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Is a roadbike better exercise than a mnt bike ON THE road?

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Is a roadbike better exercise than a mnt bike ON THE road?

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Old 08-20-15, 05:35 PM
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Originally Posted by Alias530
You can't say a road bike is better exercise.

You could say something like... for constant exertion without interruption, road bikes are easier to put constant strain on your body, because when mountain biking on trails you can't always be pedaling.

But if you're pedaling the same pavement, at the same power, you will burn the same calories. If it's easier to go harder on your road bike it's either a mental thing or your road bike fits you better.

No, it's better exercise. I put out the same mental effort and both and the road bike kicks my ass and is funner. That is the bottom line. It's not close.
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Old 08-20-15, 05:36 PM
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Originally Posted by DaveWC
Then get out and ride. You don't need agreement on the point you're trying to make. Just enjoy the bike. But the answer is no, a bike is a bike. If you put out as much power the exercise benefit is equal. The fact that you enjoy the road bike more, or the speed motivates you to put out more energy is a subjective thing that you experience while others may not. So it's not important that you achieve some consensus on this point.

One might contend that a mountain bike is much better exercise on the road because you spend much less time fixing flat tires, ha.

No. I know what I am experiencing. I road the mountain bike for 3 years and it fit me fine and I had to push myself. With the road bike I can push easier and my hear rate goes up much higher. That is a fact.
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Old 08-20-15, 05:37 PM
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Originally Posted by icyclist
"it's either a mental thing or your road bike fits you better"

I'm going with it's a mental thing.

OP, you will love the insane workout you get
when you graduate to an electric bike. And that will pale in comparison to the calories you'll burn when your old enough to legally ride a motorbike! You'll have to be careful not to drop too much weight.
But see now you're spreading bull. The road bike is a better workout than an electric bike.
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Old 08-20-15, 06:41 PM
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I bet the road bike has larger diameter tires, that's why harder is easier..........leverage.
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Old 08-20-15, 10:21 PM
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Let's see some pix of this bike!
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Old 08-20-15, 10:57 PM
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It is true that top MTB riders put in more time on their road bike than their MTB.
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Old 08-21-15, 12:33 AM
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If you had ridden road for three years,

& mountain biked for two days,

then you might be saying the same thing in reverse.
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Old 08-21-15, 01:07 AM
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If you were restricted to a 1 mile stretch of road, where you could only start at one end and finish at the other, the MTB would be more exercise because it takes more effort per mile to use.

I think the speed of the road bike may be clouding your perception, either that or you have a road bike that is less efficient than your MTB. In other words, it could very well be that your MTB is lighter and faster than your road bike.
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Old 08-21-15, 07:03 AM
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Originally Posted by Carkar7
If you were restricted to a 1 mile stretch of road, where you could only start at one end and finish at the other, the MTB would be more exercise because it takes more effort per mile to use.
Right, if you're looking at efficiency that's true.

If you have massive guads and you dial it up to 400W to drope the hamer on a n00b on either bike and hold it at that power for a given time, that's the same effort on each, you'd just go a good deal further on the road bike.

If time and power are constant, effort is the same. If distance and power are constant, the more efficient bike (road) will take less time to complete the distance so you'd get more total work done on the slower mountain bike.

Let's do what we can to keep this thread alive, it's a good one.
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Old 08-21-15, 07:17 AM
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Mr. DreamRider85,

If you have decided something is true (in this case that your road bike gives you a better workout) and you will not be willing to consider any argument given against than stance, then why the hell do you start a thread asking whether what you think is true or not? In your head it is and you clearly aren't willing to listen otherwise, so why bother?
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Old 08-21-15, 07:25 AM
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He should have bought the Fuji. I understand that brand gives you a way better workout. They never flat either.
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Old 08-21-15, 07:29 AM
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Originally Posted by dksix
I bet the road bike has larger diameter tires, that's why harder is easier..........leverage.
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Old 08-21-15, 07:38 AM
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just keep doing what ever keeps you doing it.
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Old 08-21-15, 07:59 AM
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Originally Posted by Dan333SP
Let's do what we can to keep this thread alive, it's a good one.
Have we discussed colors ? It's scientifically proven that red bikes are faster than others. I'm not sure what the 2nd, 3rd, 4th fastest colors are.
If the technically "slower" bike is red, and the technically "faster" bike is a low ranked color, how much will that help ?
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Old 08-21-15, 08:12 AM
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Originally Posted by DaveWC
He should have bought the Fuji. I understand that brand gives you a way better workout. They never flat either.
But red bikes are faster. This is a known and proven fact. If his bike is red that completely changes all the other calculations of effort, including brand.

Edit: Looks like Homebrew01 just beat me to it. Took me too long to read the thread.
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Old 08-21-15, 08:17 AM
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Originally Posted by Homebrew01
Have we discussed colors ? It's scientifically proven that red bikes are faster than others. I'm not sure what the 2nd, 3rd, 4th fastest colors are.
If the technically "slower" bike is red, and the technically "faster" bike is a low ranked color, how much will that help ?
Originally Posted by himespau
But red bikes are faster. This is a known and proven fact. If his bike is red that completely changes all the other calculations of effort, including brand.

Edit: Looks like Homebrew01 just beat me to it. Took me too long to read the thread.
Where red is commonly cited as the fastest, I believe that this is an errant application of science. My orange bike is the fastest, and because it is fastest for me, science says it must be true for everyone.
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Old 08-21-15, 08:21 AM
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You sure you're riding them, not carrying?
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Old 08-21-15, 08:33 AM
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Originally Posted by RollCNY
Where red is commonly cited as the fastest, I believe that this is an errant application of science. My orange bike is the fastest, and because it is fastest for me, science says it must be true for everyone.
No, not true at all. Orange is only fastest if you read it on the internet, not just your bike, but supporting evidence of someone else with an orange bike.
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Old 08-21-15, 10:15 AM
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His heart rate is higher guys, that's a FACT. Why is this even a question? It's clear which one is the better workout.
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Old 08-21-15, 10:37 AM
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Did he forget to put a seat on the road bike? There are lots of things that I can think of that get my heart rate going faster. Some of them are also good workouts.
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Old 08-21-15, 10:40 AM
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Someone told me rim brakes give you a better workout than discs because it requires more watts to press them.
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Old 08-21-15, 10:43 AM
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Originally Posted by PepeM
Someone told me rim brakes give you a better workout than discs because it requires more watts to press them.
Yep, downhill runs with single-pivot calipers totally rips your triceps!
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Old 08-21-15, 11:22 AM
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Originally Posted by DreamRider85
Is a roadbike better exercise than a mnt bike ON THE road?
Maybe.

It's all about the engine. I've had killer work-outs riding MTBs on roads, and super relaxed rides on my road bikes. Here are examples from my Strava, taking the extremes: fatbike versus roadbike:



They have the same "Suffer Score" (based on heart rate), but speeds of the bikes are quite different: road bike averaged 18.8 mph and the fatbike averaged 14.3 mph.

Both rides are to-and-from my LBS, I took a slightly longer route with the fatbike, but I think this make a good point about the 'better workout'.... it's up to how hard you push the engine, not the bike you're sitting on.

The thing you likely feel is that is it easy to go "fast" on a road bike and you don't push yourself as hard, since you are used to MTB speeds.

edit - Sorry for the extra attachment, I'm too dumb to get rid of this one... and to lazy ... and don't care.
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Old 08-21-15, 11:30 AM
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Originally Posted by dtrain
His heart rate is higher guys, that's a FACT. Why is this even a question? It's clear which one is the better workout.
It's obvious this is another troll thread. This guy didn't know what to buy as accessories for his new bike yet somehow now he's got a heart monitor? Doubt it. And if you look at his OP on this thread, nowhere does he mention heartrate... not until HeWhoShouldNotBeNamed mentions HR does it come up. And his conclusions about a road bike being better for exercise came prior to owning a road bike... they came from a test ride around the block which caused him to sweat. And it takes longer for him to sweat on a mountain bike. That's some scientific trolling right there.
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Old 08-21-15, 11:34 AM
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My theory is that his heart rate is up on the road bike because of the stress of multiple roadside flat repairs. Is that theoretical trolling then?
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