Excercise bike translates into real work biking?

[Zippoflames]

Hey guys,
I have tried a google search but I can't seem to word it correctly,
I have never ridden a bike in my life and I will be moving closer to work in the new year (35 miles down to 5 miles) and I would like to cycle in.
If I put some effort in on an exercise bike from now until I move would that help with training to ride that every day? Or does it not translate that way at all?

Cheers
Martin

[Blueobelisk]

Yeah, riding a stationary bike will help build your legs and endurance for regular bikes, but it's not going to help you balance correctly. So you still need to find a parent to teach you how to ride.

[Thelxi]

It should help get you in shape why not, but it won't help prepare you for 5 miles in the cold wind and rain every day.

[kidsafe]

If it's mostly flat, 5 miles is nothing and you should be comfortable riding that distance after 1 or 2 weeks. I don't see the point in buying a stationary bike or trainer...they aren't fun, especially if you are going hard and drenching yourself in sweat. A strong fan would help, but it's nothing like riding outdoors where the sweat is constantly wicking off.

Just get a real bike.

[Ripster42]

If it's mostly flat, 5 miles is nothing and you should be comfortable riding that distance after 1 or 2 weeks. I don't see the point in buying a stationary bike or trainer...they aren't fun, especially if you are going hard and drenching yourself in sweat. A strong fan would help, but it's nothing like riding outdoors where the sweat is constantly wicking off.

Just get a real bike.

Well, it means you can read/study/watch tv at the same time. I don't have a stationary but my dad does and he watches lectures from the great courses while riding. If I had the type of set up he does I'd probably do the same. Some types of stationary bikes also have fan blades built into the wheel, although I'm not sure those have managed to not get pulled from the market. Plus you can ride in inclement weather, less risk of injury, no flat tires, you're already home if you're on call... lots of reasons.

[kidsafe]

The fans on those old stationary bikes aren't for cooling, they're for resistance so you aren't just spinning your pedals at 120RPM without actually working out. Likewise if you are able to listen to lectures or watch TV while on a stationary bike, IMO you aren't working hard enough. When I'm at lactate threshold, I can only talk in short sentences, and while I do sometimes watch old content on Netflix, it's more just background noise to distract me from the suffering.

[McFuu]

5 miles on a bike is chump change really. Even a moderately in shape person could do it without breaking a sweat. I warm up for 5 minutes on the bike before I do legs, in those 5 minutes I usually go about 1.4-1.6 miles. And I am not the picture of fitness anymore.

Coming from a huge cycling background though, no a stationary is miles away from a real bike in feel and riding. It's more removed from actual riding than running from a treadmill.

If you want to get closer, get a set of rollers.

http://www.nashbar.com/webapp/wcs/st...5twaAqWN8P8HAQ

[kidsafe]

Suggesting rollers to a person who thinks they need to train to ride 5 miles is terrible advice. He shouldn't be using trainers or rollers...he should be riding a real bike because most people can comfortably ride 5 miles after a couple of weeks.

[Tripax]

I had a ~ten years break from regular cardio exercise, just gym 1-3 times a week, then I started cycling 6,5 miles to work.

The first day or two was pretty horrible, no surprises there, but it got better really fast. Now I've been doing it for couple years, all around the year. I had some occasional lack of motivation to hop on the bike for a long time, but now it feels really easy to ride the whole distance at "full speed".