If you are wondering what is a recumbent bike, this post should explain if for you. Recumbent bikes, although not as popular as they used to be, are still around in a big way, even though they seem to be far more popular nowadays in the gyms than out on the roads.
Here is a little about the recumbent bicycle that you may or may not already know. The recumbent bike has been around since before the twentieth century, and there are plenty of old photographs around to prove this fact.
So What Is A Recumbent Bike?
A recumbent bike is a low bike that usually has a seat with a backrest that the rider can lean back on as he rides.
The recumbent bike is known in English as an armchair bike. All recumbent bikes are made so that the cyclists have support for their backs, even way back then.
Recumbents are available in a wide range of configurations nowadays, including long to short wheelbase, large, small, or a mix of wheel sizes, over the seat, under the seat, or no-hands steering, and rear wheel or front wheel drive. There are even recumbent bikes with three wheels – tricycles.
A recumbent bike is very air dynamic and one even holds the world speed record which is why the union banned them from races in 1934.
Nowadays we don’t see so many recumbent bikes anymore, except at gyms where they are a popular exercise choice. In fact, if we do see one on the roads, we most certainly slow down to get a better look at it.
Recumbent bikes are very comfortable to ride and the seat doesn’t chafe you between the legs the way in which a racing cycle would. Many people get hooked on these bikes once they try them because of the comfort and back support.
If you have any of the following conditions, the recumbent bike is definitely for you.
- Butt & crotch pain or numbness.
- Wrist & hand problems i.e. pain, nerve trauma, carpal tunnel syndrome.
- Neck, shoulder and back pain or pinched nerves.
- Male impotence and/or prostate enlargement (relatively rare).
Be very aware if riding your recumbent bicycle out in the traffic, though, as motorists battle to see you because you will be riding below their range of vision.
That was a little about what is a recumbent bike for you. For more of the history of a recumbent bike, you can click here.