Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike Review

The Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike is a compact bike that comes at an affordable price.

The console has more than usual at this price range.

It has 6 workout programs. These are great for guidance and motivation as you workout.

It can help with boredom that might happen otherwise.

As well as that you can adjust the bike to fit people of different heights properly, magnetic resistance and a padded contoured seat and backrest.

However, the workout programs do work in a way that is different to the way most people expect them to.

Also the way you adjust the seat might not be the best for you if you want to be doing it often.

In my review, after investigating the bike in depth, I look at these factors as well as how well this bike can help you meet your fitness goals in your home.

In a hurry? >>>

First up is looking at how stable and durable it is.

Sturdiness

The bike is sturdy and well built for the price.

But it’s not like you’d find with high end gym equipment (which is to be expected) that cost over $1000.

The steel frame and stabilizer bars hold you steady and there isn’t any wobbling or shaking as you workout.

If your floor has a little variation in it you can turn the leveling caps on the back stabilizer bar to balance out the bike to prevent the bike from rocking side to side. A rubber exercise mat can help with that too if there is more variation than the end caps can deal with.

The bike comes with a 3 year warranty on the frame and 90 days on the parts. This is a reasonable warranty for bikes in this price range.

The bike has been around for a number of years and I’ve not seen reports of issues with it giving up so it would seem you can get good use out of it for a few years at least.

One customer in their review says they’ve had it for 3 years without issues and it is still going strong.

Adjustability

The back of the bike can be adjusted forwards and backwards to fit the bike properly to a range of heights.

The company does not provide guidance as to the range of heights or leg length that the bike can fit properly where your leg is slightly bent at the farthest point of the pedal stroke.

From reading through a large number of customer reviews and questions it seems that persons between 5ft and 6ft 4 ins can use the bike without having to stretch or be cramped up or not get full range of motion in their knee. (Note this is also what Stamina have said in reply to a question)

Making changes to the back of the bike position is reasonably quick and simple to do. Although some people don’t find it the easiest thing to move the back of the bike – this is down to having to slide the back of the bike while stopping the front from moving.

It has to be done off the bike and you probably need to kneel down to do it.

There is an adjustment knob in the middle of the bike you loosen and pull the pin out of the pre-set hole. You then slide the back frame to position the seat where you want it and then re-insert pin into hole – you may need to adjust the frame slightly to get it to engage in the hole. Then you tighten it up the knob.

It can take a little strength to move the frame and some people find it difficult to do because of this. However, most people seem to be able to do it without any trouble.

It’s not my favorite way to do achieve in positioning the seat in the correct position for exercising

Personally, I prefer the bikes that you can just move the seat but this does get the job done. And if you’re not adjusting the bike often then it’s not going to be an issue.

If you are going to move the seat often you may want to consider the Schwinn A20 that has pre-set programs that adjusts resistance rather than interval training or even the Exerpueitc 900 XL which has a more basic console (no programs) where you move the seat but is a little involved but you do only move the seat all the same.

Resistance

It has 8 levels of magnetic resistance. The resistance levels are marked on the tension knob which controls the resistance.

It is on the drive shroud at the front of the bike. The pre-set programs don’t control the resistance this is done manually, that it you set it to the level you want and change it as you go even while following a program

The position of the knob does mean you need to bend down and forward slightly to change it. It is easy to change by turning it clockwise to increase resistance and counter- clockwise to decrease it, You don’t have to get off the bike as shown in the picture.

The resistance at level 1 is very light and should be suitable for beginners and those who need very light resistance for rehabbing or recovery reasons (but check with your doctor).

It goes up incrementally up to level 8 which is only moderately hard. It’s not tough enough for very tough hill climb workouts as it is more like a hard slope. So it isn’t suitable for those who want to really challenge themselves (if that is what you want you need to consider a bike like the Schwinn 230 for that type of workout buy you may need to pay more).

You can get a good cardio workout with resistance at the lower levels and you can vary your pedaling speed to get a more intense workout – so you get your heart rate up and get a sweat up if you want.

You may find the there is some variation in the pedaling motion at the higher reistance levels as the magnetic resistance starts to work as a brake on the flywheel. You’ll find the pedals slow down when you’re not pushing so it does add a small amount of impact.

Drive type

Within the cover at the front of the bike is the flywheel and belt drive that you turn with the pedals. It provides a consistent pedaling motion that is quiet and low maintenance.

The cover protects them from damage but also helps prevent injury to children and pets as well as to the exerciser.

Pedals

The pedals are weighted and oversized that gives a good platform for your feet.

There is grip surface on the pedals to help to keep your feet from slipping off them.

They don’t come with straps which many bikes do. You should be okay with keeping your feet on the pedals if you have the bike properly adjusted for your leg length.

It is possible to buy pedals with straps for the bike and Stamina do now have pedals that are interchangeable. It does have a 1 piece crank so pedals with a 1/2 inch thread should fit it or you could take the pedals to a bike shop to get help..

The pedals are low to the floor and if you have larger feet you need to be careful how you pedal to make sure your heel doesn’t hit the floor at the lowest point of the pedaling.

Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike Comfort

Seat. It comes with a padded and contoured seat and backrest. The padding is firm but does provide comfort while you exercise. The backrest is at a slight angle backwards to provide support to the back.

The backrest is fixed in position in relation to the seat – it moves with the seat – you just can’t move it closer/further way from the seat or change the angle.

People do find it comfortable, although some find the positioning of the backrest to seat to be too far away as they feel they are hanging over the edge of the seat to use it.

There is a larger gap between the seat and backrest than normal.

Some people find this doesn’t support their lower back properly. You can help this by putting a small cushion to provide the additional support needed.

Getting on to the bike is easy as it has a step through design where you don’t have to lift your leg over the frame to get on to the bike.

Handlebars The handlebars at the side of the seat are covered at the end which gives a comfortable grip even when hands get sweaty. They do come up above the seat height and are at a reasonable height to use for support while in the seat. They do make it so you can’t really get in to the seat by sliding in from the side.

They are not adjustable on their own they are fixed in place in relation to the seat. At the end of the handlebars they are 24 inches wide and narrow to 21 inches (per review).

At the ends of the handlebars is the hand pulse sensors that can be comfortably gripped when wanting to monitor your heart rate.

The handlebars aren’t designed to be used to support your weight as you get in and out of the bike – you’re likely to find that they’ll break where they attach to the frame after being used this way after a period of time.

Noise. It operates very quietly as you exercise – there’s no noise from the drive nor is there any annoying creaking or squeaking. You can use it without turning up the TV or disturbing others in the house even in the middle of the night.

The loudest noise is likely to be your breathing as you exert yourself. If you live in an apartment your neighbors are very unlikely to know you are exercising – if you are concerned about anything be transmitted to the apartment below a rubber exercise mat should sort out the possibility. (Recommended size in the manual is 4 ft by 7 ft for the mat)

Cleaning. This bike isn’t going add much to your cleaning chores too much. It doesn’t generate much dirt. But sweat is likely to be the biggest issue – it is corrosive and you may find it drips on the bike and floor after a session on the bike. The bike needs a quick wipe down to keep the corrosiveness of sweat starting tit to rust and gumming it up. To keep the floor from being affected by sweat putting the bike on a rubber exercise mat does a good job of putting a stop to that.

Storage

When storing the bike you can reduce the size of it by adjusting it to its smallest size setting which reduces the length of the bike.

According to the manual when adjusted to its’ smallest size it needs 42.75 ins long by 26.75 wide by 31.75 inches high for storage. These are approximate measurements.

If you aren’t going to leave the bike where it is when not in use the front stabilizer end caps are transport wheels. These help make it easier to move the bike. You lift the bike at the back to use the wheels.

The lifting is easy to do as is wheeling the bike for one person. The wheels roll easy on most surfaces including medium pile carpet.

Assembly

It arrives partly assembled. Fortunately, finishing the assembly isn’t that big a job and can be in most cases done with 1 to 2 hours (some people manage to do it quicker).

The instructions are easy to follow. All the tools you need to complete the job are included. You might want to use your own as they’ll probably make it go quicker and easier.

It can be done by one person but a second person can help it go easier and quicker by holding the pieces in place as you bolt them up.

You are required to add to the main frame assembly the stabilizer bars, pedals, seat, back rest, handlebars and console. It is simpler than putting together most kitset furniture. The pieces and holes line up.

Console

The console displays calories, speed, time, program and heart rate if the pulse sensors are being gripped. Also if you are following one of the training programs it lets you know if you need to pedal faster or slower to achieve the recommended speed.

It has a manual program where you just pedal at the speed you want without any visual reminders from the display.

The measures are large enough to be seen from the seat. However, the LCD screen is not backlit so it can be difficult to read when not using in the best light conditions.

You can select to just see one measure as you pedal or set it to scan so that it rotates through the measures every 5 seconds.

There is no need to plug in the bike for power it just requires 2 AA batteries. The batteries are not included with the bike. Being battery powered allows you to put bike anywhere you want to use as you aren’t dependent on the length of a power cord. It also means can use it even if there is power outage. After 3 minutes the console switches off and all values are reset to zero.

The console screen is low down so shouldn’t get in the way of your viewing the TV as you exercise.

The buttons allow you to choose to just exercise as you want by selecting the manual program of you can select one of the 6 pre-set training programs.

The 6 pre-set programs that come with bike work in a different way to most other pre-set programs – they don’t automatically alter the amount of resistance you push against but is about letting you know the speed you need to be pedaling at.

It’s more like having interval training where you change how hard you pedal for set intervals.

The 6 programs do have different levels of pedaling intensity to cover a range of fitness levels. The programs you can have various interval training profiles – fat burn, max fat burn, aerobic, hill, interval and mountain. There is a target speed for each interval which last 2 minutes when left at the minimum length of workout of 20 minutes.

The far burn program has a maximum speed of 14 mph and the mountain program is 26 mph.

You set the bike manually to the resistance level you want to pedal against. This isn’t taken into account by the workout programs – you can change at any time during the workout too if it is too easy or hard to keep up the speed of the program.

The hand pulse sensors that you grip in the handlebars when you want to measure your heart rate aren’t that reliable with many people struggling to get a good consistent reading. This is not unusual with these type of sensors. It your heart rate is something you wish to monitor closely you are likely to get much better results with a separate heart rate strap and monitor.

As well as that the other measures other than time, are all estimates only and are really good for tracking rather than for being on relied as to be accurate. This is the same with all bike consoles in this price range. There great for tracking and motivation when you’re on the bike and do give you a guide.

You can’t upload your results to fitness account so you need to record them manually if you want to keep track of how you are progressing.

Dimensions

The dimensions and weight of the bike are

Height 33.5 ins
Width 26 ins
Length 56 ins

Bike Weight 70 lbs
Maximum User Weight 300 lbs

Accessories

It doesn’t come with any other accessories. It doesn’t have a place for a water bottle or for putting your mobile devices. If you want to have them close at hand you need to exercise near a table.

You can hold them in your hands while you exercise as the seat and backrest help with balance unlike you get with on an upright or spin bike but not if wanting to use the hand pulse sensors.

Pros

• The bike is very quiet
• It’s easy to put together, it can be done by one person in about 1 to 2 hours
• Comes with 6 pre-set programs to choose a workout from at the level you want
• Has transport wheels to help with moving the bike
• The rear end caps work as levelers to balance up the bike on uneven floors
• Step through design help to make it easy to get on and off the bike
• It has 8 levels of resistance marked and go up in incremental steps
• Bike can be adjusted to fit people between the heights of 5 ft and 6 ft 4 ins
• Bike requires little maintenance
• Low console doesn’t get in the way while you watch your TV programs or movies

Cons

• Doesn’t come with any accessories to hold a water bottle or personal electronics
• The pre-set programs don’t adjust the resistance – you speed up or slow down your pedaling speed to alter the intensity
• The highest levels of resistance is not suitable for those looking for hard hill climb type resistance
• The pedals do not come with straps to help keep your feet on the pedals
• Display screen not backlit making it difficult to read in poor light conditions

Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike Consumer Ratings

The bike has good ratings from customers.

But there are some who aren’t keen on the bike. There are few who received a faulty bike and haven’t then received a good helpful response from the company There does seem to be less of these in later years so it seems the company has improved their quality control (only a few) and possibly their customer service too.

The problem that is mentioned is the position of the seat in relation to the backrest is too far away to get good support for the back or finding yourself hanging over the edge. Those that experience and put a cushion in the gap find that solves the problem of discomfort and lack of support.

Those few comments aside most find they get a bike they can use when they want as often as they like for a good comfortable workout that is gentle on their joints.

They feel that they get good value for the money they spent on the bike – in fact one reviewer says the bike exceeded their expectations.

Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike Price

You get a better console than most bikes at this price with the 6 pre-set “interval” programs that come with it to help to keep you on track if you want as exercise.

It is provides a good solid base for the price to get your low impact workouts.

The price does compare well with other bikes for those with half a dozen programs (although they do adjust resistance automatically rather than promote pedal speed).

When I checked at Amazon it can qualify for free shipping.

Click here to check latest price and availability:
Stamina 4825 Magnetic Recumbent Exercise Bike

Summary

Its quiet and the low console makes it easy to watch TV as you pedal away.

It’s a simple bike without anything too fancy at a good affordable price that will give you a good low impact cardio.

It does only give you a light to moderate workout in terms of resistance which is fine for many people who want to get more in shape or stay in shape etc.

Those that are looking for demanding levels of resistance won’t find this bike meets their needs. (They should look at the Schwinn 230 Recumbent Bike for something that adds more challenge.)

This is a bike that many people actually find they use rather than have it sat somewhere gathering dust. This is from people who aren’t fans of exercise.