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United States24667 Posts
This is a sequel to Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike Plan and Exercise Bike Plan Follow Up for those who don't know.
Short Summary:
I wanted an exercise bike because I would be able to exercise while doing something else such as watching tv, which would motivate me to do it more often. I wasn't sure what bike to get, and exactly what to do while I biked. Ellipticals/Treadmills/etc were not portable enough, cheap enough, or easy enough for me to concentrate on watching something while I used them. Also, I wanted to keep track of how many miles I'd progressed on a map to a destination, but wasn't sure how to do that.
Update:
I ended up purchasing the Schwinn 130 Upright Exercise Bike for $349 after trying it out at a nearby Dick's Sporting Goods. I was willing to pay a little extra money to get the one that performed the best in Consumer Reports' ratings. I easily fit it into the back of my car along with a large bag with three bowling balls 
Here is the solution to the problem of finding stuff to do while I exercise... I set up the exercise bike directly in front of my computer. I raise the monitor up as high as it will go, and tilt it upwards. When everything is positioned correctly, I have a good view of the monitor (I am just far enough away that it's preferable for me to wear my glasses though). I have seen bits and pieces of the dragonball series, so I'm going through it right now (dragonball -> z -> maybe gt?). I'm sure some people will say to just skip dragonball but I'm finding it enjoyable and I'd like to see where they introduce the characters. I saw about half a dozen episodes while I used the old recumbent bike, and since I got my new bike I've done two more episodes for a total of about ten miles on the new bike. These count towards my 'trip'. My trip is from my house to Watkins Glenn + Show Spoiler [picture] +.
How am I going to keep track of my progress on the bike? I put together a system for using google maps in conjunction with Microsoft Excel. Have a look at the spreadsheet:
My current progress places me here (red X):
My photoshop was being funny so I'll put a nicer picture next time.
I'll wait until I have made a lot of progress before I report back. If anyone is interested in doing something similar and has any questions about it, please let me know.
 
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I think when people get an exercise bike such as this, they put too much emphasis on how many miles they do. While they are a bit important, you have to take into consideration the resistance/level that you set it at. Most bikes I've used at various gyms are set from 1-20 and obviously the higher it is, the more of a workout you'd get.
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i really liked using stationary exercise bikes but then i read some report saying that they put a lot of pressure on your hips causing long term joint pain. since then (about a year ago) i dont think ive used one and i usually just stick to elliptical machines or treadmills because i already have knee/hip problems.
please let me know if you experience any sort of pain or discomfort in the coming months. if not id really like to start using them again.
edit: good luck with your fitness and personal goals.
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On February 09 2009 05:42 Dknight wrote:
I think when people get an exercise bike such as this, they put too much emphasis on how many miles they do. While they are a bit important, you have to take into consideration the resistance/level that you set it at. Most bikes I've used at various gyms are set from 1-20 and obviously the higher it is, the more of a workout you'd get.
It's completely situational. If you're terribly out of shape like micronesia has told me he is (lol), then setting little goals such as a traveling certain distances or exercising for a particular amount of time is a lot better than exerting a crap load of energy trying to pedal at 10x resistance for 2 minutes (and potentially hurting yourself). Resistance and intensity comes with time.
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United States24667 Posts
Yeah I'm slowly stepping it up... my first session I did a low level... then I went up a bit for my second one. I'll just keep making it a bit more challenging.
I'll also keep a close eye on any damage the bike could do statix.
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micronesia, why you so fat? 
I've been thinking of getting of getting a bike, just a regular bike. I might be doing the same. Another one of micronesia's ideas I'm going to implement into my life. Such a genius.
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United States24667 Posts
I'm actually not fat but I just know I would get really tired if I tried to run anywhere... just out of shape.
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you would get tired if you tried to run anywhere, so you want to exercise with no pain in 100% comfort? i really dont think thats going to work
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thats a lot of biking, honestly. thats crazy.
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On February 09 2009 09:07 hugitout wrote:
you would get tired if you tried to run anywhere, so you want to exercise with no pain in 100% comfort? i really dont think thats going to work
i believe he's looking to burn some calories and become a little more active. not compete in ironman.
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United States24667 Posts
On February 09 2009 09:07 hugitout wrote:
you would get tired if you tried to run anywhere, so you want to exercise with no pain in 100% comfort? i really dont think thats going to work
I'm going to have to side with statix.
My choices are:
A) Get absolutely no exercise and die.
B) Get some exercise and not be the best athlete on the block.
C) Set up a plan to get the ideal exercise, and do it once and then revert to choice A.
I really don't think biking for 20 minutes on a tough resistance is 'no pain' or '100% comfort'.
On February 09 2009 09:18 Raithed wrote:
thats a lot of biking, honestly. thats crazy.
Seems like it perhaps, but you'll probably be surprised how quickly I make a blog about how Watkin's Glen is.
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Goddamnit, I read "mapping my bikini". Which I figured would be a 3D scan of femaleness. Like that one time they scanned the girl intern's butt in Mythbusters.
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wtf? how'd/why would you bike that far??
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United States24667 Posts
On February 09 2009 14:46 demo1 wrote:
wtf? how'd/why would you bike that far??
Exercise? It's an exercise bike that digitally keeps track of how many miles you've cycled... so I will just keep track for several weeks/months...
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Perhaps the problem is with Dragonballz.
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United States24667 Posts
As you can see I'm keeping my current progress in my signature. Honestly it's going pretty quickly... and the crew just met Baba the fortune teller XD
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EPT![[image loading]](http://www.choiceracing.com/images/trackmaps/WatkinsGlenFacility.gif)
![[image loading]](http://img4.imageshack.us/img4/4197/bikespreadsheetsampleeu0.png)
![[image loading]](http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/2773/bikemap1zy7.png)
