X-Bike or Regular Exercise Bike?

X-Biking has a number of advantages over traditional indoor cycling, which makes Trixter’s X-Bike a popular choice among fitness enthusiasts and professional athletes alike.

X-Biking is a term associated with an indoor cycling program conducted using the Trixter X-Bike Indoor Performance Cycle. It provides a total body workout and is different from traditional indoor cycling in a number of ways. The patented X-Bars allow the bike to move from side to side and simulate real motion, one created when you are riding a real mountain bike, or sprinting and climbing. The Trixter X-Bike 1000 and the Xdream provide the full virtual experience of a real bike ride.

X-Biking provides a more thorough and intense fitness experience than a regular indoor bike. The X-Bars have a resistance mechanism that gives you an upper body and core workout which is not possible on a traditional indoor exercise bike. Another advantage that the X-Bike has over a traditional cycle is that it allows riders to control the resistance at the pedals, without needing to move their hands from the handlebar.

Unlike the regular indoor cycle, which has a fixed gear mechanism, the X-Bike has a freewheel gear mechanism that makes it safe to ride and forces you to utilize your entire pedal stroke and maintain correct form. As this increases the total calorie burn, X-Biking classes generally do not need to last longer than 30 minutes to be effective.

Core and upper body workout

X-Biking is interval-based and demands a high degree of dynamic movement as well as constant activity of the rider’s stabilizing musculature, which makes it an intense full body workout. As a result, riders burn about 500 calories on average during a 30-minute interval-based X-Biking class. For comparison, those using traditional indoor cycles with fixed gears and fixed bars typically take twice as long to accomplish the same fitness goal.

X-Bikes provide a more thorough core exercise than traditional indoor bikes. Traditional cycles have a stable platform, one that does not require the user to utilize the core region for stabilization. Instead, the rigidity of the handlebar makes the rider use his or her arms and lower back for stability. On an X-Bike, the rider does not have as many stable points of contact and must engage the core stabilizers during the workout session to remain in the correct position to keep pedalling. As X-Biking allows varied hand positions to move the X-Bars against resistance, it targets a number of upper body muscles, enhancing the overall quality of the workout.

X-Biking also does not cause torsion of the pelvis and lower back, which is what usually happens on fitness bikes that have rigid bars. Riding out of the saddle on a traditional bike forces rotation of the lower back and pelvis because the lower body is active and the upper body remains in a rigid position. The active workout of the upper body that the X-Bike allows makes the machine far less likely to cause injuries, as it allows the rider to keep a stable, neutral pelvic position while he or she is cycling and at the same time doing a resistance workout for the upper body.

Resistance training

Resistance is another factor that gives the X-Bike an advantage over regular stationary bikes. The pedals on the X-Bike only turn when the rider makes them turn. On a fixed wheel bike, the momentum of the flywheel can do a significant amount of work for the rider, which makes the exercise far less efficient as it does not make as big a demand on the rider’s body. The X-Bike does not allow riders to waste time on a low-intensity exercise that does not provide the same cardiovascular and fitness benefits as a high-intensity workout does.

Interval training

The interval training that is inherent to X-Biking provides a wide range of benefits in itself, beyond those that a standard aerobic workout can deliver. It allows, among other things, intensity threshold, strength and short-term power training.

Interval training is also known to increase fat loss and appetite control as a result of both demanding a high degree of energy and leading to enhanced post-exercise thermogenesis (PET). Riders typically burn 400 to 600 calories during a 30-minute workout session. Apart from the fitness benefits, high intensity interval training (HIIT) also enhances bone strength as a result of the demands it makes on the muscles.

Last but certainly not least, the Trixter X-Bike provides the rider with a full, immersive experience and offers a workout session that is a lot more exciting than one on a traditional stationary bike. This significantly increases the motivation factor, as the imagery within the program depends on and is facilitated by the rider’s effort and movement. The imagery and music also make it easier for the rider to mentally sustain the higher intensities because he or she is less focused on the physical effort required and more on the visual experience on the screen.

To see the X-Bike in action, watch the video below.