recumbent or upright bike or real bike?

[badatmath]

Trying to pick a parting gift from a catalog of crap at w*rk . . .

Should I just take no gift (as I am thinking) or maybe choose one of those? *They do have other things but I have even less use for a tent or an espresso maker. . . no electronics unfortunately or anything that looks easy to sell.

I get very little to no exercise now, don't belong to a gym . . . no treadmill offered either.

Not sure why I am so indecisive about this junk as I think I am just angry that I can't just get $50 at amazon or something I could actually use!

This is not fancy stuff retailing mabye $200-$300 I think.

I should be too old to lie to myself I would actually exercise but . . .

 

[justlikebike]

Real bike. It's the easiest to sell.

 

[Jerry1]

If there’s nothing you really want, don’t take anything. Why be encumbered to sell something. Make a clean break from the job and get on with your new life.

 

[statsman]

If there’s nothing you really want, don’t take anything. Why be encumbered to sell something. Make a clean break from the job and get on with your new life.

Agreed. The only other suggestion I have, assuming you won't get taxed for the "parting gift" is if there is something being offered you know someone else could really use.

When I hit my last milestone anniversary with my megacorp, there was nothing being offered that I wanted or needed. Lord knows I had enough desk clocks! But they did offer up a Sony Blu-Ray player, and with our kid about to go off to college and taking a small LCD TV with them, I chose the Blu-Ray player and gave it to them.

 

[Badger]

My guess is the recumbent and upright bike are indoor trainer types. If you don't like riding a real bike outdoors in the fresh air then you most likely won't like the other choices and they become clothes racks.

Cheers!

 

[Philliefan33]

Real bike. It's the easiest to sell.

+1. Better yet, if you don’t want it, donate it to someplace like a women’s shelter or group that works with youths. It could be transportation for someone in need

 

[COcheesehead]

A bad bike is worse than no bike.

 

[Winemaker]

Recumbent bikes are hard on the knees.

 

[MarieIG]

I actually did start using a stationary bike - following my retirement - pretty much daily.

I like it because it is easy to use, has a comfortable seat, and I look out the window, or listen to podcasts/ watch videos while I do it. I don't have to worry about the weather, falling off it (although I suppose that is possible) or getting hit by a car (as one of my former coworkers was). I am not recommending against a real bike for those who love them, but these have their benefits especially for the exercised challenged.

The trick is choose one which is comfortable, make it easy to use, and get into the habit of using it.

 

[badatmath]

Yeah with no opportunity to try it it seems unlikely to fit and I do live in a city where bikers and pedestrians are hit regularly. (Terrible).

I will just have to buy my own present to "celebrate" I suppose. I keep thinking that I will get nothing and then someone else asks me what I ordered which starts me thinking again.

 

[razztazz]

I used to do all the outdoorsy stuff. Run/walk.bike. Then about 24 yrs ago got tired of being controlled by the weather in Winter. (And some times by the heat/humidity of Summer) So, I started using a stationary standard posture bike. 100% available, 100% of the time. Climate controlled. No skipped workout days

3 yrs ago when I was rehabbing after the heart attack I was reading some medical studies that showed people using a recumbent style bike actually had a higher rate of heart attacks than a normal upright bike. Definitely a grain-of-salt proposition, but still......?

I "real bike", the kind ride all over town? The weather. The fact that you have to ride it about town. Traffic. Time constraints. Real bikes are supposed to be easy to pedal by design, so you need to do some time on them. Stationary bikes can be used to concentrate time vs exertion. Up the setting, get some real exercise, make it hurt, don't have to stop for traffic. Get it all done in 30 mins

 

[JP.mpls]

My company offered gift cards to restaurants.
I always thought was better than a questionable quality item, often with the company logo on it.

 

[MarieIG]

I used to do all the outdoorsy stuff. Run/walk.bike. Then about 24 yrs ago got tired of being controlled by the weather in Winter. (And some times by the heat/humidity of Summer) So, I started using a stationary standard posture bike. 100% available, 100% of the time. Climate controlled. No skipped workout days

3 yrs ago when I was rehabbing after the heart attack I was reading some medical studies that showed people using a recumbent style bike actually had a higher rate of heart attacks than a normal upright bike. Definitely a grain-of-salt proposition, but still......?

I "real bike", the kind ride all over town? The weather. The fact that you have to ride it about town. Traffic. Time constraints. Real bikes are supposed to be easy to pedal by design, so you need to do some time on them. Stationary bikes can be used to concentrate time vs exertion. Up the setting, get some real exercise, make it hurt, don't have to stop for traffic. Get it all done in 30 mins

My stationary bike is not a recumbent bike; and is still comfortable enough. It does have resistance settings, is foldable (although I leave it open unless we're having company) and would easily fit in an apartment.

 

[aaronc879]

Recumbent bikes are hard on the knees.

Everything I have read says the opposite. Recumbent bikes are the best exercise if you have bad knees. YMMV?

 

[razztazz]

My stationary bike is not a recumbent bike; and is still comfortable enough. It does have resistance settings, is foldable (although I leave it open unless we're having company) and would easily fit in an apartment.

Sounds like my bike.

 

[razztazz]

Everything I have read says the opposite. Recumbent bikes are the best exercise if you have bad knees. YMMV?

I can't officially come down on either side of this one but think about it. Sitting and pushing forward vs sitting upright and pushing downward? Seems like the upright position is the more natural mechanical motion for which the knee and hips are designed. And you can throw in lower back too.

 

[badatmath]

3 yrs ago when I was rehabbing after the heart attack I was reading some medical studies that showed people using a recumbent style bike actually had a higher rate of heart attacks than a normal upright bike. Definitely a grain-of-salt proposition, but still......?

VERY interesting on the recumbent and heart attacks!!!

I don't have a gym so I have not ridden a recumbent but it looks sort of awkward to me - ellipticals feel weird to me too.

 

[Amethyst]

I don't like to offend anyone who loves recumbent bikes, but men in recumbent bikes look so vulnerable, down close to the ground like that, with their flags on long poles sticking up in back. A dog could just come up and...well, anything it wants to, really.

(I haven't seen any women pedaling recumbent bikes, although I'm sure some do. And I'd probably think they look funny, too).

 

[razztazz]

VERY interesting on the recumbent and heart attacks!!!

I don't have a gym so I have not ridden a recumbent but it looks sort of awkward to me - ellipticals feel weird to me too.

It is awkward. The 30 days I spent at post-heart-attack rehab I opted for the recumbent bike about half the time because it looked easier and maybe even safer than the treadmill. (Especially at 0700!) I doubt it was any safer and I know it wasn't easier. The upright bike seemed more "natural."

 

[Badger]

I have been riding some form of bike for 70 years. About 10 of those years I rode competitively in sprint triathlons and a couple of decades for fun rides like centuries and MS 150s. Now I ride about 3k miles a year as a way to greet the morning as the sun comes up. I have also been riding a recumbent trike for the past 26 years in addition to a road bike. I also have a stationary recumbent when weather is bad.
Both my recumbent trike and stationary recumbent bike have been used for physical therapy for a knee replacement years ago just like the stationary recumbent at the Physical Therapists.
If anything a recumbent bike is more gentle on the knees than most any other exercise for legs. There has been a surge of senior recumbent trike riders in the past few years with a large number of women riders. Most of those that are riding are also using it for knee surgery recovery or something for a gentle ride with arthritic knees.
Another bonus for recumbent bikes vs road bike is they are less stressful on you back, neck, shoulders, and wrists.

Cheers!