Hate to Exercise? Maybe It’s Time to Try a Recumbent Exercise Bike

Hi, new blogger here! My name is Kim, and my hubby, the one and only Roy (your usual Fitblogr) is taking the day off so I can tell you about a really good thing that I have discovered after many years of hating to exercise: stationary recumbent exercise bikes. Hopefully all of you exercise-haters like me will like what you read and hopefully take it to heart…yes pun intended… :o)

I think I have finally found my “exercise nirvana”. How can anyone possibly put “exercise” and “nirvana” together? Well I now can, in the form of my recumbent exercise bike! I know you all don’t know me, so the profound implications of that statement are probably lost on you at this time.  Let me explain…

Most of you who read this blog are very fond of exercise, and you actually do your workouts each day willingly; some of you even look forward to your time at the gym or in the exercise room.  Well, I am so glad there are people out there who have that love of exercise, but I gotta say, I’m not one of them.

Exercise for me has always been a chore, and most of the time, something starts hurting while the exercise is happening (take your pick: shoulder, knee, back, foot, all of the above), and afterwards, something else starts hurting (take your pick: elbow, butt {yes, butt!}, neck, hip, all of the above). It’s just the way it is for me, ever since I was a kid. I dislocated my knee while playing volleyball in the 8^th grade (and 4 more times since then, ouch!), and so walking can sometimes be problematic for me as far as exercise goes.

All that said, I do know that exercise is good for me.  As much as I hate to admit it, I do feel better in general when I exercise regularly. I’ve used treadmills, elipticals, stairsteppers and the like, but the one machine that has become my all time favorite in the exercise room is the recumbent exercise bike.  That little machine has made it possible for me to get some regular exercise without also creating a multitude of hurts during/after exercising.

What is a Recumbent Exercise Bike?

There are two types of recumbent bikes: stationary recumbent bikes and non-stationary recumbent bikes.  I am talking about stationary recumbent bikes in this article.  A non-stationary recumbent bike is a great piece of equipment to have for those of you who love the great outdoors and love to head out on the weekend for a nice long ride in the country.  But that is not very practical for most people, especially if you live in an urban area.

A stationary recumbent bike looks much like a traditional stationary bike, only it has a larger seat, which is much more comfortable and will help you to be able to exercise longer without having discomfort you-know-where. Also, instead of leaning forward like on a traditional stationary bike, a recumbent bike lets you sit in a more upright to slightly reclining position while you pedal, which is also more comfortable for most people.

My Recumbent Bike – The Proform XP 400R

The recumbent bike in our home is a ProForm XP 400R.  It’s about three years old now and still going strong. We paid about $400 for it at Sears. This model is a magnetic resistance recumbent bike, meaning it does not have gears or chains inside that can be noisy and can eventually break.  The resistance is magnetic, so there is no friction or noise while I pedal my little heart out.  Also, this magnetic resistance allows the resistance to be adjusted on the fly so when the going gets a little tough, I can dial down the intensity while I am pedaling; and believe it or not, I do dial the resistance UP once in awhile, too.

This recumbent bike has a heartrate monitor built into the side handles that is very easy to use. There are metal sensors built into the handles and all you do is grab both handles and cover the sensors with your hands. Your current heart rate then displays along with the other information on the display, like the distance you have pedaled and the speed you are going. I am not really concerned with my exact heart rate while I exercise, but it is interesting to see what happens when the resistance goes up – so does your heart rate! And even I know, increasing your heart rate even moderately while exercising helps keep it healthy.

There are 14 different workouts programmed into this stationary recumbent bike, so on those occasional days when I feel like working out pretty hard (yes, occasionally I do!), I dial up one of the more intense workouts. If I am feeling a bit more sedate, I dial up one of the less intense workouts. This allows you to tailor your exercise any way you want, and to increase your workouts incrementally if you wish, from very easy to fairly hard (said with a grain of salt, because even the “hard” workouts are achievable for most people, even me!) over a period of time.

Any Good Stationary Recumbent Bike Will Do

Most stationary recumbent exercise bikes will have these same programming features, so definitely look for one that you can program.  With the ProForm 400 XP, I can also just hop on it and dial up whatever resistance level I want and pedal away without choosing a specific workout.  I like this feature, because when you choose a specific workout, the timer is set for 30 minutes, and sometimes I don’t want to pedal for that long – ha, who am I kidding, I never want to pedal for that long. Choosing my own resistance level makes it easy for me to pedal for even just 10 or 15 minutes if I want to, and I can dial the resistance up pretty high for a few of those minutes, then back down, and back up (maybe).

Of course it may seem that I am recommending the ProForm XP 400R recumbent bike, but really I am recommending that you head out and take a look at ANY recumbent bike for your exercise room. For instance, the Schwinn recumbent exercise bike pictured to the right gets very good ratings at Amazon, and has many of the features that my ProForm has. Click the picture to check it out, but them come on back to read the rest of this stellar article… ;o) This Schwinn recumbent bike even has an adjustable seat, which mine does not have. It sells for about $450, which is comparable to the price of my bike.  I really do like myProForm, but the best recumbent exercise bike for you will be the one that gets you exercising.

Recumbent Exercise Bike Benefits

There are many recumbent bike exercise benefits. Here are the ones I think are the most important:

• Provides Aerobic Exercise

Even we exercise-haters know that aerobic exercise is very important for keeping your heart healthy. Pedaling even just 15 minutes a day (30 is even better) on a recumbent exercise bike can provide a huge benefit to your heart.

• It’s Easy and Quick

Keep your bike in an area of your house where it is easy to get to, and you have given yourself a quick easy way to get some exercise every day.  Our Proform recumbent bike is in the family room, in full view of the big-screen TV. Not exactly what an interior designer would recommend for family room décor, but very accessible for the exercise-challenged person (me!) who lives there. All you do is sit down and pedal with recumbent stationary bikes.  Even I can do that on a daily basis.  Do it while you watch the news in the morning, or after work while you watch a DVD in the computer. Or do it while you wait for dinner to cook, or even while talking with your significant other about the day’s events. Just do it.

• Gives A Good Lower Body Workout

Especially if you use higher resistance settings, your legs will get a nice workout with a recumbent cycle. I always notice a little “burn” when I’m on the higher resistance settings.  I can feel the muscles in my thighs as well as my calves being worked while I pedal away.

• No Impact Exercise

This is important for those of us who have knee or foot problems, or even those with hip problems that are exacerbated with weight-bearing exercise.  My knee has taken a beating over the years with multiple dislocations, and so doing much walking is a problem for me.  I do try to do a little walking because weight bearing exercise is good for overall strength and stamina as well as bone health, but I can’t walk long enough or fast enough to get much aerobic benefit out of it.  The no-impact exercise provided by recumbent exercise bikes is invaluable when it comes to getting the benefits of aerobic exercise that we all need.

The Long and Short of Having (and Using) a Recumbent Bike

Having and using – and by using I don’t mean as a clothes hamper – a recumbent exercise bike will help anyone who hates exercise achieve their fitness goals by providing a quick and easy way to exercise without pain. Even if you love to exercise like my DH, a stationary recumbent bike can be a great way to get some exercise in on a dreary rainy day when it’s not possible to go for a run or jump rope on the patio. Yep, Roy does jump rope, and I expect he will be telling you about it sometime soon! After a long day at the office, Roy hops on the recumbent bike and pedals for 30 minutes while we talk about our respective days, or while we watch re-runs of Raymond. There he is, in the family room pedaling away while we talk!

So here it is: if you hate exercise, take a trip to your nearest sports equipment store this weekend and take a look at the recumbent exercise bikes.  Try them out, then go home and read some recumbent exercise bike reviews online.  Pick one, and buy it! You will be on your way to getting some much-needed exercise, and I am sure you will agree with me that even if you normally avoid exercise, it will be the easiest way you have ever gotten a workout.

As a final note, if you haven’t exercised in awhile, check with your doctor first to make sure it is safe to begin an exercise program with a recumbent stationary bike. If you get the go ahead from the Doc, get going on that bike! Not only will you feel better physically, but you will be proud that you are actually doing something good for yourself every day!