Sibling Revelry with Kate Hudson and Oliver Hudson

Revel In It: Peloton Pro Robin Arzón

Release Date: October 8, 2025
Guest: Robin Arzón (VP, Head Instructor at Peloton; Author of Eat to Hustle)

Episode Overview

This episode dives into Robin Arzón’s remarkable journey from a studious, type-A lawyer to a celebrated Peloton instructor and executive, touching on themes of trauma survival, immigrant family hustle, work-life balance, and her philosophy behind movement, nutrition, and inspiration. Hosted by Oliver Hudson (Kate is absent on-mic), the conversation is light, personal, and often hilarious, but punctuated with raw and moving accounts of resilience. Robin shares openly about pivotal transformations, her family roots, the founding scrappiness of Peloton, and what motivates her new cookbook.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Robin’s Upbringing and Family Influence

• Roots in Hustle:
  • Robin grew up in Philadelphia. Her mother immigrated as a Cuban refugee, her father a Puerto Rican from the Bronx. Both parents self-made: her mom became a doctor and her dad a lawyer (even working as a janitor while sneaking into college classes).
    • “It was very much like an immigrant story where family is everything. ... I think is common for immigrant, at least, first generation born in the US, that's a pretty common story, I think, feeling like you're bridging a bunch of worlds.” (09:14–10:13)
• Siblings and Family Dynamics:
  • She has a sister five years younger; family gatherings often meant 10+ people "just showing up."
• Work Ethic Perspective:
  • “Watching your parents sort of hustle ... to sort of say, oh, well, this is how shit gets done.” (10:13–10:23)

Academic Life and Law Career

• Type-A School Life:
  • Robin was an "A student, type A, love a good syllabus, love a scholastic book fair."
    • “I literally have like a caboodle's pencil case from the 90s with like highlighters and I am like that chick.” (11:41)
• Practiced Law:
  • Practiced 8 years as a corporate litigator at a top NY firm, finding satisfaction in hustle but not in subject matter.
  • “The topics were pretty mundane.” (36:23–36:31)

The Trauma That Changed Everything

• The Hostage Situation:
  • At 21, Robin was taken hostage at gunpoint in a NYC wine bar, survived as the main target (22:48–26:49):
    • “He grabs me. I was closest to the door... I became his main hostage. ... We were there for a few hours, but I was his. Literally. I was so close to him. Like, he was breathing on me.” (23:12–24:15)
  • She used Spanish language and humanizing tactics to deescalate.
• Aftermath and Healing Journey:
  • Intensive therapy and medical triage followed; the trauma manifested physically (“exhausted, nightmares, digestion issues”).
  • First run was not for fitness, but survival: “It was already hard living in my body. So I was like, there's gotta be another hard physically. And then that's when I just started running.” (25:38–26:49)
  • Recovery and normalcy took nearly a decade, involving journaling, third-person storytelling, meditation, and later, movement as therapy. (29:23–30:48)

From Lawyer to Fitness Leader

• Pivot to Fitness:
  • Initially no athletic background, found movement as an adult post-trauma:
    • “As a kid who was not into sports … I had to really unpack [my relationship with movement] for myself as an adult. But once I did, ... I gotta figure out how I can pay my rent and like, still do this most of the day.” (13:16–14:55)
  • Robin did agency work (Nike Women social media), then realized storytelling and representation for underrepresented athletes was her calling.
• Career Shift Practicalities:
  • Took a leave from her law firm to network, then quit and flew to the London Olympics to job-hunt, eventually landing a sports marketing job with Nike Women.
• Parental Support:
  • Parents supported the change with the condition that she wouldn’t ask for money:
    • “They were incredibly supportive because I was so, I mean, I was so passionate about it. ... That was freedom. That was worth any amount of money.” (37:40–38:30)

Building Peloton: From Startup to Phenomenon

• Robin’s Peloton Origin Story:
  • Cold-emailed the then-tiny startup in 2013 after reading about it in a magazine:
    • “I auditioned. I was the second. No, I was the third instructor hired at Peloton.” (44:30)
  • The early days involved “duct tape and a dream”—classes taped in a curtained office corner, CEO forced to take calls at Starbucks, no proprietary bikes yet, friends filling out class background.
• Growth and Evolution:
  • Early membership: 200-odd bikes sold via Kickstarter.
  • Robin became both instructor and executive (eventually, VP of Fitness Programming and Head Instructor):
    • “I have a hybrid role where I'm an executive and an instructor.” (50:41)
• Content and Branding:
  • Instructors curate their own playlists (with licensing help)—the “X-factor” is being yourself on-camera rather than playing a character.
  • “It's not a role ... because after a thousand classes, you can see that. So ... you have to have a point of view.” (48:17–49:22)
• Member Connection:
  • Peloton’s unique connection is a parasocial but intimate one:
    • “It's a very specific, intimate, parasocial relationship, which is a very odd thing to negotiate.” (53:18–54:33)
    • “What job do I get to ... get stopped by somebody being like, holy crap, like, you got me through my divorce ... celebrated graduating college by taking your run?” (55:08)
  • Acknowledges that while members change themselves, instructors provide the spark.

Philosophy of Movement, Trauma Healing, and Spiritual Curiosity

• Toolkit Approach:
  • Robin built her “toolkit” for life: movement, journaling (even in the third person), meditation, and metaphysical healing (past life regression stories).
    • “Journaling was huge, huge for me ... meditation was big ... physicality thing ... now so crucial.” (30:48)
• Body Stores Trauma:
  • On trauma manifesting physically:
    • “That shit is real. There's no world where we can't tap into certain energies.” (32:35–35:26)
    • Oliver and Robin swap stories about deep tissue massages and metaphysical healing (e.g., pain disappearing after past life regression).
• Spiritual Openness:
  • Both hosts and Robin express a belief that everyone can access intuition/psychic energy, not just a gifted few:
    • “Everyone has the ability ... it's not just for the gifted.” (35:26–35:44)

Daily Life and Wellness: Food, Strength, and New Book

• Strength Over Cardio:
  • Robin’s fitness philosophy: “I believe that strength training is the fountain of youth. … If we're looking at a fitness pyramid, … actually it's strength.” (62:08)
• Plant-Based Nutrition:
  • “I've been plant based for over 12 years … I wanted to simplify plant based eating for people.” (62:08–62:49)
  • Her upcoming book, Eat to Hustle, includes 75 high-protein plant-based recipes, each rated with a “dumbbell score” (difficulty), plus meal prep and pantry tips.
• Meal Prep Essential:
  • Robin preps on weekends (“making it harder to make the wrong choice”), keeps proteins/veggies handy for grab-and-go eating.
• Food Relationship & Kids:
  • Mindful of modeling both balanced eating and movement habits to her children—no perfection, no harsh dietary restriction.
    • “I want my kids to see some balance.” (66:37)
• Indulgence Without Guilt:
  • “I don't consider it a cheat, but yeah, sure. Like, I … literally ate birthday cake for breakfast.” (65:57–66:08)
• Alcohol:
  • She's sober, as is her husband; “clean, clean, clean.” (66:53)

Peloton Logistics and Culture

• On-Camera Routine:
  • Robin teaches live four days a week, often multiple classes/day—“I'm live four days a week.” (51:30–51:34)
• Member Events:
  • The NYC and London studios welcome live classes and member visits, fostering community and celebration.
• Cultural Shift:
  • Peloton instructors are now celebrities, but their impact is emotional and empowering rather than just entertainment.
    • “You've changed my life, man. ... That's never gonna happen [to actors].” (55:39)

Memorable Quotes

• On Trauma Fuelling Change:
  • “I was already kind of living a nightmare, so it [running] was better than that.” — Robin (26:49)
• About Her Parents’ Hustle:
  • “My dad was literally a janitor at a CUNY school in the Bronx and just started showing up to college classes ... he was just like the Latino Good Will Hunting.” — Robin (10:23–11:03)
• On Changing Careers:
  • “For two years I was like, all right, what's my escape hatch? ... And when I realized there was no route, I was like, all right, so I just gotta like, quit and force myself to do something else.” — Robin (36:43)
• On Peloton’s DIY Early Days:
  • “It was like duct tape and a dream.” — Robin (45:28)
• On Member Impact:
  • “That's a wild cascade of impact that I don't think many, certainly not many wellness jobs have.” — Robin (55:08)
• On Food Philosophy:
  • “You need a layer of muscle underneath all of it ... I believe that strength training is the fountain of youth.” — Robin (62:08)
  • “I don't consider it a cheat, but yeah, sure. … I ate birthday cake for breakfast.” — Robin (65:57)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Upbringing & Family: 07:20–11:27
• Law Career, School: 11:37–12:50, 35:53–36:31
• Hostage Trauma & Aftermath: 22:48–30:12
• Journal, Meditation, Spirituality: 29:23–35:44
• Fitness Discovery & Career Pivot: 13:16–14:55, 36:06–37:39
• Founding Peloton: 44:06–47:22
• Instructor Role & Content: 47:22–52:02
• Parasocial Fame & Member Connection: 52:11–55:39
• Food, Strength, & Book: 61:39–67:14

Notable Moments

• Robin recounts her harrowing hostage ordeal and details her rebuilding process using running and journaling as healing mechanisms. (22:48–30:12)
• Discussion about how trauma maps onto the body, leading to stories about metaphysics, past life regressions, and personal healing experiences. (32:35–35:44)
• Robin shares hilarious and poignant insights about immigrant family expectations, law-firm life, and the practicalities of quitting a stable job. (09:14–11:27, 36:06–38:30)
• Behind-the-scenes stories about Peloton’s earliest days—a studio taped off in startup office, hand-picking friends to fill out classes, and the first few hundred bikes. (45:18–47:22)
• A deep dive into food philosophy, meal prep hacks, plant-based eating, and Robin's new book designed to keep both families and athletes energized. (61:39–65:50)
• Endearing closing as Robin invites Oliver to take a live class and admits to never having had a “cheat day” mentality: she models food balance for her kids. (66:37–67:58)

Language & Tone

The episode is candid, funny, and energetic, with Oliver’s self-deprecating parental humor meeting Robin’s passionate, open, and often vulnerable storytelling. While the chat dives into deep, difficult topics (trauma, healing), it never loses warmth or optimism; both Robin and Oliver reflect a down-to-earth, relatable vibe even when discussing high performance, celebrity-like recognition, or wellness best practices.

Conclusion

A must-listen for anyone interested in personal transformation, healing from trauma, family hustle, career pivots, or the behind-the-curtain world of Peloton. Robin Arzón’s journey is as inspiring as it is instructive—she demystifies work ethic, movement, nutrition, and spirituality, offering practical insight and motivation for listeners at any stage of their own stories.