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Real Bicycle Exercise Vs. Stationary Bike Exercise

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At one time, if you want to ride a bike, you had to purchase an actual bike to ride outdoors. However, over the years, tons of exercise bikes have hit the market, which allows you to get the bike riding experience indoors. But, many people are likely wondering what the advantages and disadvantages are in riding exercise bikes versus real bikes. As a result, we have compiled a list of various things you should consider when deciding if you want to purchase an exercise bike or a real bike.

Entertainment Value

Many people find that they stay a little more motivated to work out if they can be entertained while doing so. When you ride an exercise bike indoors, you can watch television or listen to music. When you ride a bike outdoors, you will always have the opportunity to see new scenery assuming you take different routes. You will also get your daily source of Vitamin-D from the sun, and you will also be absorbing plenty of fresh air. Of course, you can also take your iPod with you on your outdoor rides as well.

Extra Benefits

While bike riding is primarily designed as a source of cardiovascular exercise, both indoor and outdoor cycling comes with extra benefits. With exercise biking, you can adjust the level of resistance with a simple turn of a dial, which can add new challenges to your workout. This will also work to strengthen and tone up your leg muscles. When cycling on a real bike outdoors, you will also be able to work on toning and strengthening your leg muscles, and you will also be able to strengthen your core due to the increased level of balance required to ride a real bike.

Overall Results

When it comes to comparing the overall results of using an exercise bike versus a real bike, you will find that the results look fairly similar. You will be toning and strengthening your legs along with improving your cardiovascular system. With that being said, riding outdoors in the wind or in different weather conditions can provide an experience that exercise bikes simply cannot compete with.

Level of Difficulty

The final thing to consider when deciding whether to purchase an exercise bike or a real bike is the level of difficulty you want to be challenged with. If you are just getting into cycling, you may find it to be a bit difficult to make it up hills. In this case, an exercise bike might be a good place to start because you can keep it set to a fairly low resistance until you build up the necessary experience. Of course, you can always push your bike up the hill until you are finally able to work your way up the hill.

Hopefully, you now have a little more insight into which type of bike is best for your ventures. As always, do remember to shop around and try out various types of each style of the bike until you find the perfect one.