One of the most well-liked fitness exercise machines is the exercise bike but buying one is not as simple as going to the store and choosing one. There are a lot of things to take into account before you do this. You may want to consider not only the outlay, type of bike, whether you prefer a recumbent or upright exercise bike, and how comfortable and simple it is to adjust.

What is Your Budget?

Naturally this is always the most important concern but you do not want to go for the cheapest bike available as it might not last very long, be easy to use or give you good exercise. An entry-level bike at the lowest will cost you on the order of $200, and though this will be acceptable it won’t have many of the features that can be found on costlier exercise bikes. For not much more, say between $350 and $650 you’ll get a higher quality bike with many features such as heart rate control, magnetic resistance, a comfy seat and typically quiet and effortless operation.

For about $550 you will be able to obtain a first-rate exercise bike with all the features you may need. For this price you should expect plenty of built-in exercise programs, simple to use display console, and resistance control, handlebars that are straightforward to change and a good guarantee.

Comfort of the Exercise Bike

Of course your exercise bike needs to be comfortable as you will be using it for quite long periods. You will want a well padded seat and handlebars that can be adjusted effortlessly. Are you going to purchase an upright or recumbent exercise bike? A lot of people think that recumbent exercise bikes are more comfortable to use than upright exercise bikes as you sit in a more reclined position which puts not as much of pressure on your back. Upright exercise bikes, even though they are not nearly as comfy, do have the advantage that you can effortlessly enhance the level of the workout by pedalling standing up just as you would do on a normal bicycle.

Changing the Resistance

Exercise bike resistance is amendable in two ways. The majority of the cheaper models use a belt and tension, more expensive models use magnetic resistance which is quieter and more dependable. Exercise bikes that use magnetic resistance usually use a button or knob. A button is easier to use.

Monitoring Your Heart Rate

It is particularly crucial to be able to monitor your heart rate while exercising as increasing your heart rate is why you are exercising. Always purchase an exercise bike with a built-in heart rate monitor so that you can adjust your training correspondingly. Virtually all the exercise bikes do have this though cheaper ones will frequently merely have a pulse rate monitor built into the handlebars. The more expensive exercise bikes will have workouts that are driven by your heart rate so they adjust automatically to maintain your pulse rate at a level that you fix. This is a very good feature but not vital if you can’t pay for it.

Integrated Workout Programs

Several of the less expensive exercise bikes won’t have workout built-in programs. While you may consider this is not too much of a disadvantage you will discover that merely sitting on the bike and riding will become tedious very swiftly! With exercise programs you can adjust your workout and the feedback you get will assist with your motivation. Display consoles that give you feedback on your heart rate, calories burned, distance covered etc. certainly do aid your motivation and keep you exercising for longer periods. The majority of the exercise bikes in the mid-budget range i.e. between approximately $300 and $600 will give you a reasonable variety of included workouts and a fairly good display. More expensive exercise bikes i.e. in the $600 and over range will have a very wide range of workouts and excellent displays with a whole range of feedback information.

Conclusion

Naturally, with exercise bikes, as with other fitness exercise machines, you get what you pay for. It is not a good plan to buy the cheapest exercise bike you can find as it won’t last very long and you will not be happy with the training that it gives you. It is not essential to buy a very pricey bike but we recommend purchasing one for approximately $300 which will give you satisfactory exercise and keep you motivated.

Tagged with: • • •

Filed under: Uncategorized

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!