Michael Strahan played professional football for 15 years, so the Good Morning America personality expects to perform at the top of his game.
Although Michael has been retired from the NFL since 2008, he spent most of his adult life in tip-top shape as a defensive end for the New York Giants.
Now that he’s traded professional sports for TV hosting gigs, he still makes his physical health a top priority.
One way Michael stays in shape is by riding his Peloton bike, which burns a substantial amount of calories.
During a recent Instagram Reel, Michael shared footage of himself chatting it up with Peloton instructor Robin Arzón.
“I’ve ridden many of your classes, and I don’t know how you got energy to do it,” Michael admitted to Robin.
Michael Strahan jokes about Peloton competitors ‘cheating’
“And people are cheating,” Michael continued with a serious tone in his voice. “They’re cheating!”
Robin was shocked to hear that other Peloton riders were cheating on the leaderboards, but Michael didn’t back down.
“I’m telling you right now, I know I’m riding as hard as anybody in that thing,” Michael adamantly proclaimed.
Michael was downtrodden by the fact that despite his hard work on the bike, he found himself ranked 2,000 on the leaderboard.
Michael blamed his lower ranking on his competitors not turning down their speed and cadence, claiming it allowed them to climb the leaderboard more easily.
The Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee even teased that others were running a treadmill in the background to make it seem as though they were pedaling throughout the workouts.
In the caption of the lighthearted video, Michael wrote, “What is going on? I am a hall of fame football player and athlete.”
“How is it possible I come in 2,000 on the leaderboard?” he continued. “LOL @robinnyc 😂😂😂😂😂.”
Michael received quite a few comments from his followers who agreed with his humorous take on the Peloton leaderboards.
Michael’s Good Morning America co-worker Ginger Zee chimes in: ‘They are on cocaine’
One comment, in particular, caught the attention of Michael’s IG followers because it came from one of his Good Morning America colleagues who agreed with his statements.
ABC News chief meteorologist Ginger Zee showed up to jokingly accuse Michael’s competitors of taking drugs to achieve their leaderboard statuses.
“Listen,” she began, “They are on cocaine or they are cheating.”
Ginger continued to joke, “That’s what I always say! Then realized it’s just they calibrated their bike differently… so, not as scandalous.”
In response, some of Michael’s fans agreed with Ginger. One wrote, “Amen!!! I had to hide the leaderboard to keep me from questioning my full existence on the planet!!”
Another Instagram user penned, “I agree. I’m a former college football player, and I know their output isn’t right.”
“Ok, I’m going with that, but hey I’m old,” read another comment from one of Ginger and Michael’s fans poking fun at the subject.
Ginger is a fan of Peloton, like Michael
Ginger would know a thing or two about the Peloton leaderboards, too. That’s because the weekday morning television personality maintains her sculpted physique the same way Michael does.
As Monsters and Critics previously reported, Ginger recently competed in an in-person Peloton session with trainer Adrian Williams at the brand’s New York City studio and shared a photo in her Instagram feed.
Along with the #peloton hashtag, Ginger captioned her post, “When your screen comes to life it is a far different workout… so many thanks to @adrianwilliamsnyc for the #Thunder45 and to the entire @onepeloton crew : in-person is where it’s at— y’all put on a fantastic show and the studios are stunning.”