Most fitness centers have a variety of exercise bikes. The home fitness market offers even more options, with manufacturers developing new models on an almost annual basis. Fitness enthusiasts may wonder which is the best exercise bike, but that question does not have an objective answer. The best exercise bike is the one that is most comfortable for your body type, and most aligned with your fitness goals.
Features
In their consumer guide titled "Selecting and Effectively Using a Stationary Bicycle," American College of Sports Medicine fitness specialists compare high-tech bikes with low-tech models. High-tech models have consoles, which offer read-outs of your distance, speed, heart rate and caloric expenditure. While it's nice to have these features, the high-tech bikes are much more expensive. American College of Sports Medicine experts advise that exercise adherence, as opposed to fancy features, improves overall fitness.
Benefits
Certified personal trainer Bret Spottke. who created the Trainer Secrets website, compares the recumbent with the upright bicycle. In an upright bike, your feet are directly underneath your body, whereas a recumbent bike places your feet in front of your body. The upright bike enables you to lift your hips from the seat, in order to simulate outdoor hill climbs and sprinting. Recumbent bikes have back support, making them more comfortable for people with back problems. Since recumbent bikes usually have a wider seat, specialists at Weight-Control Information Network recommend them for overweight people.
Function
Enhancing aerobic fitness is the primary exercise function, but different types of bikes also engage different muscle groups. An upright bike emphasizes the quadriceps, the frontal thigh muscles, whereas a recumbent bike activates the hamstrings, located in the back of the leg. Some stationary bikes, such as the Schwinn Airdyne Upright Exercise Bike, have arm levers, which provide upper and lower body exercise.
Considerations
Either magnets, friction belts, wheels, fans or hydraulics control exercise bike resistance. Magnetic resistance is best for those who want a quiet bike. In contrast, bikes with fan resistance are noisy, and may cause animosity amongst your neighbors. Bicycles with hydraulic resistance use fluid within a confined container. As the fluid heats up, it becomes thicker, creating more friction and therefore more resistance. Bikes with friction belts are the least expensive. These manual bikes require you to turn a knob to adjust the resistance.
Size
Many manufacturers make folding recumbent and upright bikes for the home fitness market. These space-saving models benefit people who live in small apartments. They do have one disadvantage. Since the bike is not already set up, they might make it harder for less motivated people to adhere to their workouts.
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