Treadmills were all the rage. Rowers took the fitness space by storm. Now, indoor exercise bikes are owning center stage.
But indoor cycling isn’t just exercise — it’s an experience, and many indoor cyclists would agree.
With music-driven choreography, large screens, and often many flashing lights, it’s easy to see why fitness fans are falling more in love with the practice of adding an exercise bike to their routine.
New fans are also getting into the groove, especially with the new year on the horizon and fitness goals quickly coming up on our tails.
Best of all, exercise bikes provide users with tangible results that are fun and achievable. (Related: 25 best Amazon fitness finds)
To help you grasp a better understanding of the practice, The Post spoke with international fitness expert and creator of The SLR Life Fitness Program Sarah Louise Rector.
Keep reading for her top recommended indoor exercise bikes as well as her indoor cycling expertise.
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Why experts like it:
This indoor bicycle features a sturdy frame an a heavy 49lb weighted flywheel. Therefore, you’re guaranteed a sturdy ride. You can also look forward to varying resistance levels, a silent ride, an adjustable seat and handlebars and a bottle holder.
Shop all Sunny Health & Fitness indoor bikes here.
Why experts like it:
With the JOROTO indoor bike, you can enjoy a quiet ride, a top-tier solid build, a fully-adjustable set up, an emergency stop brake and one year of free replacement parts.
Shop all JOROTO indoor bikes here.
Why experts like it:
With the Bowflex bike, you can look forward to a smooth and quiet ride, a backlit LCD console, 100 varying resistance levels, dual-sided pedals, a pair of dumbbells and a bluetooth enabled heart rate armband. Best of all, you can gain access to the JRNY membership at no additional cost ($149 value).
You can find more deals on Bowflex exercise bikes at Amazon.
Why experts like it:
The NordicTrack studio cycle bike gives you access to 30 days of the iFIT Family Membership, a 22” rotating HD touchscreen, a quiete incline motor, auto-adjusting resistance and so much more.
Shop all NordicTrack indoor bikes here.
With 35lb flywheels and a heavy-duty steel frame, you are in for one smooth ride. This bike also successfully tracks your time, speed, distance and calories burned.
Shop all Yosuda bikes here.
DMASUN has served over 2 million homes worldwide, and the brand isn’t stopping anytime soon. Perhaps it’s the bike’s large flywheel or the innovative design that keeps people coming back again and again.
Shop all DMASUN bikes here.
With the Echelon bike, you can look forward to world-class instructors, live and on-demand classes, performance tracking, a global community and trending music to cycle to.
If you’re new to the world of exercise bikes and aren’t ready to make the invest on the Connect EX-8S, check out Echelon’s Smart Bike, which is only $490.93 at Amazon, or the Echelon Smart Connect EX5 ($399.99).
Shop all Echelon indoor bikes here.
This is one of the best exercise bikes if you have a small space. It’s sleek, compact, and offers an interactive experience for a fraction of the price of some other brands.
When armed with the Freebeat membership ($39.00 per month), cyclers have access to workouts, games and fitness challenges to keep their exercise game spicy. And the bike itself is pretty cool, too! It can detect when you leave its saddle, has a bright LED color strip at the bottom to light up the room, and can auto adjust resistance based on your virtual instructor’s command.
Shop all Freebeat bikes here.
If you want to feel like you’re zooming outdoors without leaving your house, the Peloton Original is for you. It has an adjustable seat that actually tilts, a USB microport, as well as a large touchscreen to enjoy streaming workouts on. In the back there’s a spot for weights, plus a 2-channel stereo speaker system. As you know, the bike goes hand in hand with a Peloton membership ($44.00 per month), which is sold separately. And although you may balk at the additional cost, it does provide access to lots of fun and motivating workouts.
Shop all Peloton bikes here.
Look forward to one free year of the JRNY membership, a quiet ride, magnetic resistance, bluetooth connectivity, an adjustable seat, a large LCD display, a heart rate monitor and more.
Shop all Schwinn indoor bikes here.
When not in use, this folding bike instantly becomes slim and compact. You can also enjoy multi-position padded handlebars, clear metrics and up to eight various levels of resistance.
Shop all XTERRA bikes here.
With over 20,000 positive reviews, this folding bike is perfect for testing your limits. Ideal for all fitness levels, you’ll unlock a quiet ride, 300 pound weight capacity, easy-to-read LCD screen and an adjustable seat.
Shop all Exerpeutic bikes here.
Looking for the shortest yet most effective cardio? If so, this is it. Not only does the Carol bike give you max results in just eight minutes and 40 seconds, but it AI-power personalization adapts to your fitness ride after ride.
Shop all Carol bike accessories here.
The BARWING is the ideal bike for users of all levels. It’s complete with 16 resistance options, eight seat adjustments, two seat angles and three workout bike postures.
Shop all UREVO bikes here.
Not only does this Marcy bike include a gorgeous rose gold color tone, but it also encompasses a step-through design, eight resistance levels and counter-balanced pedals.
Shop all Marcy bikes here.
Made with heavy-duty steel, non-slip handle bars and an LCD monitor, you’ll have everything you need to get your bod in tip-top shape.
Shop all pooboo bikes here.
Don’t let work ruin your workout! This exercise bike has a 16 inch by 19 inch table surface, ideal for placing your laptop, folders and whatever else you need as you pedal away. A recumbent style back offers additional spinal support, while the forearms can be adjusted for your comfort. Offering eight levels of manual resistance, pretend you’re going up hills while answering emails. The workday will fly! More than 2,000 happy customers on Amazon give it five stars!
Shop all FitDesk bikes here.
This at-home exercise bike is like a gym! Its attached resistance bands ensure your upper bod gets a workout while your legs pedal away. Pulse sensors on the side help to measure your heart rate, and there’s a space in the center for your iPad. Change resistance with the twist of a knob, while watching the calories you’ve burned on the LCD screen. Once you’ve sweated it out, fold the bike up for easy storage!
Shop all pooboo bikes here.
This bike uses wind resistance to put muscles to work. We love the arm handles and the way they push the entire body to get involved. A LCD display tracks RPM, distance, speed and calories, and there’s even a spot for your water bottle. Different models available on Amazon.
Shop all Schwinn bikes here.
Rector explained that indoor cycling provides users with “a low impact cardio workout” while allowing you to boost your stamina, build strength, tone the lower body and burn fat. But the benefits of indoor cycling don’t end with training.
“At home exercise bikes provide you with easier access to getting your workout on straight out of bed whilst a baby is napping or in between zoom meetings,” Rector said.
Therefore, indoor cycling allows you to take fitness into your own hands and mold it to your lifestyle. After all, it’s all done from the comfort of your own home.
But best of all, having an indoor bike can actually save you financially in the long run.
“It’s cheaper having a bike at home than paying for trainers and gym memberships,” Rector explained. “It’s a one time purchase that you have for life.”
One of the best at-home exercise bikes we love comes from Bowflex (starting at $1,199.99). It comes in a variety of sizes, has a spot for dumbbells and an immersive screen to follow workouts and track fitness metrics on.
Another indoor cycling bike we like is the one from Yosuda (starting at $183.99, Amazon). It’s available in three models, is compact enough for an apartment or townhouse, and has a sturdy drive-belt for a smooth ride. Its LCD screen isn’t immersive, but you can still check out your distance, calories burned and speed. Not bad for an exercise bike under $500, right?
And if you’re really short on space (or cash), check out the BARWING Stationary Bike ($179.99, Amazon). It’s less than $200, foldable, has pulse rate sensors on the handles and can hold a rider of 330 pounds.
Indoor bikes and outdoor bikes are often compared. While they have similar features, they greatly vary.
First off, Rector told the New York Post that indoor cycling bikes provide various levels of resistance training all while staying stationary and calling it a “no excuses workout.” Consequently, outdoor bikes require you to travel to various terrains to achieve that same workout.
On that same note, you can always count on getting a good workout with an indoor bike no matter the weather, as it’s a “great compact piece of equipment that doesn’t need much space.”
Rector continued by saying those with small spaces shouldn’t shy away from adding an indoor bike to their home, as they can be “moved around by one person, are slender in width and don’t have any additional attachments.”
Some of our favorite exercise bikes for small spaces include:
If an indoor cycling bike sparks your fitness interest, your next question may be, “What makes a good cycling bike, well, good?”
Rector breaks it down into seven categories: resistance, time, distance, heart monitoring, handle bar positioning, seat adjustment and screen.
First, you want to ensure the bike provides a wide array of resistance training “so you can perform intervals, more challenges, uphill effort and build stamina,” Rector said.
Next, you should make sure the bike of your choice allows you to track your time, which helps keep you focused, and depicts your distance, which helps you stay engaged and involved.
One of our favorite exercise bikes for fitness tracking is the Echelon EX-15. It has an immersive screen, too, dumbbell holders, two slots for water bottles, and comes with a 30-day free trial of Echelon’s fitness membership.
Another option if calorie and distance tracking is your goal? The JOROTO X2PRO. It not only features a large tablet holder to watch your favorite shows, but has an easy to read LCD display to see your progress.
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