Electric bikes are getting more and more popular every year. But do they provide the same health benefits as regular ones? To answer this question, the research team compared the physical activity and accident rates of 1,250 e-bike owners and 629 regular cyclists in Germany.
Overall, people who rode e-bikes were generally older, heavier, had more health problems, exercised less, but were more likely to engage in physical activity in their spare time compared to casual cyclists.
On average, e-bike owners’ physical activity was almost 70 minutes less than ordinary cyclists. Ordinary cyclists rode an average of 6 times a week (those who preferred electric bikes – 4 times a week) and spent 25 minutes more on trips overall. Although it should be said that those who use electric bikes make longer trips.
The average heart rate for casual cyclists was 119 bpm, while for electric bike owners it was 111 bpm. This means that the load level itself is higher than before. Additionally, the results of the study showed that people on e-bikes achieved their recommended weekly physical activity goals about half as often.
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Source: Ferra
