With 2020 being a year all of us spent at home due to the pandemic, fitness and health became a major hurdle for many people. If you don’t have the proper equipment, exercising at home just seems like a major hassle and thus, it is put aside. This is where home exercise tools like treadmills and exercise bikes come into handy as you can stay healthy while in the safety of your own home.
Using a fixed exercise bike is a very efficient and useful method for exercising your body while staying at home. It is a perfect method for cardio while working out your legs and stamina at the same time.
When compared to other types of cardio, a stationary bike saves you from the elements as compared to outdoor activities and also puts less strain on your bones and joints.
Some of the primary health benefits of using stationary bikes are
1) Weight Loss
At the base of it, losing weight is more or less taking in fewer calories than you burn. This can be done by both eating less and working out. Using an exercise bike, it is possible to burn a few hundred calories per hour which is a large amount and will aid heavily in weight loss.
2) Boosts Stamina
Exercising regularly, especially with cardio involved, boosts your overall stamina and makes you better at cardio and exercising as a whole. This can easily be seen in just a few days/weeks of regular exercising.
3) Benefits Organs
Any kind of Cardiovascular workout, such as cycling or running, strengthens all the organs involved, i.e., your heart, lungs and muscles. Along with this, blood and oxygen flow through your body are also promoted leading to an improvement across the body in many ways such as decreased blood pressure, better immunity, and much more.
4) Muscle Growth
While many people may not know this, cardio is enough to build a decent amount of muscle. If you keep exercising regularly, the strain on your leg muscles will cause them to tear apart and join again gradually getting larger and stronger as this process repeats.
While all these benefits do exist, one problem persists, what if you don’t have a bike. Well, choosing and buying one may be difficult but we’ve compiled a list of 8 affordable exercise bikes to make this process easier for you!
Best Exercise Bikes
1. Sovnia Exercise Bike (Best for 2-year replacement Warranty) – $249.88
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Fully adjustable by a knob in the bike
Type – Upright
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
2. Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Exercise Bike (Best for Light weight and Foldable) – $148.99
While being a very sleek-looking bike, this one weighs only 39 pounds which is one of the lowest numbers on this list. Along with this, it is able to take a weight of up to 300 pounds which is very impressive. It comes with all the basic features and is has a smart fold system that makes it nearly fat and very easy to store and transport.
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – Yes
Levels of resistance – Has an 8-level magnetic tension system
Type – Upright
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
3. PooBoo Desk Cycle Exercise Bike (Best for Home Office Usage) – $269.99
This magnetic resistance bike comes with a massive 23.62” *17.71” table instead of an LCD screen so that you can multitask perfectly. The table is large enough for a laptop so that you can complete your work from home tasks while burning those calories! Other than this, the bike is built on a heavy-duty frame and the table is fully height adjustable.
Display – No
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Has an 8-level magnetic resistance system
Type – Upright
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
4. ZOGIN Mini Exercise Bike (Best for Cheap and little space needed) – $36.99
This mini bike exerciser machine is very compact and is designed to be used under a desk or table while you are doing something else. At just 12.6” high and lightweight enough to take anywhere, this is perfect to take along with you on a business trip or even room to room in your household as it is so perfectly compact. This product is also helpful for older people as they can use this while sitting on a sofa or chair with enough back support.
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Knob to freely adjust resistance/tension
Type – Compact
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
5. Ativafit Fan Bike Exercise Air Bike (Best for Air resistance system and Arms workout) – $229.99
This bike may look quite light and simple, but it comes with some very cool benefits. Most importantly, it works on a unique fan-based resistance system that requires you to use both your hands and feet giving you a much more overall workout as compared to normal exercise bikes. This bike also has a computer that tracks your real-time exercise data and tells you about it on the LCD Screen.
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Unique fan wheel system increases resistance as speed increases
Type – Dual Action
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
6. RESVIN Exercise Bike (Best for Shock Absorbing Seat) – $249.99
This bike comes with a decent 35-pound flywheel which is built on a sturdy frame meant to support up to 330lbs on top of it. The bike comes with an LCD recording system that tracks your data as you exercise and lets you know about your stats. While this is quite normal, the real specialty of this bike is that the seat is built on an independent frame with shock absorption technology. This is done with the use of a shock absorber placed on the joint angle to dampen any movement and make home cycling even more comfortable.
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – Yes
Levels of resistance – Knob to freely adjust resistance/tension
Type – Upright
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
7. Marcy Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike (Best for Seating position) – $241
Unlike the others on this list, which are upright seating position bikes, this one is called a recumbent exercise bike. This means that the seating position is much lower and more relaxed. The seat is very large and comfortable and is meant for people who want to exercise just as much but without the hassle of joint pain and the lack of comfort when standing or sitting on a small seat. Other than this, the bike comes with all basic features like the others on this list.
Display – Yes, LCD
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Knob to freely adjust resistance/tension
Type – Recumbent
Built-in Modes/Classes – None
8. OVICX Bluetooth Exercise Bike (Best for Bluetooth Smart Technology) – $349
As the name suggests, this bike comes with very smart and unique Bluetooth technology. This tech allows you to use a mobile app to get all the data you could need. It tracks your exercises, tells you how to work out and even allows for personal training! This bike also works on a 3 magnet system making its mechanics very sturdy and smooth justifying its price perfectly.
Display – No
Pulse Sensor – No
Levels of resistance – Magnetic Knob for resistance control and tracking in Bluetooth app
Type – Upright
Built-in Modes/Classes – Personal Training via app
Tips for buying the right bike
With all these options even on this list, the process may still seem a little confusing when it comes to making the final decision. To help you out, here are a few tips to keep in mind when buying an exercise bike:
1. Choose the right type of exercise bike –
Upright (Normal and high seat)
Recumbent (Relaxed seating with less effort)
Mixed (Upright seating but with arm workout as well)
2. Make sure to check out what type of warranty or guarantee the seller is providing to you on the cycle. These are very important because even though exercise bikes are sturdy machines, they are still a bunch of mechanical parts and can fall prey to usage and faikure. Thus, it is best to find a seller that provides a long and complete replacement warranty.
3. The availability of replacement parts and service is also an important thing that should be kept in mind. This is because if something goes wrong and there is no warranty, the company should have spare parts to fix the problem or if nothing else, the system of the cycle should be one that can be easily understood and fixed.
4. Another thing to keep in mind is the company as well as past reviews. It is always better to buy tried and tested products from experienced companies. These products will be more likely to last you longer and will also have a large base of users who can help you out and will know about the product you are using.
5. If you lack space or need something that can be carried around easily, try to focus on getting a light and foldable bike instead of the bulkier ones.
All in all, looking at all these options and the pandemic we are still going through, exercise bikes seem to be the answer to all our health problems. They keep us safe while keeping us healthy at the same time so check these bikes out and we hope that this list helps you find one that you like!