What is a Good Speed on a  Stationary Bike ? This is becoming a common question for  most exercise freaks  but yet there is hardly any satisfying answer on the internet. You will find limited sources where you won’t get the complete information.

That’s why I researched and put together this article that answers the question ‘what is a good speed on a stationary bike’ thoroughly. I’ll also answer other related questions here.

So, let’s get started.

Top 5 Best Stationary Bike Comparison for 2021

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  1. Top 5 Best Stationary Bike Comparison for 2021
  2. What Is A Good Exercise Pedaling Speed?
  3. How To Calculate Speed On Exercise Bikes?
  4. Bottom Line:

What Is A Good Exercise Pedaling Speed?

Do you know what bike pedaling speed is called? Cadence! Depending on the rider and resistance level, a good cadence on a stationary bike would range from 50 to 110 rpm.

What is the RPM? Rotation or rounds per minutes. If you are  pedaling  at 60 rpm, your flywheel is rotating fully 60 times in one minute.

Newbie and occasional exercisers ride between somewhere 50 to 60 rpm. And some advanced riders who have a heavy flywheel can pedal at a good  speed  from 50 to 100 rpm, as heavy flywheels run much smoother than lighter ones.

How Fast Should You Pedal?

In the upper section, what I have done is just gave you an idea of good exercise pedaling speed. If you have gone through the upper section, you will remember that a good cadence on a  stationary bike  will be 50 to 110 rpm, depending on the rider and resistance level.

Now, what I meant by saying that?

Pedaling faster is not an easy task for sure. It requires a lot of practice. There is a big difference between pedaling and spinning your legs faster.

I see many newbies try to pedal faster but end up spinning their leg randomly faster, and that’s not a good practice and a waste of time and energy.

You should not bounce when pedaling, and you should not let your leg  spin  randomly. The best practice would be keeping your legs straight and creating an equal pedaling motion, not to  pedal  fast and slow in the same session. Either you pedal fast or slow. If necessary, take a break.

Now let’s come to the main point, there is no concrete rule that you have to pedal at 100 or 110 rpm. Just pedal as fast as you can, but also remember trying to pedal too fast can harm your overall body muscles.

You have to improve it slowly. And try to pedal in some resistance for adequate exercise.

What Is More Important, Speed Or Resistance?

Stationary bikes are a great weapon to get into an impressive body shape, only with the proper use. In exercise bikes, you have control over both resistance and speed.

Now the question is, which one is more important?

In exercise bikes, when you are working against resistance, it helps build your leg muscles. So for gaining strength, adding resistance is mandatory.

With low resistance, you will be able to pedal faster, but that’s not going to  benefit  you in any way. Yes, you will feel like you are working very hard as you will be pedaling faster. But that will strengthen and tone your leg muscles very little compared to pedaling with some resistance.

On the other hand, you shouldn’t try to set a high resistance level at the very  beginning . It is not recommended to add resistance that will make you barely move the pedal.

Resistance is essential for everyone who wants to shred some fat and build leg muscles. On the flip side, outdoor bikers can focus on the speed because that will reflect their outdoor cycling.

So here the point is, both resistance and speed are important. Speed can be compromised, but resistance can’t be.

It is very simple, and if you are using an exercise bike to lose some weight, you will need resistance that will make you work hard and put more effort into achieving that shape you have been dreaming of.

Just pedaling fast as hell will not going to help so much as adding some resistance will.

How To Calculate Speed On Exercise Bikes?

Nowadays, many  exercise bikes  come with modern technology, including a digital display, heart rate calculator, mp3, etc. But if you are using an old exercise bike, then there are chances that it doesn’t have a display that would tell you the distance and speed.

But do you know the good news? With just a speedometer, you can still calculate your exercising speed without having a display.

For that, you will need to do a little math. Not good at math? I am here for that; follow the below steps:

The basic formula is speed multiplied by time is equal to distance.

Step One

Start and keep riding your bike until you reach your preferred speed. Try to keep your speed constant for accurate calculation. If your speed varies, that can be a barrier to accurate speed calculation.

Step Two

Make sure your speedometer is showing speed in miles (MPH). As you want the result of your speed in a minute, read your MPH from the speedometer and divide it by 60. One minute is equal to 60 seconds, so we are going to divide it by 60.

For example, if you are riding in 15 miles, you have a speed of 0.25 Mph.

Isn’t it so simple? That’s how you can calculate your riding speed. But still, it is better to get an exercise bike with some modern features that would show you the calories burned, speed, distance, time, heart rate,  workout routines , etc.

Bottom Line:

This is my thorough answer to the question ‘what is a good speed on a stationary bike.’ My suggestion for the beginners will be, focus on the resistance instead of speed. Learn to pedal correctly and make sure you don’t bounce on the saddle while pedaling.

Set a low resistance at the beginning and slowly increase the level. Setting up resistance that will make you hardly push the pedal can affect your muscles. You have to give some time to your body so that it can adapt to the situation.

So that was all. If you have any questions or disagreements, don’t hesitate to drop that in the comment section. If you liked this article don’t forget to share it with your friends.

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Last update on 2024-10-05 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API