this post was submitted on 29 Feb 2024
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I don't care what people ride. If they want an ebike then that's great. More people on bikes is better for everyone-- less cars on road, more cyclist awareness, better walkable/biking infrastructure, etc.
But it is very misleading to say ebikes get more exercise. Where is the data? How are they quantifying exercise? Watts are watts, so you'll need to work the same for those watts regardless of the type of bike you're on. Your 'Time in The Saddle' may be higher with an ebike if the less work makes it more appealing to you, but you're only getting more exercise if you put out more watts than you would have on a traditional bike.
Separately, if someone is really motivated to exercise more, the type of bike is not the factor. It is their time. Ride any bike you want but at some point you'll need less endurance rides and more intensity. The best way for intensity is doing it all yourself. Ebike might help with the recovery intervals but it isn't going to be the main consideration in your workout.
I just skimmed the article and agree that it's misleading without context or data. I didn't look hard to see if it actually gave any.
That said my personal experience is that I get far more exercise with my ebike because I'm in the saddle more often. I rode my normal bike maybe once or twice per summer. I'm not into it as a sport or hobby, and there are too many hills and stop signs/lights that you actually have to stop at, which means struggling to get going when you have to jet out between cars. I don't have billions of hours training my thighs into galactus legs so I can take off uphill in 6th gear. And let's just be honest: I'm never going to.
My ebike solve those problems. As a result I've packed in a couple hundred miles in just the first year I've had it. So for me it very much is a case of fewer calories per mile but more miles overall exercised.
When e-bike became a thing, I would be annoyed to see people use an e-bike instead of a normal bicycle.
But my thinking now is more or less the same : Better an e-bike than a car. If it weren't for e-bikes, some may be driving cars.