<p>It is that time of the season again. Got to do something to reduce the impact of holiday food.</p>
<p>We have an old exercise bike which does not have any electronic readouts but does provide the resistance for the basic exercise. There is one problem - the seat is really uncomfortable.</p>
<p>It has a typical bike seat which has several pressure points upon riding for 10 minutes. Based on my research, I seem to have three options
A) buy another used exercise bike with recumben seat -$75.
B) buy an Ergonomic Comfortable Bike Seat - $30
C) Cut the front portion of the existing seat off.</p>
<p>I am leaning toward option B. </p>
<p>What do you think? Any comments and tips will be greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Before you do any of that, try changing the angle of the seat and the adjustment front-to-rear (move it backwards and forwards). It’s possible it’s a matter of adjustment, not the seat itself.</p>
<p>I did that as the first thing. the angle of existing seat can not be adjusted, nor could it move horizon level. The height of the sitting position does not make too much difference.</p>
<p>Try the steps recommended by dmd. She knows this stuff.</p>
<p>A couple of other ideas. A pair of good bike shorts will make a huge difference even for an indoor bike enthusiast. In the meantime, try a foam pillow. You are not racing Tour de France, so no one will laugh. I do it on our recumbent bike.</p>
<p>I’d go with “B” (although I dont’ know what a comfortable bike seat is), keeping in mind that any seat will get more comfortable as spend more time on it and acclimate. My Airdyne bike has a pretty cushy seat, but it was horribly uncomfortable at first. Now, I don’t even notice.</p>
<p>Also, if you do alternating intervals of easier pedalling and hard, intense pedalling, you can get a good workout in 15 to 30 minutes. I’m never on mine for more than 30 minutes, tops. Plus, during the hard, intense pedalling, you’ll be in a more athletic position with your weight on your feet and hands rather than the seat.</p>
<p>If buying the comfortable bike seat is the difference between riding the exercise bike and not riding it, $30 is a small price to pay. </p>
<p>People who ride bikes a lot think that soft padded seats are uncomfortable and of the devil. But saddles are an individual preference. Many high-end bikes aren’t even sold with saddles any more, because buyers would just take off the supplied saddle and replace it with their favorite. You should ride what you like.</p>
<p>You need to go to a bike store and TRY different seats…just like you would for a real bicycle. What is comfy for others might not be comfy for YOU. My husband has gotten me a ton of new seats for my regular bike. I finally told him to STOP. It makes no sense. He keeps getting me what he thinks will be comfortable. Until I TRY them myself, I don’t want him to order any more (and have to ship them back). </p>
<p>Go and try some seats. You may find that it’s not the SEAT at all. Some exercise bikes just don’t have the right angles, and the comfort level can’t be adjusted easily be replacing the seat.</p>
<p>One thing I learned at the gym (where the seats are ALL the same, pretty much) is that you do get used to it if you start off small and grow your time.</p>
<p>Another thing…try plain old walking…no seat to worry about. All you need is comfy shoes…another thread.</p>
<p>on a standard bike, I finally found a seat with a big cut out for the perineum, medium width for a hybrid mountain bike. I haven’t found a good seat yet for the road bike. And for the recumbent exercise bike I use a 3/8" kneeling pad with a cut out. I’m not back into the saddle much now since the prostate surgery. Some issues still remain.</p>
<p>Ref #6, $30 is A LOT of money to me. I think I spend less than that in a year on clothes. </p>
<h1>7, T1, Don’t know where do you live. Here the winter is pretty cold. may be I should go out to some sporting stor to test out different seats.</h1>
<p>If I were you, I would just “sit tight” and not do anything for a while. I think you’ll find that, with regular use, the bike seat will become less of an issue.</p>
<p>Try pedalling as hard as you can and still last for 30 seconds, then pedal easy for 60 seconds, continue repeating that 30 fast - 60 slow sequence for ten minutes and you’ll get a good workout with very little seat time. Later on, extend it to fifteen minutes or maybe 20 minutes. </p>
<p>Unless you are using a spin bike to train for road biking, I don’t think it’s necessary to ever sit on an exercise bike for more than 30 minutes. For fat loss, intensity is most effective approach.</p>
<p>30dollars when it comes to your health is a wise investment. I spin and bought a padded seat cover i bring to class. Well worth it, I ride stronger, and get so much more out of my riding</p>
<p>It’s colder here…trust me. I’m in the North East…longer winters, colder temps than in Ohio. I lived in Ohio my whole growing up and I was a runner back in the day. Ran year round…outdoors (in NORTHERN Ohio).</p>
<p>You put on your winter clothes and go out walking. People do it even here where it’s colder. </p>
<p>My husband says a comfortable bike seat will cost you about $50-$100 (around here you can join the gym for about that for the year). But it’s very personal and you gotta try them out. Even with that…you will likely find they are NOT perfect the first time you use them.</p>
<p>Perhaps a good alternative would be to get an exercise bike that can be hooked up to a battery. Generate some emergency winter power while you’re exercising.</p>
<p>If not, it seems like investing in a new ‘used’ bike would be better than a new seat, especially if the machine is as old and inflexible (in terms of settings) as you say.</p>
<p>It does have a little battery powered “computer display” which can show stuff like pedal RPM, speed, distance, time and so forth, but the only connection to the bike is a wheel speed spensor.</p>
<p>Well, my plan is to have a comfortable seat on this exercise bike. Riding it with a soda on one side and may be some chips on the other, while watching a football game on TV. In other words, I am doing something other than just sitting on a sofa. Don’t really plan to have much sweat doing it.</p>
<p>Thus the seat must be comfortable, without that front part generating a lot of pressure.</p>
<p>Knowing this answer to Xiggi’s comment could turn this thread into something else, but I got answer it. </p>
<p>Over the years, we have visited both campus several times. As of today, I have yet to purchase one single shirt from either school, not even a $15 t-shirt. DD got me a sticker as a Christmas gift and we picked up a couple of decals from DS’s school. That is about it.</p>