Do You Get Any Exercise on an Electric Bike

Do You Get Any Exercise on an Electric Bike?

A common misconception about electric bikes is that riding an electric bike makes you lazy and essentially cheating when it comes to exercise. Therefore, I considered my own riding experience and reviewed the research there to determine if you do you get any exercise on an electric bike.

Because the rider must step on the pedal to start the motor, riding an electric bicycle is a good way of cardiovascular exercise. The amount of exercise of electric bicycles depends more or less on the number of times they ride and the way they ride. In addition, certain riding habits will directly affect the exercise effect of electric bicycles. In fact, a recent study confirmed that the average heart rate can increase to 94% of the average heart rate when using an electric bicycle. So, you can definitely speed up your heart rate. Nevertheless, there are still many factors that affect the amount and quality of exercise you get from riding. I will discuss these with you below.

How to exercise on an electric bike

In order to get the most exercise, the first thing to understand is that electric bicycles are designed to provide motor “assistance”. And this help is only provided when you actually step on it, because the motor feels it’s time to work. Most electric bicycles have multiple levels of “pedal assist”, allowing the rider to decide how much help they want from the motor at any given time. In other words, you must step on the pedals to make the bicycle drive. Therefore, you burn calories when you pedal, just like riding a standard bicycle. The bottom line is this: You can exercise by riding an electric bike, but you can improve your riding habits by following these tips, thereby increasing your effort to get better quality exercise.

Riding habits: Tips to improve the quality of electric bicycles

Naturally, the more you ride, the more exercise you get. Therefore, developing good riding habits will help you increase the quantity and quality of your exercises.

Here are some tips to improve e-bike riding habits:

Keep the pedal assist level at the lowest level (0 or 1) for as long as possible. Increase one level at a time as needed.
If you have a throttle, don’t rely on it to keep moving. Use it when you need to move fast (eg avoiding cars) or need to accelerate to start climbing a steep hill. Just don’t use it to avoid trampling!
Ride a bike to work or school. Because compared with standard bicycles, electric bicycles can make it easier for you to get to where you need to go, so you can get consistent exercise by cycling to and from get off work every day. But the good thing is that you don’t have to work or sweat to get there.
Pick up groceries or run errands. Just put a small shelf or basket on the front or back of the bike, or bring a backpack to put your groceries (don’t forget to lock your electric bike when shopping).
Ride uphill. Mountain riding is an excellent way to exercise, because they require greater sustained effort to get up. With electric bicycles, there is no reason not to try to climb steep hills. You can make it pleasant or difficult as you like. As long as you step on the pedal, you will get exercise.

Here’s how I tackled hillsides: Start with the lowest pedal assist level and challenge myself to pedal as long as possible without additional assistance. Then add more assistance by increasing the pedal assist level little by little.

I also find that setting the gear to 3 or 4 on steep hills helps me get more exercise, because I don’t need to add pedal assistance as soon as possible.
Make riding a daily habit. Ride around your community and start your day. This will allow your blood to flow and increase your heart rate, allowing you to perform cardiovascular exercises. And, as a reward, it can help you concentrate and improve your work efficiency for the day.
Put a basket or rack on your electric bike so you can ride it to go shopping and exercise.
Ride an electric bicycle for shopping and use a basket or shelf to carry shopping items to exercise.
Compared with standard bicycles, how electric bicycles can give you more exercise
Since all the fuss about electric bikes makes you lazy or not providing “real” exercise, you can actually get more exercise every week when you ride an electric bike instead of a standard bike.
 
The truth is that because electric bicycles make pedaling easier, you are more likely to ride it from the start. And, you will ride farther, because you know you can handle it, and if you need it, you will be able to use a larger motor to assist home. In turn, your driving power may increase even more. As a result, you will ride more, burn more calories, and get more exercise. If you have to bike uphill in order to get in and out of your community, you will most likely avoid cycling altogether (as my husband and I did before we had electric bikes). However, when you know that you can easily ride uphill while still building your muscles, and then you can easily go home even if you are tired, you will ride an electric bike more often! Using the riding habit tips mentioned above, you will get continuous exercise.

The benefits of exercise for the elderly and physically handicapped

Riding an electric bicycle can provide a good exercise for everyone. This becomes clearer when you consider how it can help the elderly and physically impaired people. Unfortunately, many older people have limitations in exercise. Walking or riding a standard bicycle can be a problem for many reasons, including lack of strength, injury, fatigue, or chronic illness. However, as long as they have no problems with balance and cycling, electric bicycles will help the elderly get the power assistance they need to get where they want to go.
 

Elderly women exercising on electric bicycles

Older people will get more exercise by riding an electric bicycle because it is easier.
They can ride electric bicycles to friends’ homes, entertainment centers, shops and even doctors’ offices. These places may walk too far or too long. If the elderly no longer drive, riding an electric bicycle is a good choice.

Therefore, not only can electric bicycles provide the elderly with freedom of movement that they would not have, but they can also get the benefits of exercise. All of this is true for people with physical disabilities, no matter their age, they can still ride electric bicycles. With the help of motors, they can reach where they need to go and perform cardiovascular exercises.

More research on e-bike sports

Many people want to know what are the disadvantages of riding an electric bicycle compared to a traditional bicycle. “Exercise” is often mentioned.

However, a 2020 study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health used a real-world environment to let participants decide how and when to ride an electric bike for two weeks. The results indicate that riding an electric bicycle is an “appropriate” way to promote otherwise healthy adults’ physical activity.

Another study by JMIR Publications compared the exercise response of electric bicycles and more. Although the participants felt their exertion was low when riding an electric mountain bike, the results showed that most of them were trapped in a “severe heart rate zone.” Therefore, even for experienced mountain bikers, riding an electric bicycle is a kind of vigorous aerobic exercise.

Studies have also found that compared with cyclists, e-bike riders have longer trips. Therefore, even if the exercise is not so intense, electric bicycle users ride farther and longer, but also provide them with longer physical exertion. Another study found that when people ride electric bicycles, the frequency of car use is much lower. And, naturally, riding an electric bicycle will greatly increase your exercise time than sitting in a car.

E-bike exercise conclusion

When you ride an electric bike, you will get continuous cardiovascular exercise. You are also more likely to ride an electric bike because it makes exercise less demanding and more enjoyable. However, you can do better exercise on an electric bike, and you can improve your riding habits with a little effort. Just use less pedal assist, handle more hillsides with lower power, or just ride more bikes every day to where you want to go.

The price of the most common electric bicycles on the market today ranges from US$400 to US$2,000. At shuangye, we use years of manufacturing experience to keep low costs while still using high-quality components and providing a lot of added value.

But as you can see, the cost of an electric bike far exceeds its list price. maintain. Toll. Security measures. These are just some of the cost considerations you should know before buying your first electric bike.
If you are looking for a new way of commuting or want a healthier lifestyle, we are here to help you. Visit our website to learn more about electric bikes and electric scooter or please leave information to us.