The 400XL is a compact recumbent bike that combines functionality with practicality. Manufactured by Paradigm Health and Wellness, it comes with variable resistance so both new and advanced users can learn how to use it. As this is a semi-recumbent bike, folding is quick and simple.

What is the Best Folding Recumbent Bike ?

We will look at its features shortly, but it is worth noting the 400XL has a generously sized seat and its backrest provides a lot of comfort. The weight capacity is also better than average. The bike needs to be assembled but it won’t take a lot of time.

Highlighted Features

Let’s examine the salient features of the 400XL exercise bike and some of its more important specifications.

Dimensions

The bike measures 33″ (L) x 19″ (W) x 46″ (H) when assembled and when folded it is 24″ (L) x 19″ (W) x 46″ (H), so either way it doesn’t consume as much space compared to other bikes.

Weight, Height and Capacity

The bike is only 39 lbs so it is one of the lighter ones in the market today. When it comes to exercise bikes for burning fat you want them portable for easy transport and that is what you get here.

Screen

The 400XL has a bright LCD screen that makes it easy to read data as you work out. At 3 x 1.6 inches the screen is large enough you don’t have to squint to read what is on the display. The screen keeps track of your pulse, calories burned, speed, distance and time. With a quick glance you have access to all this data.

A scan function and odometer are also included. The scan function allows you to rotate through the stats mentioned above. They are displayed one at a time for about 5 seconds, real handy.

Heart Rate Monitor

Look at the handlebar and you’ll see that it has a pulse rate monitor. As you pedal, the monitor displays your heart rate alongside the other stats that I mentioned. By going over these you’ll get a pretty good idea of where you’re at in terms of workout progress and if you need to speed up or slow down.

Crank System and Flywheel

The 400XL is equipped with a state of the art cranking mechanism that generates a high torque. This not only improves efficiency but also keeps the 400XL running quietly and without hiccups.

The same quality can be found in the flywheel as it is one of the most well balanced in this class. With the flywheel and the crank system the 400XL allows you to work out without any squeaks and creaks.

Wheels

No good exercise bike is without wheels, and the 400XL is no exception. The wheels are good sized and enable you to move the bike around without scratching the ground or try to lift it up. They’re nothing fancy but they do get the job done.

Pedals

The pedals are large so your footwear should fit nicely. The foot straps keep your feet secure so even if you pedal fast they won’t slip or slide.

Seat

The seat is soft, large, comfortable and adjustable. You can fold it easily and when it’s open the backrest provides sufficient padding. With a 300 lb capacity the 400XL is good enough for heavy people and won’t give way. I also want to add that the seat height is adjustable so you will be able to focus on workouts.

Usability

There are a lot of positive things we can say about the 400XL, but the most significant is that this exercise bike runs as well as expected. Once you sit down, put the straps on and pedal, you feel the difference in terms of performance.

The knob makes it easy to adjust the resistance level. If you’re new to bike workouts, start at the lowest and move up. The compact design of the 400XL means you can re-position the bike anywhere in your home.

The compact size should not fool you however, as the 400XL is very stable and won’’t shake or rattle even if you pedal very quickly. Once you’re done for the day you can fold the 400XL so it won’t get in your way. The reliable performance is complemented by the quietness of its operation and its reliability.

Pros

Cons

The Exerpeutic 400XL is as good as advertised when it comes to working you out. It is compact, solidly built, easy to operate and versatile. This is a feature packed exercise bike but doesn’t compromise when it comes to ease of use.

If you really want to exercise without the hassles of going to the gym and the pain of busting your knee, you need to think about getting one of the best upright exercise bikes in your home

Sayings such as “no pain, no gain” aren’t exactly very accurate in the literal sense, but they do make some sense. They certainly seem to apply to the best upright exercise bikes, which offer a more consistent workout that involves basically your whole body. You use the same muscles as you would when you ride a real bike outdoors, except you enjoy all the comforts of home. These bikes even occupy a smaller footprint as their recumbent counterparts.

7 Best Upright Bikes Recommended for 2019

You can enjoy many benefits from using a great upright exercise bike, though you should take care to make sure you get a good one. To help with that, we’ve compiled a list of terrific options for you to consider so that you can do cardio and work out your entire body without having to go outdoors

Exerpeutic Folding Magnetic Upright Bike with Pulse

You have to admit, upright bikes aren’t always compatible with most interior home designs. They can make even the homiest living rooms and bedrooms look like gyms. But often they’re not easy to store away, since they can take up a lot of space. This particular upright bike minimizes this problem by being fold able so that it takes up only have the space it usually does.

Now a fold able upright bike may give you a few qualms about its sturdiness, which is one of the most crucial factors in picking an upright bike. But this is certainly a tough model, as it can handle up to 300 pounds in weight. Unlike regular bikes, this one also has a bigger seat cushion, and the seat height can be adjusted for user heights ranging from 5’3” to 6’1”.

This model has the usual features you’d expect in any good upright exercise bike. There’s an easy to read LCD display, where you can find metrics like your time, speed, distance covered, and calories burned. You can also see your heart rate, which you get through the hand pulse sensors. It’s powered by AAA batteries, and it can take a long while before you need to replace them with new batteries.

This offers up to 8 resistance levels, and you only need to turn a knob to set the level you want. Its cranking system works very smoothly, and it won’t make any noise while you huff and puff.

Assembling this unit is actually much easier than it may seem. You have the main frame, and then you just need to attach the various parts to it. You’ll just want to make sure that you really tighten the bolts and the screws when you put it together. That will keep the bike from making too much noise when you pedal as you use it.

Marcy Recumbent Exercise Bike with Resistance ME-709

The Marcy brand has been around for half a century, and they’ve really learned how to make exceptional exercise equipment. This ME-709 machine is a prime example, as it is extremely popular.
It’s a great option for you if you’re recuperating from an injury or you’re getting on in years, as this is a recumbent and not an upright bike. That makes it a gentler option for you. You still get the different magnetic levels of resistance plus the LCD computer screen that displays the important metrics including the amount of calories you’ve burned.
It’s very comfortable to use, and you can spare your lower back some pain as you can just lean back as you use this. For more details on what benefits it offers, here’s a link to a more in-depth review

Exerpeutic 400XL Folding Recumbent Bike

This is another recumbent bike, though it’s only a semi-recumbent and it provides more of a challenge like an upright does. It also offers a few benefits that you would get from an upright bike. This thing folds, so that it only occupies half the space it normally does. This makes it easier to store away. It may also not take up as much room even when laid out for use.
While it may seem smaller, it is tough and stable. In fact, it’s designed to hold up to 300 pounds of your weight. It’s very comfortable with its large cushioned seat and back rest, and it can also be adjusted to suit a height ranging from 5’2” to 6’2”. It comes with 8 magnetic tension levels, a quiet cranking system, a huge LCD display where the metrics are displayed, and hand pulse sensors so you can monitor your heart rate.
To find out more details, here’s a more complete review of the 400XL.

FitDesk Desk Exercise Bike with Massage Bar

Do you ever feel like you could be doing something more productive than staring at your TV when you use your exercise bike? If you’re torn about doing your workout and doing your office work, this particular exercise bike lets you do both at the same time.
It has all the usual exercise bike accoutrements, but this time it has a desk where you can put in your laptop so you can work. It even has a drawer for some miscellaneous office stuff like pens, or for your earbuds and smartphone.
Of course, you may end up feeling tense when you work out and do your work at the same time, and that’s also factored in. There are massage bars here for your forearms that can relieve typing strain.
You can find out about the various features of the FitDesk here in our more detailed review.

Marcy Upright Exercise Bike with Resistance ME-708

Now this is one heck of an upright bike, and you get lots of great features without having to suffer price tag shock. It’s extremely popular among many exercise bike buyers, and it’s easy to see when you take a closer look at it.
First of all, it’s very durable and stable. It’s made with 2-inch diameter 14-gauge steel tubing, with powder coating to make it look nice.
It’s also comfortable to use for the most part, though of course comfort isn’t a real priority when it comes to uprights. At least here you can adjust the seat to your height, while the counterbalanced pedals are ergonomic and they come with adjustable straps to keep your feet in place. The handlebars are also contoured to better fit your forearms, and they’re covered in foam so it’s more comfortable to grasp.
The workout is your priority with an upright bike, and you have 8 preset levels of resistance to use to simulate various road conditions. You just need to turn the dial right in front of you to adjust the setting difficulty you want.
You’ll know how you’re doing with the large LCD screen in front of you. It’s very readable as even the numbers are large. Here you get to monitor your time, speed, wand distance covered, along with the number of calories you’ve burned off so far.

Sunny Health and Fitness Indoor Cycling Bike

When first get to see this exercise bike, its gleaming appearance may lead you to think that it’s an expensive bit of machinery. But actually, it’s one of the more affordable models on this list.
This design is more for traditionalists who don’t think much of magnetic resistance. That’s because it uses a chain drive system along with a smooth felt brake pad to provide the level of resistance you need to get your heart rate going. You can get a finer adjustment of the resistance tension this way. To see how you’re doing, you have an LCD screen in front of you that lets you see metrics like your time and distance covered.
It also has a very heavy flywheel at 22 pounds, which offers stability and smooth movements even as you pedal furiously. The whole thing weighs 61 pounds, and it can manage a weight of up to 220 pounds.
It can be adjusted to fit most body types, and the seat is thankfully wider than the usual seat found on outdoor bikes. You can adjust the seat both horizontally and vertically. The paddle handlebars are also covered with rubber foam for a more comfortable grasp, while there’s a metal cage on the pedals to keep your feet in place. This setup is certainly more durable than with just a regular strap.
It doesn’t occupy as much space, as it’s only 32 inches long. You do have rubber pads at the bottom of the wide foundation, so you can pedal as hard as you can without worrying about falling over. It also doesn’t make as much noise as you may have thought.

Exerpeutic GOLD 500 XLS Foldable Upright Bike, 400 lbs.

Are you annoyed that quite a few upright bikes are designed for slimmer people? What about the really overweight and obese users who wish to do cardio and burn calories? In general these upright bikes are rated for weights ranging from 220 to 300 pounds, but this upright is pure gold. It can handle up to 400 pounds!
This is because Exerpeutic out in a lot more steel in its construction. In fact, it has 20% more steel compared to the Exerpeutic Magnetic Folding Upright Bike. It’s a beast of a machine, and you can adjust the seating to suit a height of up to 6’5”. Yet it can also handle a much shorter height as it can accommodate a height of only 5’1”. The seat is also large and cushioned, so those with ample bottoms can still feel comfy when using this.
This machine offers up to 8 different magnetic tension levels, and you can just turn the dial right on top of the handle to set it to the level you want. In front of you is also a huge LCD display screen, and you can monitor your distance, time, speed, and calories burned. The handle bars are also equipped with heart pulse sensors, so you can keep a proper eye on your heart rate.
This gives you am very smooth pedaling motion with its excellent cranking system. The pedals are also large so it can suit even large feet. These pedals also come with straps so that your feet stay in place as you pedal your way through your workout.
Moving it about isn’t hard, as it comes with transportation wheels. Just pretend it’s a wheelbarrow when you move it, and it only weighs 51 pounds. It also doesn’t take up a lot of space in your storage cabinet, as it’s foldable. When folded, it’s only 26 inches long.

FAQs

Why do so many exercise bikes use magnetic resistance?

Magnetic resistance offers several key benefits. It doesn’t require as much maintenance as other forms of resistance such as belts and friction pads. The magnetic force simply doesn’t wear down over time, unlike the belts. In addition, braking is smoother when you’re dealing with magnetic resistance, so it’s much quieter when you use the upright bike.

What’s the target heart rate you should aim for when you use the upright bike?

Experts recommend that you reach up to 55% to 85% of your maximum heart rate when you exercise, and this should be maintained for 20 to 30 minutes. Your maximum heart rate is generally 220 minus your age, so if you’re 40 years old then the MHR is 180. This means you need to keep your heart rate within 99 to 153 heartbeats per minute.

Why are upright exercise bikes so heavy?

They’re heavy because the weight makes it more stable as you pedal the bike. While the weight does make it more difficult to move the bike around a room, at least you reduce the chances of falling over as you pedal furiously

Why should people use an upright bike over rowers and elliptical machines?

Those other cardio workout tools have their uses, but you need some practice before you can learn to use them with the proper coordination. But with exercise bikes, you don’t need to practice at all. Everyone knows how to pedal the bike, and you don’t even have to worry about maintaining your balance like with a real bike

How many calories can people burn off when they use the upright bike?

That depends on how long you work out. On average, people can burn off more than 900 calories in an hour, and you can work out that long since an upright bike is more forgiving with your joints.
In comparison, when you run at 5 mph for an hour you can burn off about 700 calories. You can increase that to 1,100 calories burned off if you increase your pace to 7.5 mph, but then who can maintain that pace for an hour?

What muscles are worked over when using the upright bike?

Pedaling on an upright bike is more like a whole body workout, as it pretty much uses the same muscles as you would when you’re on a real bike outdoors. Unlike recumbent bikes, the uprights also work the abdominal muscles because you’re upright during the workout. You’re also using your shoulders, triceps, and biceps

How do you know when you’ve adjusted the seat correctly for your height?

It’s important that you make your seat adjustments properly before you even begin your exercise. If you don’t, then you will feel pain, although the kind of pain you go through will indicate where you made a mistake in your adjustments. If you’re feeling pain in your back when you use the upright bike, this usually means that you have too little knee bend. But too much knee bend can cause pain in the front of your knee.

Final Thoughts

Upright bikes are great, as you can use it anytime you like. It can be raining outside and it won’t matter. They offer more of a challenge than recumbent bikes, plus they don’t use up as much space in your room. In addition, they’re very easy to use and you don’t end up busting your knees with constant running. Use them for cardio and for weight loss, and save yourself from the expense and the bother of going to the gym.

The ME-709 is at the top of my list because it is versatile and offers a little bit of everything including adjustable handles, a monitor to keep track of your performance, variable resistance and a comfortable seat among others.

Another advantage of the ME-709 is that it has superior weight capacity compared to other that are in its range. What this means is it’s suitable for a wider range of people.

[Read more…] about Marcy Recumbent Exercise Bike with Resistance ME-709 ( Video Review )

Just about every health expert in the world is worried about the increasing rates of obesity everywhere, and it’s so serious that the problem is being considered as an epidemic. However, going to the gym can be tedious and expensive, while running can be hell for your knees. So it’s a good thing that you can simply pick among the best recumbent exercise bikes to help you work out and do cardio at home.

Using recumbent bikes offer plenty of benefits. These include a more comfortable way of exercising while you can do cardio vascular exercises and burn calories along the way.

[Read more…] about 7 Best Recumbent Exercise Bike in August 2019 -Top Models Reviewed