Exercise bikes provide convenient indoor workouts that can help you stay in shape and maintain a healthy weight. You can customize your workout on an exercise bike by adjusting the resistance level of the pedals, simulating hills and valleys. Many exercise bikes, such as those made by Life Fitness, have as many as 20 resistance levels.
Step 1
Sit on the exercise bike and place your feet on the pedals. Pedal slowly until the machine's electronic console turns on.
Step 2
Select a workout mode from the options available. Use the console's keypad to navigate the options. Most machines allow you to choose between various preset workout modes and manual mode, in which you adjust the bike's resistance level yourself throughout the workout. Common preset modes include hill workouts, with clear patterns of hills and valleys in increasing difficulty, random mode, with random patterns of hills and valleys, and gradual resistance building, in which the resistance slowly increases throughout the workout.
Step 3
Adjust the resistance level up or down to make a preset workout mode more or less difficult. Use the console keypad to increase or decrease the resistance level.
Step 4
Adjust the resistance level yourself if you selected manual mode. Use the console keypad to make these adjustments. Increase the resistance level to make pedaling more difficult, giving you a greater muscular workout. Decrease the resistance level of the pedals to allow yourself to pedal faster for a higher-intensity cardiovascular workout.
Tips and Warnings
- If you have never used an exercise bike before, begin with the manual mode and try out a variety of resistance levels. Pedal at a resistance level that feels comfortable and work up to higher resistance levels. Even experienced exercisers may be able to increase the resistance level of their exercise bike workouts as they get in better shape.
- Consult your physician before beginning an exercise program.
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