Many recumbent exercise bikes list themselves as having a step through design.
Some even say it is innovative.
But they don’t explain it.
I guess they feel it’s obvious.
It relates to how you get on to the bike.
It’s one of the benefits of this bike type when compared to other exercise bike types.
Other Types Of Bikes
On many exercise bike designs including some recumbent exercise bikes you have to lift your foot over the frame to get on the bike. Depending on the bike it can mean lifting your foot over a high frame.
You may have heard the term used on outdoor bikes where you have bikes that have a drop down frame. Where the frame goes down on an angle from handlebars to the bottom of the seat post. Thereby making it easier to get on the bike.
The recumbent exercise bike step through has the same effect but is easier again to get on to the bike.
How Does It Work On A Recumbent Exercise Bike
Basically a step through design is that you don’t have to lift your foot over the frame to get in position – you can “step through” the bike. The frame between the front of the bike that has pedals and console and the seat is a steel tube that is about an inch of height from the ground.
Who Does It Help
If you have to be careful with lifting your foot this can be a big help to get on a bike.
It also helps so that you don’t have to get on the seat and then swing your feet over the frame or use a step to be able to step up over the frame.
These days most bikes sold for home use come with this design – even the more affordable priced one like the popular Exerpeutic 900XL Recumbent bike. You can see on this bike how much easier it is to get on to.
Commercial recumbent exercise bikes seem to still have a built up frame which can give them more strength and durability in the drive as they get used and abused for much longer periods each day.
The bikes at home may not have been built to the same standard as these bikes but they can still provide a good durable and solid workout – they don’t move or shake as you workout on them, even the more affordable ones.
So, for a home setting you don’t need that extra engineering and that gives the advantage of an easier to get on seat especially for those who may have problems bending their knee or lifting their foot.
The Summary
The step through design makes it even easier to get on a recumbent exercise bike. There’s no need to lift your foot up and over the frame to get in a position to get on the bike.
They still provide a good robust and stable platform for comfortable and gentle on the joints cardio workouts. You can get them to fit any budget with bikes with a range of prices with more features generally available on the more expensive ones.