Recumbent Exercise Bike vs Upright Exercise Bike

You've been looking to get an exercise bike and feel pretty confident about which features you want, what manufacturer makes the best bikes and you've narrowed down your options in your price range.

There's only one problem, you don't know if you should get a recumbent exercise bike, or an upright exercise bike.

Let me help you understand the differences between recumbent bikes and upright bikes so you can make an informed decision.

Recumbent vs Upright, Which is better?

For sake of comparison, let's take a look at two of the stationary bikes I review here on the website and put them head to head so the differences will be crystal clear.

The comparison bikes are the Schwinn 201 Recumbent Bike, and the Schwinn 101 Upright bike.

First we'll look at the Schwinn 101 upright bike...

Upright Exercise Bike Key Points:

You'll notice that an upright exercise bike is more like a traditional road bike is design and function. The seat is located directly over the pedals and is height adjustable to accommodate different height riders.

The handlebars are also like a road bike and can be used to get a heart rate reading (if your bike comes with that option) and also to position the body while pedaling.

A bid advantage of upright exercise bikes is the fact that you can lift your body off the seat to pedal with much greater force and exertion (just like a road bike) to simulate climbing hills, sprinting or just for giving your butt a well deserved rest.

On the downside, upright exercise bikes can be uncomfortable to ride for prolonged periods unless you're used to riding your road bike, that's especially true on the cheaper bikes (under $400) that have marginal seats at best.

Finally, upright exercise bikes are small than recumbence and take up less floor space. And since they don't require as much material to manufacture, they tend to be a bit cheaper than a comparable recumbent bike.

Recumbent Exercise Bike Key Points:

Recumbent bikes are a newer development on the market (relatively speaking of course) that, for most people, makes riding an exercise bike more comfortable, and more enjoyable than an upright bike.

On the plus side, the very nature of a recumbent exercise bike positions the body in a more natural seated and supported position while still maintaining the appropriate leg pedaling angle for efficiency.

You can see from the picture above, recumbent bikes differ from upright in two key areas, the first being the seating position, and the second being the position of the flywheel drive mechanism that increases the overall bike size.

As I covered earlier, the seating position on a recumbent does not allow you to stand up and use your body weight to simulate hill climbing or sprinting, instead you're locked into a static position for the duration of your ride.

Recumbent or Upright?

For the majority of exercise bike shoppers, I recommend getting a recumbent exercise bike for the simple fact that they're much more comfortable to ride, and the more comfortable the ride, the more likely you are to use the bike.

The only exception to my recommendation would be if you're a more hard-core biker that will really be cranking up the intensity trying to simulate hill climbing or sprinting. If that sounds like you, get an upright.

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