It’s the new year and you know what that means: We all enjoyed those holiday cookies, cheese plates and an extra glass of wine (or two or three, let’s be real). But now it’s time to blast those extra pounds we packed on and start working on that sexy summer bod! If you’re like me, hopping on the treadmill is pretty much your last choice. A stationary bike is much more my speed (pun intended) and the good news is you can get a killer stationary bike workout if you know how to put it together!
Before getting started on your exercise routine, it’s important to assess the elements of your life that might need to be tweaked or changed a bit to maximize your weight loss results. While exercise is a huge part of weight loss, it’s not the only part. Assess your calorie intake and portion sizes, as well as making sure you’re getting the right amount of sleep every night. Try to keep your stress levels down at work and at home and make sure you keep negativity out of your life as much as possible.
20 Minute Stationary Bike Workout
It can be really difficult to find time in our crazy busy schedules to exercise. When you do find the time, it’s important to make sure you are maximizing your workout, not just phoning it in at the gym. This 20-minute stationary bike workout will blast your fat and leave you feeling energized.
Interval workouts are really popular right now because they blast fat quickly and allow you to take short breaks in between, allowing you to get your heart rate to spike and calm back down. Getting your heart-rate up is the key to weight loss during this workout.
Exertion Levels
This workout is based on four different exertion levels. While it’s important to push yourself to see real results when working out, make sure you do what you can handle. This guide will help you know how to set your bike and the goals you should aim for as you workout.
Easy: Basically just biking down a smooth, flat road at a steady pace. Could you do this pace for hours? If so, then you’re at “easy.”
Moderate: You’ll feel your heart rate start to rise a bit, but you don’t get tired quickly. Consider increasing your resistance a bit, just enough to give you a little challenge and to elevate your breathing.
Hard: Now we’re talking! You’re starting to feel the burn in your legs and your breathing is fast. Be sure to up that resistance a few levels so you really feel it in your calves and thighs.
Give It Your All: This is for those fast bursts where you literally pedal like your life depended on it! It’ll be tough but it won’t last long. You can do it!
The Workout
Essentially, you want to rotate between the different intensity levels. Start with a nice 5-minute warmup on easy so you can loosen your limbs a bit and warm up your muscles before kicking up the intensity.
Next, move to hard and then moderate for 30 seconds. Do this four times, rotating between the two. Give yourself a minute break on easy, and then continue. Do this pattern until you’ve reached 18 minutes. Give yourself 2 minutes to cool down on easy before finishing your workout.
If you feel like you can handle more, repeat the work-out or thrown in 30 or 45-second blasts of the “give it your all” level. The best thing about this work-out is you get to make it what you want and what works best for you. Just make sure you truly push yourself!
If you’re looking for other 20-minute workouts, check this out!
We recommend giving yourself a nice 5-10 minute cool-down after you finish the 20-minute stationary bike workout, just to really bring your heart-rate down and allow your muscles to recover a bit. It’s also extremely important to stretch your muscles to avoid being sore the next day.
Happy biking!