Weight Loss, Diet and Fitness Program

The pleasures of stationary cycling:
This piece of equipment offers a challenging aerobic workout. This type of bike also provides a tough tone-up to the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes and calves. You’ll unpack those saddlebags (outer thighs) in a hurry!

Special pleasures of riding a recumbent bike:
These low-to-the-ground cycles offer a low-impact exercise that enhances muscle strength and muscular endurance levels of the abdominals and lower back as well as lower body muscle groups like the hips, gluteals, quadriceps, hamstrings and calves. The “full recumbent” position, in which legs are elevated to the same level as the heart, improves blood circulation and reduces blood pressure and stress on the heart more effectively than an upright bike.

The perils of riding a stationary cycle:
Riding a stationary cycle is not a weightbearing activity. You’ll need to add another workout to your schedule that will help build bone mass, and in turn lessen the possibility of developing osteoporosis.

Buying tips:
1. An adjustable seat makes the ride more comfortable.
2. Semi- or full recumbent models can be more comfortable over an extended period of time than the standard stationary cycle.
3. Give a listen before you buy. A loud stationary bike is one you won’t ride very often, especially if you want to watch TV or listen to music during your workout.

Ways to Make This Workout Better:
1. Watch your favorite TV show as you ride.
2. Have a magazine rack attached to the bike. By the time you finish an issue of your favorite read, you’ll have pedaled for 30 to 60 minutes.
3. Join the “Exercise Across America” challenge. The American Running Association developed this plan 10 years ago as a motivational tool for individual exercisers, and does it ever work! Every day you plot the “mileage” you cover on a stationary bike (or walking, or running), and plot how far this distance would take you if you were actually riding cross-country.
4. As you pedal, put more weight on the ball of your foot to work the front of the thigh. Another move for additional hamstring and glutes toning is to put more weight in your heel and really pull with your heel while pedaling.