Does Riding an Exercise Bike Get Rid of a Gut?

If you're thinking of doing an endless routine of situps to get rid of your gut, stop right now. While those situps can help you develop some muscle around your midsection, they're not the best use of your time if you're looking to trim down. Instead of getting on the floor for situps, try getting on a bicycle instead. You'll still have to put forth significant effort, but over time you'll start to see results.

  1. Spot Reduction

    • There's no such thing as spot reduction, meaning you can't reduce fat in a specific area on your body; instead, you have to work toward reducing overall body fat. To do that, you need to do exercise that gets your heart pumping and helps you burn the calories that lead to overall weight loss. Whatever exercise you choose to do, aim for at least 30 minutes a day, five days a week. If you have even more time, aim for 60 minutes, five or six days a week.

    Advantages

    • Using an exercise bike has a number of advantages. First, you won't have to worry about the weather stopping you from getting in your workout. Nor will you have to contend with traffic, road construction or other obstructions that road bikers have to deal with. You'll also be able to ride while you watch TV, read a magazine or talk on the phone, making it easier to integrate a workout into a busy schedule. On the down side, riding an exercise bike can be pretty boring, so you might want to consider mixing it up by jogging or walking or attending an exercise class once in a while.

    Time and Intensity

    • While the number of calories you burn will depend on your age, weight and level of fitness, the average 200-pound person will burn about 364 calories biking at a leisurely pace, advises MayoClinic.com. The longer you ride the bike, the more calories you'll burn. Increasing the tension of the pedals will also help you burn more calories, as will adding arm movements. In general, you'll know you're in the fat-burning zone when your heart is beating at 50 to 85 percent of its maximum rate. To calculate your maximum heart rate, subtract your age from 220. Then multiply that number by .5 and .85 to find the range in which your heart should be beating while you work out.

    Interval Training

    • Riding that stationary bike in one long, steady stretch is certainly going to help you burn calories, but you do have another option that might help you burn even more. According to the American Council on Exercise, high-intensity interval training, or HIIT, can help people burn abdominal fat and boost their metabolism for the entire day following the workout. To do HIIT on an exercise bike, do a short warmup by riding slowly for five minutes. Then cycle as fast as you can for about 30 seconds and slow down to a moderate pace for about 1 minute. Switch between fast and slow eight to 12 times, then perform a five-minute cool down.