If you are searching for a way to improve your health and fitness, but have no time to go out running every morning, then an Indoor Cycling Bike is among the best choices you have. There are numerous sport options you can select, but it is great to have something to increase your fitness and can still be done indoors regardless of weather conditions.
That brings us to the question of what Indoor Cycling Bike you should buy, in case you are considering getting one. There are many Indoor Cycling Bikes in the market, and they all cater to different needs, so the best thing to do is looking at the criteria you should consider before spending your money on a stationary exercise bike. Here are some of them.
What are the advantages of Indoor Cycling Bikes?
Helps you burn calories
It is important to remember that indoor cycling and exercise in general is not the only way to burn calories, but it helps in the process. In particular, indoor cycling itself is a good way to burn them quickly – a typical class will last about 45 minutes, and you will burn up to 500 calories in one session.
However, this will also depend on your cycling frequency and how you do it, so this means that the calories you burn will be higher if you increase the resistance levels.
Helps you to tone up
Indoor cycling forces multiple muscle groups in your body to get to work – your core, quads, bums, arms (depending on the workout), legs and thighs. Therefore, that 45-minute session eventually leads to toning of these areas, especially if you work hard on them.
If you also increase the resistance levels, it will give you extra power to become as toned as you wish, even on your arms and abs, and the introduction of weights will also force extra muscle groups to work. In fact, this is one advantage they have over stationary bikes, which will primarily work the legs, quads, thighs and bum only.
It offers a low-impact exercise
You likely do not want to suffer injuries to various body parts during an exercise session, but indoor cycling is a low-impact exercise so you will not need to worry about that. It will not put a lot of pressure on the joints, unlike normal running exercises – so it is useful to staying fit even when you have knee injuries without making the pain worse.
It helps you track your progress
Exercise bikes have a great advantage over many exercise bikes – they have a monitor, which assists you to keep track of your progress. This includes your cycling speed, the calories you are burning, and the distance you are covering.
The usual instance, especially in an indoor cycling class, is that the instructor will use the data to set goals for you to reach, which makes it easier for you to keep track of your progress as you go every week.
It has a similar feel to a road bike
Unlike stationary bikes, Indoor Cycling Bikes have a similar feel to road bikes since they allow you to adjust the handlebars and seat, which means you can even do the exercise sessions while standing and leaning without looking awkward.
Factors to consider
Do I enjoy indoor cycling?
If you are a person that loves the outdoors compared to the indoors, then traditional cycling is better for you. However, indoor bikes offer you greater versatility when it comes to the conditions you can cycle in, allowing you to cycle at whatever time you want.
Indoor Cycling Bikes are partly successful though because they replicate the conditions of an actual road bike. They also have adjustable resistance levels and can offer you the best planned workouts, which can be quite difficult to get when you are cycling outdoors – since you are also factoring in road conditions.
The design of the flywheel
This will determine the cycling tempo that you have, which can help especially if you really want to stimulate your cardiovascular system. Heavier flywheels take some time to stop and start, it is important to remember that it will take effort to use Indoor Cycling Bikes, unlike mountain bikes, for instance.
Factoring in the flywheel design will depend on whether your goal is improving your cardiovascular strength which eventually translates to weight loss.
Variations in workouts
Similar to any kind of cycling routine, Indoor Cycling Bikes have their own variations in the intensities they have – but they will lack the variation in scenery that road bikes will give you. Because of this, you need to be fully committed to cycling, and sometimes deciding to place your Indoor Cycling Bike in front of your TV can offer you a method of motivating yourself.
There are other models that come with LCD screens as part of the package, which makes them a great option if you want some extra entertainment like watching your favorite music videos.
Weight loss effects
The main reason why Indoor Cycling Bikes are popular is their promotion of weight loss, and it makes them a solid component when you are starting your fitness journey. Road bikes can give you the same advantage if you want to cycle outdoors, but Indoor Cycling Bikes are better at the rate of weight loss because of their greater accessibility.
They also have the advantage of helping you monitor your progress in terms of calories burnt, and you can use them even on days when the external weather conditions are not good. They will also reduce pressure on your knees, since it is a low impact exercise, and allow you to focus on getting in shape.
Your workout plans
If you are going to be cycling every day, month or week, this will influence whether you should buy the bike. You do not want to buy an exercise bike and end up not using it to its maximum potential. If you are not sure though, you can instead join a Indoor Cycling Class at a local gym and see whether you like it, and this will help you make a decision.
To build cardiovascular strength, it takes plenty of dedication. It also helps to know that Indoor Cycling Bikes are probably not for you if you want to get involved in bodybuilding.
Final thoughts
Indoor Cycling Bikes are a great purchase to make progress in your fitness, but you should not rush to buy them unless they fit with your fitness goals and they satisfy various criteria. Hopefully, this list will help you make a good choice on what to look out for.
Hi, my name is Marjorie, a health and fitness expert.
Sports and fitness have always been my area of expertise since I could remember. For me, one of the greatest things I accomplished is opening my own gym as well as starting this blog on indoor bikes and fitness. Indoor bikes have brought a massive break for me and my clients, they have enabled me to look past some of my client’s many challenges during work out and achieve the best results they can. I would say that I am proud to help people understand the benefits that come with indoor bikes when it comes to fitness and health and how to find the best one for the cause.