We all love to do a good workout, especially in the comfort of our homes. For this, an exercise bike is an apt piece of equipment, especially for individuals looking forward to cardio training.
One of the most affordable and smallest machines, exercise bikes are extremely popular with those planning to set up a home gym for regular workouts.
Doing a moderate-intensity workout for 30 minutes on an exercise bike leads to high er calorie-burning abilities, around 252 calories or more depending on the speed and intensity of the workout.
Without a doubt, individuals start seeing results in 3-4 weeks or 6-8 weeks based on the weight of the person and workout routines.
So, we are now sure that various factors affect the results of the workout and the duration taken for witnessing these results.
Below is a detailed description of these factors and the tricks that help us gain maximum benefits when using an exercise bike.
Burning Calories on an Exercise Bike
The calorie-burning abilities are directly proportional to the individual’s weight using the bike—the heavier you are, and the greater the calories burned.
Also, a person’s weight is a combination of both muscle mass and body fat. When the muscle mass is higher, once again, the calorie-burning abilities are better.
If the body weight is due to excessive body weight, the calorie-burning abilities are still higher as more weight is in action. Still, body weight doesn’t play a crucial role with exercise bikes as it plays on a treadmill or an elliptical.
But, the length and intensity of the workout are two factors that don’t rely upon any other factors, including weight.
For anyone, exercising for longer with higher intensity leads to better calorie-burning potential.
Some critical factors that help improve the workout intensity are higher speed levels, better resistance levels, and using High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) for rapid results.
It sounds easy, but in reality, not all individuals can work out at higher intensities or practice HIIT for an optimal workout.
For such people, doing moderate- or low-intensity workouts for a longer period can subsequently result in similar weight loss results.
The aim here is to keep moving continuously irrespective of the speed and resistance levels, stopping only when the desired number of calories are burned.
Still, it must also be accepted that it takes more than 30 minutes to burn optimal calories.
So, it’s evident that accelerated calorie-burning is possible as the muscles keep moving the pedals and the heart keeps pumping the required nutrients and blood all over the body.
When we make it much harder for the heart and the muscles, the better are the chances of burning calories.
The calorie numbers are displayed on the bike depending on the features available. While basic spin bikes aren’t fitted with a calorie counter, most upright and recumbent bikes have an in-built counter.
If the bike has the provision to set user weight details, the counter numbers are better accurate.
The main question here is whether or not we can see concrete results by using the exercise bike for 30 minutes daily.
The main ideology behind burning higher calories is to set higher intensity levels within the set time limit.
So, an individual pedaling at top speed on the bike for 30 minutes gains better results compared to someone pedaling at an average pace for the same time.
Still, diet intake is yet another important factor that makes a difference here compared to intensity levels.
What Body Parts Do Exercise Bike Work?
The pedaling motion involved while exercising on the bike is clear evidence that this equipment mainly provides a workout to the lower body.
Some exercise bike models provide a light workout for the upper body, while other models provide different lower-body workout possibilities.
Though the bike primarily uses the quadriceps, calves, and glutes, it doesn’t mean that these parts have nil body fat.
The logic behind fat loss is quite different—though burning calories helps reduce overall body fat percentage, the area of fat removal is completely dependent on several factors such as age, gender, genetics, and hormone balance.
So, working out on an exercise bike is an appropriate way to burn calories, which chips off overall body fat, strengthening lower-body muscles and enhancing cardiovascular health.
Try to work out regularly and consistently on a stationary bike to improve the chances of removing fat from every inch of the body.
Cardio
One of the primary advantages that instantly hit our minds is an exercise bike’s positive effect on cardiovascular health besides increasing the chances to burn higher calories.
Generally, aerobic exercise imposes higher pressure on the hearts and lungs to work harder to provide oxygen and blood to the muscles.
We surely strengthen cardiovascular endurance levels with exercises such as the exercise bike or any other cardio machine.
Besides these, cardiovascular exercises are a great means to improve mental health, speed up calorie burning, digestion, and many other processes in the body.
Lower Body
When using an exercise bike, it’s mainly the quadriceps that are brought into action. Besides this, the calves also benefit from an optimal workout as we keep pedaling with the toes.
If you are interested in involving the hamstring, don’t forget to purchase a bike with foot straps on the pedals. Only then can we pull the pedals towards us.
Without the straps, we cannot expect that the hamstrings are triggered much.
The action of bending the knees involves the hamstring. The knee does bend when no straps are there, but we cannot expect much resistance as the foot is free to move.
Once again, though the glutes are triggered while exercising on an exercise bike, the intensity with which they are used depends on your bending movement.
As individuals lean forward, the glutes are used more. In this regard, spin bikes boast maximum glutes activation due to the great degree of bending movement here.
On an upright or a recumbent bike, the hips bend over to a lesser degree, and hence, the glutes are less activated.
The back muscles, responsible for maintaining an upright posture, are greatly activated when the hips are bent as much as possible.
Compared to other cardiovascular machines like the treadmill, an exercise bike guarantees a low-impact effect on the body.
The surprise element here is that the muscles are triggered intensely, the joints and spine stay safe, unlike working out on a treadmill.
Hence, the recovery rate is also higher for an exercise bike comparatively.
Core
Though there is some ab activation involved to maintain the right posture while cycling, there isn’t much core activation.
Don’t expect much core strengthening unless you are a novice trainee who has a very weak core.
But, if the focus is on abs, it’s recommended to use the stationary bike regularly.
If we think about why an exercise bike is highly beneficial for developing abs, firstly, the bike helps in reducing overall body fat percentage. Secondly, when the ab muscles are sufficiently big, and the body fat percentage is low, it is possible to focus on the abs.
But, if bulky abs are the primary goal, it is better to combine specific ab exercises besides using the exercise bike daily.
How Often Can We Make Use of the Exercise Bike?
There is no harm in using the exercise bike daily as the recovery time is rapid.
Generally, it is required for adults to get at least 150 minutes of medium- to high-intensity exercise every week.
With simple math, this means that exercising for 30 minutes at least 5 days a week helps promote overall health and avoid weight gain.
Working out at such a pace helps the body rest and recharge sufficiently well.
But, all these hold good only when the target is to avoid weight gain. For those looking to lose weight, it is necessary to exercise for at least 250 minutes per week.
Not only this, but diet also plays an important role in losing weight faster.
So, weight loss is possible when you exercise for 45 minutes to one hour at least five days a week.
Until there is no high-intensity training involved, don’t worry about using the exercise even on all seven days of the week.
The only point to note is to stick to low-intensity workouts if you would be cycling every day though rest days are always recommended.
Though the body might not show any signs during the initial days, in due course, there are chances of aches and pains all over the body if there is not enough rest time between workouts.
To improve workout efficiency, try doing resistance training alongside cardio exercises.
When we introduce variety in the workout routine, there are lesser chances of repetition, higher chances of building more muscles which in turn increase the resting calorie expenditure, and all this result in higher calorie-burning abilities while sleeping.
Besides all these, individuals tend to look better with a stronger physique and a well-toned body (due to fat loss) when the muscles are stronger and bigger.
How To Maximize Effectiveness of the Exercise Bike Workout
Nutrition
Any workout, cycling, weightlifting, or other activities, reap maximum benefits only when we eat a well-balanced and nutritious diet.
Any physical activity needs energy to perform. Not all forms of energy are equal, and some are much better than others.
So, to provide the body with the best possible energy, focus predominantly on the macronutrients, micronutrients, and total calories consumed.
The meaning of a well-balanced diet differs based on the exercise goal set by individuals.
Depending on the requirements, the total number of calories consumed and the ratio of total fats, carbohydrates, and protein (macronutrients) vary slightly.
Try gaining at least 80% of the calories from whole foods, as consuming 100% whole foods is next to impossible for many.
For this, it is better to cook on our own and stay away from processed foods as much as possible,
The macronutrient ratio that’s commonly advised includes:
- 20-30% of the calories from fat
- 30-35% of the calories from protein
- 40-50% of the calories from carbs
Though there are various conceptions regarding the optimal macronutrient ratios, the general recommendations aim to get optimal levels of protein (0.6-0.8 grams per pound of body weight) and fats (not more than 30% of the total calories consumed) getting the rest from carbs.
The core principle behind weight loss is consuming fewer calories than we burn from exercising.
So, how to keep track of the calories? Get hold of a calorie tracker and calculate the Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) to monitor calorie intakes and calories burned daily.
One kilo of fat is 7700 calories, and when an individual consumes 550 calories lesser every day, it is possible to burn one kilo of fat in two weeks.
Well, this might sound too slow, and it’s here that exercises such as cycling come into action.
Cycling daily helps increase the number of calories burned daily (we can burn up to 300 calories in 30 minutes).
So, simply by combing cycling and eating 250 calories lesser than required, it is possible to cut down calorie intake by around 500 calories daily.
We can expect to lose around 2-3 kilos (4.4-6.6 lbs) in 4-6 weeks by following this routine.
Though such weight loss results might still sound slow for some individuals, losing around 4-5 kilos (8.8-11lbs) in 8-10 weeks is possible.
Don’t misjudge the numbers as reducing more than 500 calories daily might lead to debilitating consequences until specifically advised by a healthcare professional.
Go on a calorie deficit that can be followed for a long period. High-calorie deficits might sound alluring initially, but they are not practically easy to follow for long.
Protein Fact: There have always been controversies surrounding proteins—consuming more proteins to gain muscles.
Contrarily, strength training is the key to developing muscles. Proteins play a big role in growing muscles and repairing them, but consuming too much is dangerous as the excess nutrient is often converted and stored.
Too much protein consumption can, in fact, work against your goals and bring down the overall efficiency of the workout routine.
Try maintaining protein consumption at around 0.6-0.8 grams/pound of bodyweight.
Strength Training Exercises
While cycling is one of the best options to strengthen our lower-body muscles, individuals focused on strengthening certain muscle groups must predominantly use strength training.
Try fitting strength training exercises and cycling (which promises faster calorie burning and better cardiovascular health)—this way, we can be sure of gaining better benefits compared to choosing either of them.
The ultimate aim is to lower body fat percentage and increase muscle mass to improve overall physique.
Always make it a point to perform strength training exercises only after completing the cycling routine if the primary goal is weight loss.
Individuals interested in building more muscles must perform strength training before moving on to cycling.
Combine cycling with dumbbell exercises to add variety and break the monotony of the exercise routine.
While doing total-body strength training is the best, it is also not wrong to focus on specific body parts on each day of the week.
But, it is better to exercise for all body parts at least twice a week. Focusing more on total-body training is advantageous for an overall better physique and reduces the risk of major muscle imbalances.
Focusing on the Stretches
Don’t simply begin to cycle or strength train but always be wary of starting and ending the exercise session with some stretches.
Starting to work out before doing any warmup for the muscles puts the body at a high risk of injuries.
Warm up with stretches to prepare the muscles for the ensuing intense workout routines.
Some of the optimal pre-workout stretches include:
The Pike Stretch: Keep the body in a stand-at-ease position with the legs shoulder-width apart and try to reach to the toes with the hand.
Keep walking the hands forward while maintaining the leg position without bending the knees.
In other words, you are doing the ‘downward dog’ yoga strength. Maintain the same position for 30 seconds to stretch the calves and the hamstrings.
Trunk Rotations: lie down on the back, bend the knees, and place the feet flat on the floor.
Keep the arms in a straight position on the slides. Rotate the legs to the left while squeezing the shoulder blades and keeping the neck flat against the floor.
Ensure that the right shoulder blade and the arm are flat on the floor while twisting.
Maintain this position for a couple of minutes, go back to the starting position, and rotate the legs to the right. The legs, core, and shoulders experience a good stretch.
Lunges: Instead of holding on to a pose, perform lunges to experience dynamic stretching.
Before starting any cardiovascular workout, perform a set or two of lunges to stretch the leg muscles and the back—this way, there is optimal blood flow to the legs for endurance exercises.
Some of the best post-workout stretches are:
Chest Stretch: keep the feet slightly wider than the shoulder width. Keep the arms raised at the backside of the head, pointing the elbows to the sides.
As the elbows are pressed backward, bring the shoulder blades together.
Seated Glute Stretch: This stretch is done by sitting on a chair with one foot flat on the ground.
The other leg must be in a position such that the ankle is right over the knee of the foot that’s flat on the ground.
Try bending forward slowly while maintaining a straight back until you feel the pull in the glute muscles and the hips.
Maintain this posture for around 30-60 seconds and switch to the other leg repeating the same procedure.
Cat-Cow Stretch: Place the hands and knees on the floor, maintaining a straight spine and staying relaxed.
Inhale deeply, press the chest forward, trying to position the back in the shape of a bowl.
Exhale as the shoulders are relaxed, move the spine up, and press the hips forward as though the back is now shaped like a hill.
Relax the shoulders and switch between these two positions for a minute.