Should You Buy a Recumbent Bicycle?
I owned a recumbent bicycle for awhile. About two years ago, I had my left knee replaced by an artificial one. Since doing that, for some reason, it’s been hard to ride a recumbent and so I eventually sold it. But, for some people, a recumbent can be a great purchase. Let’s examine the pros and cons of a recumbent bike.
Recumbent bikes are basically faster than regular bikes. They have been used to break many speed records held by the more normal traditional bicycles. In fact, recumbent bicycles were banned from international racing back in 1934 and they weren’t used much through out the rest of the 20th century.
Recumbent bikes are usually classified by the size of their wheelbase. There are long wheelbase (LWB), short wheelbase (SWB), and (CLWB) compact long wheelbase recumbent bikes.
The positioning of the pedals and the wheels are slightly different in each of the different sizes of bikes as compared to the seat. I watched several videos of different recumbents and the angle that the cyclist sits can be quite different. Sometimes, you are almost laying down as your ride.
The compact wheelbase recumbents (CLWB) have their pedals either just above the front wheel or very close to it. And short wheelbase recumbent bicycles (SWB) have their pedals in front of the front wheel.
Recumbent bikes have many advantages over upright or traditional bikes. Some of these advantages are:
1) Health
Recumbent bikes almost require a posture that reduces strain on the body. This makes them great for longer trips, and when a bike is comfortable for long periods of time we’re likely to bike farther, right?
Another advantage of correct posture is an improvement of lower body circulation. In a recumbent bike our legs are positioned at nearly the same height as our hearts, thus reducing blood pressure and making the heart’s job of circulating blood easier.
2) Stability
Recumbent bikes are much more stable for obvious reasons: recumbents are situated closer to the ground.
3) Variety
When choosing a recumbent bicycle, you have many more varieties to choose from than with traditional upright bikes. There are all kinds of variations and degrees of uprightness from which to choose.
There are some disadvantages as well. For one, you can’t change position on a recumbent bike. You can’t stand up as you can on a regular bike. And you’ll find that you are using a whole different set of muscles than you are used to. This may be the reason I had difficulty when I bought mine. They take some getting used to. Particularly on long rides. I probably didn’t give mine enough of a chance. Maybe when I get some money, I’ll try again.
Here is a video I found on YouTube I thought you might be interested in. It was filmed in Scotland in January, so it’s cold. But it gives you a good sense of what it’s like to ride a recumbent bike. Enjoy.