Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation Review

The Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation is a folding exercise bike with a desktop. This is a great idea to getting more active and fitting it in while you work or play sitting down. A real time saver in these hectic times.

It means you can still be active, which is good for us, without having to set aside time to go to the gym or at home. You get to make a better use of your time while being productive or enjoying your leisure time.

In our review we look at how well it performs the function of combining these activities to help you improve your cardio fitness, burn calories, get fitter and achieve you fitness goals. This involves looking at how quiet it is, how sturdy it is, how comfortable it and more to make sure it is more than just a gimmick.

First up I really do like the way it combines exercise and work but it does need to be up to the task of providing a suitable workspace as well as being up to the job of providing a good low impact exercise too.

Sturdiness

The bike is lightweight by exercise bike standards at 45.25 lbs.

Despite this, it has a steel frame and good length stabilizer bars to keep it steady while you ride it. It doesn’t rock from side to side and there is no wobbling or concerning noises (it’s very quiet) or creaks.

It leaves you to focus on your work as you get your light cardio exercise done at the same time.

The stabilizer bar end caps can be turned to level out the bike if there is little unevenness in the floor you are using it on to stop side to side movement.

The frame comes with a 3 year limited warranty and the parts have a 90 days one.

There hasn’t been anyone reporting issues after a few months use which is all we have to go on at the moment as to its longevity. This is great to hear and users believe they’ll get much more trouble free use from the bike.

Adjustability

The bike comes with an adjustable seat and desk to be able to fit the bike to you properly and for a comfortable fit.

When I contacted the company they confirmed that it had been tested to work for people between 4 ft 11 ins and 6 ft 4 ins. User experience seems to show it works best for people between the heights of 5 ft 2 ins and 6 ft.

Above 6ft you are likely to find you don’t get the full range of motion in your leg as you pedal for best practice, comfort and safety (the leg should be slightly bent at full extension).

Below 5ft 2 ins you may struggle to reach the pedal at the far end of the pedal stroke.

With people outside the range of heights it does depend on leg length as to how much you might struggle with the pedaling and if you can it would be good to try the bike out locally first.

The distance from the seat to the pedals at the far end of the stroke being between 27 ins and 32 ins which can help in determining if you can reach the pedlas or that you might be too cramped..

I have asked the manufacturer to confirm the height range the bike is best suited too. (I’ve not yet received a reply).

The seat bike can only be adjusted upwards/downwards on an angle to allow for different torso size as well as height.

Adjusting the seat height is straightforward. You loosen the adjustment knob and pull to remove the pin and slide to the height you want – insert the pin in the pre-set hole and tighten up fully to secure in place.

The desk height and horizontal/angle position can be adjusted. The height adjustment works the same way as the seat.

The horizontal/angle adjustment is a little different. There are 5 different positions you can set for desk. The position for standing and the furthest from the seat is with a level desk and the upright vertical. The other 4 positions bring the desktop closer on an angle – the angle of the desk can be 5 degrees, 10 degrees, 15 degrees, and 20 degrees.

You make these adjustments by pressing, pulling a lever at the base of the desk upright with your foot. The desk angle is fixed in each of the positions so when closest to you the angle is 20 degrees. It seems most people find the angles comfortable for their working etc.

Personally, I’d like to be able to adjust the angle to but it is great you can bring it closer to you so you can sit in the position you want rather than constrained by the desk being in a fixed position. It does allow you to lean back more into the seat if you want as well as adjust sitting position as you want.

To give a break from sitting and still continue working you can stand and use the desk with feet either side of the frame. Your feet are away from the pedals so it is a comfortable position. You shouldn’t have any problem with the pedals when they are in the top/bottom position – they will be in front of you with the desk at its’ most upright/level position.

The height of the desk can be adjusted between the heights of 40 ins and 44.5 ins to help have the desk at a good height for you to continue typing without straining the back by hunching over or having to strain to reach whether seated or standing.

You may find you need to a stool to get on the seat when on the short side with the lowest setting being 29 inches from the floor and the highest setting at 34 inches. Fortunately there is no x-bar to get your foot over with the desk bar being an upright at the front of the bike which makes betting on easier.

Resistance

You can adjust the level of resistance you are pushing against using the tension knob that is below the seat by reaching between your legs. It is a little way down so you may need to bend down slightly to reach.

It goes from very easy to moderately hard. It is ideal for light to moderate exercise which is likely to be what you want when using this as you work or surf the web etc.

You can work up a sweat on the bike and get some good exercise in, but it won’t be high intense training that you can get on spin bikes or fan bikes. It helps to get more activity into the day without it impacting on your time.

It is low impact and easy on the legs at all levels of resistance. However, at the higher levels of resistance you may find that the cycling motion starts to pulse where the pedals slow down at the top/bottom of the stroke and speed up again as you push.

There isn’t marked levels of resistance which can make it difficult to set and return to previous levels of resistance objectively. It does make a loud click as you turn it to the next level.

Drive type

It has two V-ribbed belt to give a quiet and consistent pedaling experience. There is no slippage with it having a good grip on the pedals and flywheel. There should be little or no maintenance required.

It is all enclosed which prevents it getting caught on clothes, ankle, little fingers or pets.

Pedals

The pedals are plastic with a textured surface and straps to keep feet and shoes in place while you pedal.

They aren’t directly below you but in a little front of you but not out front like they are on a recumbent bike. If you are used to riding a bike you may find it a little awkward at first but it is overall a comfortable position.

The pedals and bike design are not for spinning workouts like you can do with spin bikes where you stand on the pedals – it is made for sitting and pedaling.

It is designed for light to moderate exercise not the intense training you get on indoor cycles and spin bikes.

If interested in this type of training more so than a bike you can work our most popular affordable spin bike is the Sunny Health & Fitness Indoor Cycle with Belt Drive, It is quiet but doesn’t come with a desktop.

Comfort

Seat. Although the seat is described as super comfy, padded with a back rest you may not find it that way. Like all bike seats, not everyone finds a particular seat is kind to their sit bones. If you don’t like the seat you could try padded bike shorts or a gel seat cover which many people find is enough to give them the comfort they need.

If they don’t work the seat itself is not straightforward to replace because it s attached by 3 bolts to the seat post but it is possible to replace it with a standard bike fitting seat. You need to fit a universal exercise bike seat adapter to post which can be bought separately from Amazon and other stores.

Noise. The belt drive and magnetic resistance make this a very quiet bike. It is quiet enough to be able to watch TV without turning the volume up. You can have phone conversations without people on the other end realizing you are on the bike providing you aren’t breathing from pushing yourself. If you work in an office cubicle and are permitted to use it there, the bike noise (or more the lack of noise) won’t disturb other workers.

It’s quietness, compact size and that it can fold up makes it good for apartment use as well as home and businesses.

Dust and Dirt It isn’t a source of dust and dirt so won’t add to your cleaning chores too much. It does need to be kept clean and in particular any sweat should be wiped up as that is very corrosive. If you are concerned about your floor a rubber exercise mat can protect it from any damage from sweat and the bike moving around.

Handlebars It doesn’t have standard handlebars as such. There is a bar at the nearside of the desk with places that you can grip like a handlebar. There are also handles at either side of the seat that you can grip when you want a break from the desk and want to stretch yourself using the backrest for support. They are covered for comfort to prevent blisters. The hand grips seem to be far enough apart to not get in the way while you are seated pedaling or getting on and off the bike.

Storage

When you’ve finished using the bike you can fold it up a little to make it easier to store. It has a footprint of 21.7 ins by 31.8 ins when folded so it can fit in a closet or against a wall but not under a bed.

Folding it up is fairly straightforward requiring you to put the desk in the upright position using the adjustment lever at the base of the desk stand. Then you remove the holding pin on the seat frame and push the support to the frame and lock it in place by re-inserting the holding pin.

There are small rollers on the back stabilizer bar that can be used to wheel the bike to and from storage. They work well on hard surfaces but may get stuck on soft carpet as they can get jammed up by the pile. You tilt the bike backwards on to the rollers using the handrail.

Assembly

The bikes comes to you partly assembled. The instructions are a little more complicated than they need to be but only require a little patience to understand.

The assembly can be completed easily within a couple hours with most completing between 30 to 60 minutes. The tools required for the job are included

The pieces fit together and there is a chart to help with identifying the hardware. You are required to add the seat post, seat, seat, backrest, handrail, desk post, desk, pedals, stabilizer bars, insert batteries and attach console wire.

You may want someone to help you as it can be a little awkward holding the weight of the bike while adding the stabilizer bars to the frame in particular.

Console

The basic console is on the desk between the handles at the nearside. It doesn’t get covered up by a laptop unless you slide that towards you to get it closer to you.

It puts it in a good position to read while you work and exercise. It isn’t backlit so can be difficult in poor light. Otherwise the measures are easy to read.

It measures distance, speed, calories burned, time elapsed and cumulative distance (odometer). Distance is measured in miles and speed is MPH. You can choose to see one measure during the workout or scan through them every 6 seconds.

The measures are good for keeping track of the activity you’re doing but they are approximate only and shouldn’t be relied on as being correct. This is no different to most consoles for other folding exercise bikes.

To start the console you can either start pedaling or press the mode button below the LCD screen.

After 4 minutes of activity the console switches off. It does keep the results to date of your exercising until you clear them (except the odometer) by pressing the mode button. The odometer is rest when you remove the batteries.

You can’t upload your results to a Fitness App or account so you do need to record these separately for keeping track of your exercising and progress.

It doesn’t have any pre-set workout programs which is probably not a real concern when using it while working or playing games.

The console takes 2 AAA batteries and they are not included.

Dimensions

The dimensions and weight of the bike are

In use

Height 45.7 ins
Width 21.7 ins
Length 45 ins

Folded

Height 40.4 ins
Width 21.7 ins
Length 31.8 ins

Bike Weight 45.25 lbs
Max User Weight 300 lbs
Desktop max weight 30 lbs

Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation Accessories

The desktop is one of the main attractions for this bike. It can be placed in 5 different positions including one to use while standing allowing you to get it into the most comfortable location for you.

The desk includes a drink holder, tablet/book holder a console, and handles at the front.

The desktop surface is 17.25 by 10 ins which should fit laptops up to the size of 17 inches in the recessed 1/8 ins area for keeping it in place. There is also a strap that you use to keep the laptop securely in place.

When you have a laptop on the desk it covers the drinks holder and you won’t be able to use an external mouse or keyboard. You can still see the console.

The tablet support helps to put it at a better angle to see and use with it on the desk. It’s easy to use – you lift the holder and click the support in place and you are set.

It doesn’t have a drawer for pens, mobile phone or other items when desktop is covered with a laptop,

There are no other accessories available to buy extra such as to expand the desk area as you have with the Fitdesk FDX 2.0

The manual does have some tips on how to set up the bike for the best exercising position and information about warming up, cooling down and training in the heart rate zone. There is nothing on suggested workouts.

Pros

• Easy to assemble
• Allows you to work and exercise at the same time making a great use of your time
• Comes with a basic monitor that can still be seen while you use a laptop
• Desktop can be used as a standing desk with a level top
• Good basic console for keeping track of your activity
• Good solid base for exercise and work or other sitting activities to tone the lower body while you work
• Desktop is steady to work on

Cons

• It is not designed for hard intense workouts but is good for light to moderate exercise
• The 2 AAA batteries needed for the console are not included
• Doesn’t come with a heart rate monitor
• Can’t use an external mouse while using a laptop
• Does not work the upper body
• Not suitable for people taller than 6 ft or below 5 ft 2 ins per customers
• Console should only be used for tracking purposes

Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation Consumer Ratings

Most customer in their reviews say they really like the bike. They like being able to use it when they work. It provides good low impact exercise and they can adjust the resistance to the level they want. They find the bike sturdy and well made.

However, there is one review that talks about the fact that the bike shouldn’t be used for more than an hour – it is just the one. It is important to note it isn’t a bike for hard intense workouts but moderate exercise and people that use it this way find they can use it for extended periods without issue.

Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation Price

At present the bike can be less than the FitDesk FDX 2.0 for a bike that serves a similar purpose. It doesn’t have the same range of accessories or length of service that FitDesk but reviews have been positive overall so far as to its sturdiness and durability.

When I checked it qualified for free shipping at Amazon.

To check the current deal and availability click here:
Stamina Wirk Ride Cycling Workstation

Summary

The bikes is a great way to increase you exercise and activity while being a time and space saver. It can be used by people of all abilities including those rehabbing (on doctors advice).

It not for those who want intense and tough workouts. It’s not made for that but for those that want to be able to add gentle to moderate exercise to their life for the health and fitness benefits that come from that.

The desktop provides a good surface to get your work and play done while you work on your cardio fitness. I’d like the desktop to be a little bigger so I could fit an external mouse and a mobile phone. Somewhere to put papers and pen would be nice too.

That aside it provides a good solid basis to make the most of your time. It’s quiet so can be used anywhere and it is a space saver for people with limited space.