Many traditional cyclists are critical about the growing popularity of e-bikes, but in a new study, researchers found e-bikes can provide essentially the same level of workout as conventional bikes.
The research was conducted by three BYU public health professors.
The team recruited 33 amateur cyclists for the study, fitted them with Polar H10 heart rate monitors and Apple Watches (using the fitness tracking app Starva), and then set them out on a 6-mile loop on either a conventional or electric mountain bike.
The study loop included approximately 700 feet of elevation gain spread throughout the ride, with the most intense climbing section averaging a 5 percent incline over a 1-mile stretch.
After finishing the loop, the bikers then rode the loop again on the bike they didn’t use the first time.
The people completed the course an average of 12:40 minutes faster using the e-mountain bikes, with an average speed of 4.1 mph faster than the conventional bikes.
While the average heart rate for e-bikes was about 10 beats per minute lower (145 for the e-bikes vs. 155 for the conventional bikes), both of those measures reach the threshold of the vigorous-intensity zone.
The team found users reached the upper-half of the vigorous-intensity zone for target heart rate on both the e-mountain bikes and the conventional mountain bikes.
And, perhaps more surprising (and promising), the study revealed that participants didn’t feel riding the e-bikes was physically taxing, even though they were exercising at nearly the exact same physical intensity.
According to recorded heart-rate data, the average heart rate on an e-mountain bike was 94% of the average heart rate for a conventional mountain bike.
This study could be a critical catalyst for populations who struggle to exercise. The participants got heart benefits but didn’t really feel like they were working out.
It may make this important form of exercise accessible to a broader community.
The new study also supports previous research by the trio that found e-bikes (not e-mountain bikes) are capable of providing much of the cardiovascular health benefits that conventional bikes provide.
The lead authors of the study are Cougar Hall, Josh West, and Ben Crookston.
The study is published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research.
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