Originally Posted by
surak
What prevents the faster commuter on a lighter bike from riding an extra couple blocks in the time they saved? Another arbitrarily imposed restriction in a thought experiment to favor the heavier bike...
Literally everybody who has talked about that has noted that. This group of people who are claiming that heavier bikes are "better" for fitness is basically a figment of your imagination. The only thing people have generally agreed on is that heavier bikes might burn more calories per mile, but that's an entirely trivial point.
There was an entire thread on this and outside of OP, pretty much everybody crapped all over the idea of "heavy bike=better workout".
And what prevents the rider of a lighter bike from riding in a gear that's too high for the route? And what prevents everyone from flying the route in a jet plane? And what prevents the rider of either bike weight from gorging on jelly donuts the entire route?