Minute Into to Power Zone Training and 20 Minute Beginner Power Zone Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 2: Rest
• Day 3: 10 Minute FTP Test Warmup and 20 Minute FTP Test with Denis Morton
• Day 4: 30 Minute Power Zone Endurance Ride with Christine D’Ercole
• Day 5: 20 Minute Low Impact Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 6: 30 Minute Power Zone Endurance Ride with Olivia Amato
• Day 7: Rest

Week 2

• Day 1: 30 min Power Zone Hip Hop Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 2: Rest
• Day 3: 45 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Denis Morton
• Day 4: 30 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Olivia Amato
• Day 5: Rest
• Day 6: 45 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 7: Rest

Week 3

• Day 1: 30 min Power Zone Ride with Christine D’Ercole
• Day 2: Rest
• Day 3: 45 min Power Zone Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 4: 30 min Power Zone Endurance 80s Ride with Denis Morton
• Day 5: Rest
• Day 6: 45 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Olivia Amato
• Day 7: Rest

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Week 4

• Day 1: 45 min Power Zone Ride with Denis Morton
• Day 2: Rest
• Day 3: 45 min Power Zone Ride with Sam Yo
• Day 4: 30 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Christine D’Ercole
• Day 5: Rest
• Day 6: 60 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 7: Rest

Week 5

• Day 1: 45 min Power Zone Endurance Ride with Denis Morton
• Day 2: 20 min Low Impact Ride with Matt Wilpers
• Day 3: 30 min Power Zone Endurance Rock Ride with Christine D’Ercole
• Day 4: 30 min Power Zone Endurance Pop Ride with Olivia Amato
• Day 5: Rest
• Day 6: 15 min FTP Warm Up Ride with Matt Wilpers and 20 Minute FTP Test Ride with Erik Jager
• Day 7: Rest

Where to Find the Program

In the Peloton app and on the Peloton Bike and Bike Plus you can find the Discover Your Power Zones program under “Programs”. Scroll towards the bottom and you’ll find all the Power Zone programs. 

​Power Zone Gear

For Power Zone rides you don’t need a lot of gear. You’ll need:

Peloton Bike or Bike+

Peloton Shoes

Peloton BikePeloton Cycling ShoesPeloton x CamelBak Water Bottle

It’s recommended to have a heart rate monitor like an Apple Watch or Fitbit Heart Rate monitor, but it’s not needed. Power Zones and your Power Zone meter are based on the results of your FTP test and not heart rate zones.

Heart rate can be helpful to monitor during rides but is not needed.

You may use a non-Peloton Bike for Power Zone training, but you won’t be able to display the power zone meter.

How To Schedule Strength Training with Power Zone Training

To get a full body workout, you’ll want to add on a few strength training sessions a week.

​The best time to do a strength class are on the Power Zone Endurance and Power Zone class days. You’ll want to avoid adding strength on to Power Zone Max days because that workout is going to be intense (it would be a good idea to add on a restorative yoga class or stretching though!)

What to do After Peloton Discover Your Power Zones

Once you complete the Peloton program, you might be wondering what to do next.

There are a few options of what your next class should be:

Continue with the Peloton Power Zone Training Program

Discover Your Power Zones is the first program in a 3 part collection. The next program is Build Your Power Zones and then the next one is Peak Your Power Zones.

Join Power Zone Pack Challenges

PZ Pack Challenges are a great way to meet other Power Zone riders in a fun competitive way. You choose how many Peloton classes you want to take a week, and then you’ll be assigned to a team to compete with. You’ll be given a workout to complete and each workout you do earns your team a point.

The team with the most points wins the challenge. 

More Peloton Power Zone Training Resources

• What is TSS in Power Zone Training?
• How to Get Your Power Zone Bar to Display on the Peloton Bike and Bike+
• A Guide to Power Zone Pack Challenges
• What is Power Zone Challenge Time Crunch Option?
• 5 Benefits of Power Zone Training