The exercise bike is a fitness machine that replaces the bike outdoors. Today, this device is one of the must-have gyms and well-being. And for good reason, this indoor bike is very easy to use and allows for a cardio training without too much risk for your joints .
Check the end of this article for the infographic on fitness training and advices to keep you healthy.
In addition, when the cold prevents you from doing your sport or your schedule is overloaded, it will be a good way to continue your training. This device was popular in gym sand at home long before 21st century hi-tech fitness gadgets are invented. Maybe you have one besides, forgotten in the attic or folded under the bed, or even used only as a rack for off-season clothes.
However, if you want to regain form or keep it seriously, it’s really worth it to dust off this machine, as long as it is not rusted yet. With 3 to 5 workouts of 15 minutes to 1 hour per week, the exercise bike is surely one of the best allies to accompany your balanced diet and lose weight without spending a lot of time. But what exactly are its advantages? How does it affect your body? Which workouts to select? How to choose a bike ? Let’s find out more about this legendary fitness machine at Life Fitness Bike.
Body actions and benefits
When exercising on an exercise bike many muscles of your body are solicited. Indeed, if this device is known for its power slimming, it is because its use promotes the reduction of fat on the parts mainly concerned:
Thighs: The pedaling movement helps to refine the legs by working on your hamstrings and quads.
Buttocks: the work done on the muscle of the gluteus maximus has the effect of toning and making this part lose weight.
Belly (the need to keep the balance and the work of pedaling forces our body to work the muscles of the abdominals): the sides (oblique) and grand rights (lines of the middle of the belly). Sustained endurance will also naturally help to refine your belly.
In addition, to strengthen these three parts, this cardio training allows your body a better assimilation of fat and therefore a reduction of fat . Finally, the sport on exercise bike at the same time prevents cardiovascular problems by improving blood circulation.
Benefits:
The exercise bike has undeniable assets for a large majority of people. Whether for its convenience or its health benefits many benefits distinguish it from other workouts:
Protects your joints: The regular pedal movement of the exercise bike helps to strengthen the joints mainly affected by osteoarthritis (particularly legs).
Many types of aerobic activity ( such as jogging or team sports ) can be difficult for your joints because of the impact involved. An apartment bike helps your heart work without putting your joints in a state of constant stress.
This device will be particularly beneficial to overweight people over 22 pounds because it reduces mechanical stress on the back, hips, knees and ankles (even when compared to walking). Thus, by practicing it, you will be able to do more sport each day while having less risk of injury.
Improves cardiac tonicity: a progressive and sustained training on a bike will allow you to strengthen your cardiovascular system. Just be careful to keep your maximum heart rate and you will only benefit from it: increased lung capacity and blood flow.
Doing an exercise bike just like other cardio exercises regularly helps reduce hypertension, regulates blood sugar levels, can prevent heart attacks (especially for those who have already undergone one). In fact, studies show that doing an exercise bike just helps your heart become more efficient at pumping blood.
This physical activity also increases the amount of good HDL cholesterolwhile reducing the amount of bad LDL cholesterol in your body, all this causes an accumulation of atheromatous plaques in the arteries (yellowish plaques mainly composed of cholesterol which are deposited on the walls of the arteries). Simply riding this type of bike for 30 minutes a day, 5 times a week can extend your life.
Customizable Training: One of the advantages of an indoor sports machine is that you have the ability to customize your own workouts by increasing the difficulty or choosing a program on your machine.
Flexibility of the training: on this point the exercise bike is very practical compared to the bike outdoors; Whether the weather is bad, it’s dark outside or you have a dish on fire, you can still train. This makes this device very interesting when you want to follow a regular training in the long term.
Indeed, everything happening in indoor, there will be no excuse not to play sports because of cold or hot temperatures in the open air. And if you do not have a subscription in a gym, you can pedal easily at home. You can ride a bicycle in front of the TV, in the middle of the night when you can not sleep, when it’s raining outside when it’s snowing. Burning calories has never been easier, even for beginners or those who are returning to the sport.
Promotes weight loss: The muscular effort generated during this training requires the body to draw energy from the surplus food and will therefore allow you to better burn fat. Of course, you will not lose weight by riding only on this bike, you will also have to adopt a balanced diet.
30 minutes of driving on this fitness machine increases your caloric burn. Burning more calories daily means you’ll have more control over your weight. If you ride at a moderate pace for half an hour and weigh 70 kg, expect to burn about 260 kcal . If you weigh more, or ride at a higher intensity, you will burn even more.
Ease of use: even a Sunday sportsman will find that this fitness device is easy to use. Everyone can ride and ride on it by understanding what to do very quickly, which is not the case for example the treadmill or elliptical trainer.
Choosing the bike
First, before choosing your bike, ask yourself what your needs are and how motivated you are to reach your goals. Indeed, it will be useless to invest a large sum in an exercise bike with multiple options to use it once or twice a month. In this case, it is better to wear your choice on a basic device without options (without programmable electronic console) and / or occasion to minimize your budget.
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Nevertheless, two elements are still essential in the choice of a bike, regardless of the budget, size or use that you grant:
Safety: for a maximum safety privilege a heavy- weight exercise bike, the more the bike is heavy the more stability will be strong (the bike wheel must weigh at least 7 kg). Then, if you have children make sure that each element of the bike is covered and that it is equipped with a security system (blocking, keys …)
Comfort: Exercise bike training requires staying in the same position for a minimum of 15 minutes, so be sure to be properly installed. You will often have to choose between a bike where you will have to stand up and another where you can adopt a recumbent (semi-recumbent) style. In case of uncomfortable posture, you will quickly disconnect and your bike will end up in the closet. That’s why it’s better to opt for a bike with a comfortable saddle and adjustable pedals that will keep your feet up.
Then, once these two parameters are validated, it’s up to you to see if you want to invest more or fewer budgets for additional options (collapsible, connectors, music, sports measurements, heart sensors, programs …). The more often you plan to use this device (and not only from time to time to troubleshoot in inclement weather) the more you can expect to provide a high budget for more options.
Do some research. Ask your friends or coaches in your gym for recommendations. You can also read the unbiased (unsponsored) tests of the various home bikes on the Internet. Then check with the local sports equipment vendors on the type of bike that suits you the most,
Keep in mind that e-bikes with programming modes or even HD displays offer more variety during workouts but usually require more space, require more maintenance, and cost considerably more than their manual equivalents.
Infographic: Fitness training and advices to keep you healthy
