The biggest misconception about e-bikes is that they make you lazy
Posted by KevinGerbil234@reddit | ebikes | View on Reddit | 99 comments
If anything, I ride more now because the effort barrier is gone. You still pedal you just remove the part that stops most people from riding in the first place.
slacknsurf420@reddit
let's see I got my new bike the 13th of March
it's the 4th of April
it has nearly 300 miles
Shilvahfang@reddit
Distance alone doesn't tell us anything though.
slacknsurf420@reddit
Shilvahfang@reddit
Saying you rode 300 miles on an ebike can mean very different things depending on how much assist you use. If you have a throttled bike, you could potentially use 100% motor. Or you could use no motor power. Or anywhere in between.
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
Shilvahfang@reddit
Lol you ebike people are so funny. Whine about how others see you, then act exactly how they see you.
slacknsurf420@reddit
frankly the more the merrier
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
nurdturgalor@reddit
How many miles did you actuslly pedal though? Probably zero
slacknsurf420@reddit
the entire way
WerewolfSmart6544@reddit
Lies
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
BassesNBikes@reddit
Weird assumption.
trtsmb@reddit
Not sure why you're being downvoted. It is true. Some people only use the throttle and rarely actually pedal.
TehKudo@reddit
First elderly gentleman to talk to me standing next to my Ebike when I got it. "You know in my day we actually used our leg muscles and didn't cheat"!!
Me: "ok"
rollin_a_j@reddit
In his day soda still had cocaine in it
Light_Butterfly@reddit
Theres A LOT of old people making this comment... who undoubtedly drive everywhere, and probably don't even exercise.
A friend of mine suggested her Mom get an ebike, and she said no thats lazy/cheating. She had to point it out to her that she never actually uses her manual bike. So theres a lot of hypocrisy with people like this.
drewfromthefuture@reddit
Cognitive dissonance https://share.google/ig1vAj0lMUx1DlNZl
greybeard1363@reddit
I took my ebike for a short ride yesterday afternoon while the weather was favorable. If I hadn't ridden, I would have been sitting at my computer doomscrolling reddit. I believe that I made the correct choice. Sitting on the computer would have been the "cheat".
BoringBob84@reddit
I wouldn't say that an ebike makes a person lazy, but I would say that about a throttle - especially on a machine that makes pedaling impractical.
terraherts@reddit
That seems an odd take for someone who claims to be pro-micromobility.
My bike isn't for recreation or fitness, it's to get me from point A to point B.
BoringBob84@reddit
The problem here is that the Class 2 category is increasingly abused by people with "de-restricted" ebikes with ornamental pedals who ride carelessly on non-motorized paths.
Conflicts, collisions, and injuries are increasing. Public outrage is demanding more restrictions on all micro-mobility vehicles. This is bad for micro-mobility overall. I want everyone to feel safe on the non-motorized paths, so that they will use them and so that they will advocate politically to build more of them.
terraherts@reddit
That's your opinion. My own experience is that I've seen more non-ebikes being reckless on MUPs/bike paths than any ebike, usually because there's an instinct to try and preserve momentum.
As you've been informed multiple times, the vast majority of the increase is to ebike riders - usually by being hit by cars.
You're playing directly into the misleading narrative being spun by anti-cycling politicians and industries.
BoringBob84@reddit
There is research on this, such as 751 ebike injuries in 2017 and 23,493 in 2022.
https://www.ucsf.edu/news/2024/07/428096/electric-scooter-and-bike-accidents-are-soaring-across-us
The general public doesn't make the distinction. Then, we all get new restrictions.
That is your opinion.
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
OhEmGeeRachael@reddit
Yes! My husband loves to bike and has always been frustrated that I didn't want to join him on rides because I honestly hate riding up hills. I'm not as fit as he is but finally getting an ebike has me outside and moving my body and actually enjoying a bike ride for the first time. Even if I am getting assistance, I'm doing better and am able to share something with him that he enjoys which I normally would not.
BadluckyKamy@reddit
Got mine because it was either a clapped out 4000$ car or a pretty nice ebike, really love my choice and Riding nearly every day the temperature is over 0⁰c
Nachoughue@reddit
exactly, i got an ebike specifically because pedaling up hills sucks and that stopped me from biking as much as i wanted to. typically, i stay on the lowest level of pedal assist or sometimes no pedal assist and even riding 30mi a day my battery never goes under 85. i thought i might as well invest in a bike with a throttle but i never even use it unless i need to get away from something really quickly. ive only used it once.
i dont care who says its cheating, whatever gets you out and moving is a good thing.
drewfromthefuture@reddit
It's not cheating. Are we racing them or something?? What are we supposedly cheating on exactly? The cognitive dissonance is seriously real with these people.
Nachoughue@reddit
exactly. people will say anything you dont do in the hardest possible way is cheating or taking shortcuts. sorry i like making things easier for myself? like life isnt a video game i need to grind on.
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
jacktheshopcat@reddit
My garmin hrm and powermeter confirm this
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
My h10 and assiomas also confirm this. Riding at 75w and 100bpm is me exerting more from myself than riding on an analog bike. Smh.
PinnuTV@reddit
Well I can do very good workout getting average 155-200w average while weighting 56kg. Using only around 22-100w. Like riding normal bike only my bike weights 27kg and base bike is older tour/hybrid. So if I use around 50-100w it should be really close to those expensive road bikes.
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
What? If you're "using" around 22-100w that means that's the power that you're outputting to the pedals?
PinnuTV@reddit
Nah 200w legs power + 22-100w motor power to close match those expensive aero TT / Road bikes. Now I don't really know how close it is as I have never owned any road or TT bikes. With 22-100 motor power I may be even slower on hills as 27kg vs 6-8kg light aero bike makes a big difference on hills
mmeiser@reddit
Keep meaning to post this. Did an overnighter with 267 miles and 27,000 vertical feet. Burned about 13,500 calories. It took four bosch 500 batteries with charging overnight. Recorded on two garmin with garmin power meter pedals. Recorded because my friend said "you can't burn more then 6000 calories on a ride, especially not on an ebike.". LOL.
inline-online@reddit
your pedals don't know you're on an ebike, it thinks you're pushing those watts with your legs
I can't believe this got upvoted
Light_Butterfly@reddit
To anyone who says this: driving a car is lazy and bad for the environment
Cuz you can bet, 90% of people who call ebikes lazy are driving to work and to do all their errands.
Frosty-Hornet-7058@reddit
...and they drive around looking for a parking spot close to the entrance.
Frosty-Hornet-7058@reddit
Honestly, why should I care what people think. I ride for me, not for them.
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
You're exerting less effort, I would say that's called laziness.
BabalonBimbo@reddit
Some people with limited mobility are exerting more effort on an e-bike than they would otherwise be able to. Is my 80 year old father “lazy” because his arthritis makes riding an analog bike more difficult?
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
No one has anything bad to say to people who couldn't ride otherwise.
But influx of children riding ebikes and young adults is concerning.
I ride a bike so I hopefully won't have to use e-bike/be immobilised in the future.
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
drewfromthefuture@reddit
As much as this feels like absolute rage bait, I'll bite.
You and anyone else are just plain ignorant if you seriously think this way. I get just as good a workout on my E-bike as my analog bike, I just go faster and further. I get more turns in which has helped me progress my skills quicker. I guarantee if I showed you two heart rate charts from Strava, one from riding each bike, you would not be able to tell the difference.
Being a tool for older and less mobile people to get into riding is only one use for these fantastic machines. They are also excellent recovery tools, which is what I mainly use mine for now. I ride it on off days or weeks after busting my ass on my analog bike for a while. Mine got me back into riding seriously and helped me get over the initial fitness hump this hobby requires so I'll sing its praises all day and night! See, it doesn't have to be one or the other, E-bike or analog. Both have their place and you're only cheating yourself if you're not utilizing one.
That being said, there's a high cost of entry and more maintenance so I can see that being a reason for not wanting one, not because it's going to cause you to become immobile or something. That would happen anyway, regardless of having an E-bike as you probably wouldn't have the self control and motivation to continue pushing yourself to achieve more.
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
Just as good? Show the charts then. Even on the lowest assist, climbing feels like a breeze on an e-bike, when on analog one you have to output 220W+ just to not fall from the bike.
BassesNBikes@reddit
https://news.byu.edu/intellect/e-bikes-provide-intense-exercise-but-it-doesnt-feel-like-a-workout
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6711045/
kmichael500@reddit
If someone puts in the same amount of effort as they would on an analog bike, they are getting a similar workout. The amount of distance covered isn’t comparable but the amount of time spent working out is
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
So you're riding without assists or on the lowest?
greybeard1363@reddit
On my first ride, I used the assist a lot (I also did not know how to use the shifter correctly to get in the correct gear). Since then, I have learned the optimum way to shift and regularly ride at a much lower of PAS. My legs have gotten stronger. I still get about the same level of exercise. My rides are steadily getting longer and I still feel the previous day's workout the next day. I'm in competition with no one. For me, my ebikes have been a tool to keep healthier in body and mental attitude. I feel sorry for anyone who feels the need to bad mouth ebikes relative to analog. My wife prefers walking to biking. With your logic, she would be correct in having an opinion that using an analog bike is cheating and that you should be walking.
kmichael500@reddit
This works with the highest assist setting as well. The motor cuts off at a certain speed (either 20 or 28) and going any faster is up to you
I ride mine on different assist levels, depending on what I’m doing (mostly transportation, so I don’t want to get a major workout every time. Sometimes I will ride with the assist off…which is much harder than my acoustic
drewfromthefuture@reddit
You can just go faster by using the same amount of effort than you would on a normal bike! I don't understand what you don't get about that. You don't have to be lazy because it's an E-bike, you can still push! Anyway, I'm not one to shy away from a teaching opportunity so here's a couple charts as promised, one with the E-MTB on MAX ASSIST and one on an analog MTB. I know you'll make up some excuse to not believe it but whatever.
heart rate charts
Tell me which one is which and tell me why you think that and I'll reply with links to the actual workouts so you can see for yourself. Keep in mind I have a max hr of about 164 because I take beta blockers so these are both pretty solid workouts for me.
kmarkymark@reddit
Age is coming for all of us. The only certainties in life are change and disability.
kurisu7885@reddit
People also use them as a replacement for a car, so transportation.
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
BassesNBikes@reddit
You like the suck of hills, and that's great for you. Go off.
I don't and that's great for me. Rather ride farther and more often with a consistent level of effort. Didn't build or ride it with fitness in mind, but using it to commute to work, replace short car trips, and hit the rail trails on the weekend has had very noticeable benefits.
Excellent-Stretch-81@reddit
Not necessarily. With regular riding, you need to have enough energy to get back. With electric assist, you can conceivably ride to exhaustion and still be able to make it back.
hodlethestonks@reddit
from my experience my endurance and stamina has weakened after buying an ebike. It's good for fat people but not for people already somewhat in shape. It also increased my milage and frequency but I drove already 20 km unassisted at minimum daily.
Now with my regular bike what felt like a breeze before is a strain now. The high intensity cycling (hills) are what develops your body. Low intensity e biking adds only to energy consumption.
From wider perspective it most likely is net positive.
PinnuTV@reddit
That's why I barely use assist and do most pedal myself, especially uphills
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
Or you can learn pacing and be exhausted at the end (your living place/whatever).
inline-online@reddit
shut up lol
VeryAverageAchiever@reddit
My most recent ride. 258w average power is far from lazy :)
Chossaneer3696@reddit
Not sure those stats are the flex you think they are
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
VeryAverageAchiever@reddit
Not flexing, just showing that I'm not lazy and cruising around at 100w. I put in the same efforts on my ebike as I did on my previous road bike.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
those wattage numbers look really high for the average speed and elevation ridden.
is this total watts or just rider input.
And what's your weight, tyres and weight for the bike?
VeryAverageAchiever@reddit
It's rider input. I'm 110kg and was battling a headwind the whole way home on that loop while staying on the hoods so not a fast ride by any stretch. 28c GP 4 Seasons and 15kg bike.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
numbers check put at your weight and with a headwind
PreferenceAny3920@reddit
Bermnerfs@reddit
I just completed my mid-drive build a week ago and I already have 41 miles on it from getting out and riding after work on days where the weather is decent. 95% of those miles are in eco mode with lots of climbing.
If I didn't do this conversion, I probably would have only rode maybe 5-10 miles because I would have to take my bike somewhere to ride instead of just hopping on and taking off from home. There's no way I would have been able to tackle the hills near my house without being completely gassed out within the first mile of riding.
Sure, analog bikes provide a more intense workout, but e-bikes let you ride longer and more consistently which is much more beneficial to people who need exercise. It makes bicycling accessible to people who wouldn't have had this opportunity without this tech.
Fluid-Wrongdoer6120@reddit
To add to that, I can also maintain a higher average speed. I don't feel comfortable biking on the road, and the best rail trails near me are about 45 min to an hour plus away. I can see more trail in the same amount of time, and it makes the travel to get there more worthwhile.
I think the longest ride I ever did before getting an e-bike was about 25 miles. Now, doing 25 is a very run of the mill occurrence. I've hit as long as 42. Never would have done that without an e-bike, so I'm honestly getting more exercise on a bike than ever before
kqvrp@reddit
Even if they did make you lazy, even if you throttle 100% rather than pedal, who actually cares? This sentiment just feels like gatekeeping by angry old cyclists who think they're better than other people because their hobby requires more effort.
Besides, even if you somehow think laziness is bad, who is more lazy - the e-biker or the guy who watches sports on his couch all weekend?
BusinessCasualBee@reddit
Yeah I see 500 e-bike kids a day and I’ve never seen them pedal a single revolution
Syed117@reddit
I didn’t buy an e bike for exercise. I bought it because it’s fun.
Light_Butterfly@reddit
SAME HERE!!!! And good for mental health, and accessibility where a person might otherwise have barriers.
Illustrious-Bat-8648@reddit
I get enough exercise at work as a Lot Associate, why would I want to pedal home up a hill? Or take a bus that is highly inefficient and wastes my time.
WerewolfSmart6544@reddit
Imagine how much more fit you’d be on a real bike
greybeard1363@reddit
I wouldn't be more fit on an analog bike. I use my ebikes. My analog bikes have been hanging in the rafters of the shed for literal decades. Without the ebike, I would be less fit. My leg strength has returned and so has my balance.
WerewolfSmart6544@reddit
Imagine needing help to ride a bike
Adept_Spirit1753@reddit
People think that their pondering at 75w is exactly the same as riding analog bike.
macklow@reddit
For real last year my uncle literally called me lazy for riding an e bike to work, so I can take my cars off the insurance and save on gas and pay down debt. Then he proceeded to assault me because it worth that much to him to believe that electric is bad
Fluid_Complaint_1821@reddit
So many variables, ones bike use is purely subjective. If someone wants an e bike for mainly exercise that's entirely possible, if someone wants a bike to be able to rip around town with little to no effort also entirely possible, and there are infinite amount of bike uses in between.
LucidFir@reddit
tldr: ebike good, make people fit
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S259019821930017X
bassvel@reddit
Nope if you not only commuting. I'm on mine e-bike DH and touring (over 100km) - it's hard and not even close 'lazy'
StillPurple8683@reddit
Not that I considered myself to be lazy before I got an e-bike, but after getting my Velotric Discover e-bike I cycled more often and for longer distances. I no longer worried what the wind speed was or made excuses for not riding. Cycling was so much fun that I wanted to ride! Pedaling for 2 hours is definitely not lazy and I can get a good cardio workout.
Active_Scallion_5322@reddit
Whatever you need to tell yourself bud
Schemeckles@reddit
Who cares what other people think...
Square_Painterr@reddit
Bro fr just ride and enjoy it who cares what peeps think, live your life
mumwifealcoholic@reddit
100%.
My legs are very sore today, we went out cycling as a family and did about 25 miles, I only use the motor for hills now a days.
SousVideDeezNuts@reddit
Laziness has created some of the greatest technological advances in human history.
libbuge@reddit
Me too. The anti-ebikers don't concern me. I use my e-bike as a car replacement, it isn't my primary mode of exercise.
kurisu7885@reddit
I went 31 miles in one ride, I was never really able to do that before.
Prestigious_View_401@reddit
That’s not the biggest misconception in this sub. lol
SilentIyAwake@reddit
I ride it like a normal bike unless I am in a headwind, or going up a hill.
In fact, riding this e-bike has made my legs much stronger, or at least be able to pedal unassisted much easier.
I'd say it's roughly a a 50/49 split between manual pedaling and pedal assist. 1% is throttle only when I am very tired, or want to get somewhere fast(which is rare because in those instances I'll drive my car)
warky33@reddit
No, you are already lazy /j
Zealousideal_Bad8537@reddit
To make my daily rides, I really have to manage the battery, trust me effort still there :)
Highlandermichel@reddit
Another bot post. Don't upvote or answer.