Physical activity of electric bicycle users compared to conventional bicycle users and non-cyclists: Insights based on health and transport data from an online survey in seven European cities
Posted by LucidFir@reddit | ebikes | View on Reddit | 56 comments
tldr: net benefit to average health from ebikes
RockHead-MA@reddit
If you bothered to actually read or even scan through the study, one of the key takeaways is that ebikers' average daily mileage is higher than that of acoustic bikers. i.e., they are more useful as a substitute for a car or public transit. And as a result, ebikers do in fact get a bit more exercise.
Personally, I turn 61 in a week. I had a heart attack at 49. I stopped riding my road bike after that because blowing up to Zone 5 on hills scared the crap out of me. In the fall, I got a 350W ebike and started commuting, riding about 11 miles, 45-55 miles/week. And staying in Zones 2 & 3. I'll be bumping that up to about 100 mi/week soon, cutting out two weekly train segments.
If I hadn't bought an ebike, I'd still be in my car. If I'm cheating anything, I'm cheating a premature death.
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
"Bothered" who are you talking to and what do you think they said?
RockHead-MA@reddit
Not truly responding to you u/lucidfir. I'm talking to the responses and those with the attitudes that ebikes are "cheating", or have no fitness benefit.*
That is a consistently disproven, worn out, tiresome trope.
What this study says is that going from a manual bike to an ebike mildly reduces your fitness benefit (not surprising), but again validates that those adopting ebikes as car replacements or mass transit substitutes see fitness improvements. And that from a population net health benefit point of view, ebike adoption should be encouraged & even subsidized, and so should building good cycling infrastructure.
**I don't begrudge low income folks throttling around cities on cheap, low-powered USA Class 2 micromobility scooters or bike shaped objects for their personal transportation needs.
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
Just FYI, the way Reddit is structured makes top level comments appear to be responding to the post, and comments below comments appear to be responding to the comment above them.
Therefore if you wish to comment something about all the comments, make a top level post that starts "My opinion on the other comments in this post is that:"
DisastrousAnswer9920@reddit
Ebikes also have the benefits of removing cars from the road. I always try to pedal even if on 3-4 out of 5, I rarely use throttle only. The point is to drive less if you're able to.
andrewthesailor@reddit
Ebikes in EU by definition cannot have throttle. Or have engine supporting rider over 25kph.
DisastrousAnswer9920@reddit
Yes, I know that, but I gotta say, I do like throttle. I often use it as a boost to pedaling on hills and starts.
SquirtinMemeMouthPlz@reddit
This is exactly how I get to work (12 miles each way). When I get to work, I feel like I got a decent work out done without being too exhausted to excel at work.
I actually get to work feeling more awake and lively. It absolutely wouldn't be that way if I used my regular bicycle. I'd be totally gassed.
thephotoman@reddit
Throttle is for getting started from dead stops and the last 500 feet home as I get myself down to storage gear.
Total-Sector-6825@reddit
E bikes often give a false sense of exercise that “better than nothing” attitude… a beach cruiser for 20 minutes is better than an E bike for many… besides the fact of excuses and cheating with power pretending they are being physical… all around, e bikes will be the death of old people that are told to go out and get some exercise and they get an e bike with the lie of it helping them be active!
Dook23@reddit
Get out of here with this cheating nonsense. You have no idea.
Fit_Buyer6760@reddit
Nah they have a point. Ebikes are a very efficient form of transportation, but do not promote good exercise habits. The motor makes it too easy to cheat. There are definitely people that can get exercise on an ebike, but it always seems to be people who were already doing it on an acoustic bike.
Jesters__Dead@reddit
That's actually a common misconception, easily made by those with a low IQ
People who ride ebikes ride them for longer, and more often, than they would on a 'normal' bike
Studies have shown it's an excellent aerobic activity
Calling it cheating, you're exposing your own ignorance
Lol
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
Why do you keep saying acoustic
mumwifealcoholic@reddit
You also don't have a clue.
an ebike gave me freedom from the car, and I've lost almost 3o kilos, and my left knee is working again!
The best thing for my health in a decade. No way would I have had the confidence to get on a normal bike..But now I do, we recently went to some MTB trails and I did it on a normal bike..thought no way would i get uphill without a motor...but I did!
Ebike has given me a new lease on life.
Thequiet01@reddit
This is contrary to what the actual studies have found. Overall e-bike use tends to be associated with an increase in general activity levels because people just go out and do more.
Dook23@reddit
I just dont like this idea of calling it "cheating." There are plenty of people also who ride for leisure, commuting, etc rather than just exercise. His idea that an older person (of which I fall in that category) pedaling an ebike rather than sitting at home watching tv will be the death of us too is a bit extreme.
mumwifealcoholic@reddit
You don't have a clue mate.
Mazdapivot@reddit
"E-bikers had significantly higher BMI than cyclists"
They calling us fat
UltimateGammer@reddit
You're just big batteried
Maleficent-Map6465@reddit
In their defense, I am fat
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
Think in Spanish. "I have fat".
GMN123@reddit
Fat has me
JanterFixx@reddit
we are fat, so say we all
SeattleSombrero@reddit
That sounds like, “ In Russia fat has you.”
Worried_Document8668@reddit
e-bike get a lot of people riding that wouldn't be riding at all. of course the average will a bit heavier
Mazdapivot@reddit
That makes sense for what I posted, but the article also said ebikers had higher bmi than the average person.
Thequiet01@reddit
Yes? They’re people who feel there’s some benefit to an ebike that makes it worth the extra cost - like perhaps they have poor fitness levels and want to be able to get out and about and do things while working on improving their fitness.
Kitchenwitch_@reddit
Makes sense as i am both fatter and fitter than most of my peers. Skinny doesn't mean a thing if youre not moving your body
PonticPilot@reddit
Curious what the BMIs trends are for before and after starting each. If it’s a down trend, I see that as a win
ebodes@reddit
Now do cars
Worried_Document8668@reddit
of course time on a pedelec beats time in a car when it comes to health.
the fact that this is limited to cities is a bit of a crux about it.
of course an e-bike will enable longer commutes in a city, leading to people spending more time riding and doing more for their health than they would on a bio-bike and shorter trips.
i would love to see a similar breakdown of how e-bikes change the fitness in recreational riding outside the cityscape
smoothloam@reddit
I can only give my own experience.
As a daily mountain biker my usual lap is 2,000 ft elevation gain and about 9 miles. I’ve tried a friends eMTB a few times on the same trail and even on the lowest setting I would be able to easily ride that same lap five times and still be less tired than on my mountain bike.
In just my experience, e-bikes are useful and better than nothing, but compared to a bicycle you’re getting very little exercise.
Note that I’m talking about overall exercise and tiredness, not just cardio, which e-bike companies like to use as a false equivalent. I can speed walk and get the same cardio.
Ranccor@reddit
Well…you just had the assist up too much. An e-bike can work you out more or less than a standard bike, just pick the right setting. Too easy, turn down the assist. Too hard, turn it up. For maximum workout, turn the assist off and I promise riding a 65 lbs bike up the mountain will get you a hell of a workout.
smoothloam@reddit
“On the lowest setting”… and if you turn off the motor you’re essentially on a bicycle, not an ebike.
Ranccor@reddit
Yeah, I said that in my post. It is just a 65 lbs bike to get up the mountain. Complaining that you didn’t get a good workout is silly because you just cranked it up so you wouldn’t have to work out. That was your choice, not the e-bike.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
but by the point you turn the assist completely off most e-bikes feel bad compared to a quality bio-bike. Unless we are talking light assist systems, you get a good deal extra resistance than a regular BB and the bikes are heavier in general.
You can go completely off on the motor on a heavy bike if you want to up the workput, but it wouldn't exactly be a good ride compared to the non-electric counterpart.
Ranccor@reddit
True, but I’m betting the person I responded to had the settings cranked up. It isn’t like a level 1 bike on the lowest assist setting is zero peddling to go up a 2000 ft climb. An e-bike can be a good workout or practically no workout. User choice.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
not quite. as soon as assist comes into play, even really low level like eco+ on a bosch system, can take so much edge off a climb that it can get into breezy territory depending on the rider's fitness. There are situations where there's nowhere to go other than turning the assist off completely, if you still want any meaningful workout.
personal example: most of the time when riding reasonably flat routes on my e-gravel, i ride a modified version of eco+ that's slightly reduced in assist and only kicks in at slightly higher torque. This way it doesn't kick in on every acceleration or slight incline. Otherwise i wouldn't get any HR going unless i were to really push the pace
smoothloam@reddit
Dude, no. I posted about it being on the lowest setting, the least amount of assist. What don’t you understand about that?
You can get a great workout in a car too if you push it instead of drive it. It’s not the fault of the car, it’s the fault of the driver for driving it instead of pushing it. Get real.
Ranccor@reddit
Cool. Don’t believe you.
smoothloam@reddit
That’s okay, that’s fine.
Is it a safe assumption you’ve never climbed a couple thousand feet on a steep, punchy mountain bike trail on a mountain bike, then the same trail on an eBike?
smoothloam@reddit
lol, so what you’re saying is you can get a good workout from an e-bike, you just have to remove the motor….
Worried_Document8668@reddit
yeah, that's my experience as well.
my e-gravel is awesome as a tool for doing really long scenic tours and going constant, smooth zone 2 for the most part. Also makes it great for my work commute and running errands.
But my average burnrate certainly stays a good bit below of what i get with muscle-powered xc and enduro riding
i totally get e-mtbs for a day at the bikepark where you want the most downhill runs. But i'm a bit of masochist and try to embrace the climb
mumwifealcoholic@reddit
I live in a rural area. I use my bike everyday for school run, shopping, local leisure centre, going to the the park...sometimes I ride all the way to our nearest city, about an hour..
We aren't sure yet if we want to replace our car when it goes as it sits a lot now.
KaiserSozes-brother@reddit
I always cringe a little when we get posts like few days back about some 450lbs guy looking for e-bike suggestions… I want to think they are on a wellness journey and need advice.
But quietly I think, the suggestion is pedal you fat fucker.
Thequiet01@reddit
Because there can’t possibly be anything limiting how well someone can exercise. How dare someone want to be able to get out and be more active without being able to meet your personal standards of fitness first? 🙄
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
That wasn't very quiet.
Why don't you quietly tell us what you think about immigrants and LGBT?
willmasse@reddit
My e-bike is PAS only and torque sensor. I find myself slamming on the pedals to provide more torque to get the boost from the motor. I think I’m working harder on my ebike 😝
SarcasticSeriously@reddit
Yeah, felt. I topically run on 2-3 PAS and high gear because I love the feeling of resistance…. and also going 30+ MPH while at it.
Seconds to that, my bike it is around 80 lbs so I can get a good enough workout to turn my legs to jelly if I’m wanting extreme physical exertion that night.
Then good news, just motor home after wearing myself out. Win win win.
getsu161@reddit
Thanks! This looks like a good article and I will take some time to finish reading it!
Slight_Nobody5343@reddit
one bad habit i need to work on is tuneing my ebikes for riding in the same way my non electric bikes are. its so easy to overlook proper seat and handle bar height. Of course overweight people lean towards ebikes thats the whole point. getting more people peddling regardless of fitness so we all get happier and fitter.
marigolds6@reddit
This seems shocking low.
That's the equivalent of running 8 minutes a day or walking 21 minutes a day. If you spent the time difference between car (30mph/48kph) and ebike (15mph/24kph) on walking, just a 7mi/11km weekday commute is enough to make car+recreational walking more time effective than ebike for MET min/week.
I'm assuming this is because the European sample group had relatively low amounts of car trips in the first place?
(This could also have something to do with the use of lottery incentives for surveys. Presumably this would lead to higher participation from people with lower utility value of time, so would be less likely to drive to minimize commute time in the first place and have less ability to afford travel by car.)
Worried_Document8668@reddit
could also be a ton of people riding their e-bikes in a way that doesn't really get them activity MET, because pf how much assist they use.
i see quite a lot of people wizzong around on super low cadence and having the motor probably do 90%+ of the work
LucidFir@reddit (OP)
Yeah I've been living in Canada the last 7 years and now I'm back in the UK, I'd say I get minimum +30 minutes of walking a day here because a car is often impractical.
Although correlation=/=causality, the start of the obesity epidemic seems to line up nicely with the privatisation of public transport.
Worried_Document8668@reddit
link doesn't work