So now I’ve done (what I consider) a decent amount of miles on my electric bike after hitting the 100 mile mark, I thought I would give my honest thoughts and experience using it. There are certainly pros and cons with it, and I hope that these thoughts will help others out there.
Pros
– So the first thing I’ve noticed is just how many miles I’ve covered in 1 month of having the bike. To put this into context, last year in a month I managed to cover little over 50 miles with a regular bike (I was also slightly lighter and less health complications). The miles I have covered so far on the electric bike have been completely trouble and hassle free, and I have cycled a couple of places I have never been on a normal bike for fear of not being able to get up a hill, or get up that never ending uphill gradient.
– During my more active weeks of getting out on the bike, I genuinely felt happier in myself and found that I was much less moody than usual. I suffer with anxiety and depression which can be a real struggle for me at times so feeling happier is more than welcome.
– I enjoy exercise. Ok so this one is debatable as there’s nowhere that I can find just how much exercise I’m getting, but generally my heart rate is between 120 and 150 when using my electric bike so its definitely getting the old ticker pumping but definitely not to the extent a non motorised bike would achieve.
– Cycle from home. For me this is a big one. Previously I had to take my bike 5 miles in a car to get to the cycle track (I still do at times) but now I can just leave the house and get pedalling wherever I want. I do still worry about cycling on the road as drivers really don’t seem to consider cyclists all that much, but I definitely feel more confident cycling on the road with the electric bike; I really do with there was a better cycle infrastructure here though as I now appreciate just how bad it really is!
Cons
– Being called a cheater and being asked what the point in cycling with an electric bike is. This one gets really old, really fast. I don’t think people understand just how hard it is to do anything when you weigh 320lbs, but I can assure you, everything is extremely hard, including just a simple walk or climbing the stairs. When I point out to people that it enables me to get light exercise when otherwise I couldn’t get any they tend to understand it a bit more. I’ve also noticed that people think it pedals itself, this seems a misconception that I’d love to see the major bike retailers address.
– On my journeys I’ve noticed an incredible lack of places to securely lock my bike up, I honestly thought this day in age the world would be much more accommodating to cycles, but there really is nowhere to lock it up half of the time which unfortunately prevents me quickly nipping to Tesco express to pick up a few things and instead having to reach for the keys.
– No accurate way to measure calorie burn, I’d love to be proved wrong here, but there’s just no accurate way that it can be measured, I often halve what apps tell me I’ve burnt but this is just a pure guess.
Highlights
– For me, the biggest highlight has to be a group of lycra clad cyclists clearly laughing at me as they past (I really am getting used to this). As they cycled up a rather nasty incline I don’t think they were expecting this lump to attempt cycling up behind them.. But I did.. The group were just silent (though I’m not sure if this is because they were peddling like buggery to get up the hill as I eased up). It felt good, I know I had an incredible advantage over them, but it just felt good!
So in summary, I absolutely love my electric bike, it gets me out and about and u genuinely enjoy it; it allows me to get some light exercise and enjoy the little bit of sun that we get here in Wales. I would strongly suggest getting an electric bike to anyone, I imagine that the fitter you are, the more fun it would be (you’d definitely get a hell of a lot more miles than I do!)
Pros
– So the first thing I’ve noticed is just how many miles I’ve covered in 1 month of having the bike. To put this into context, last year in a month I managed to cover little over 50 miles with a regular bike (I was also slightly lighter and less health complications). The miles I have covered so far on the electric bike have been completely trouble and hassle free, and I have cycled a couple of places I have never been on a normal bike for fear of not being able to get up a hill, or get up that never ending uphill gradient.
– During my more active weeks of getting out on the bike, I genuinely felt happier in myself and found that I was much less moody than usual. I suffer with anxiety and depression which can be a real struggle for me at times so feeling happier is more than welcome.
– I enjoy exercise. Ok so this one is debatable as there’s nowhere that I can find just how much exercise I’m getting, but generally my heart rate is between 120 and 150 when using my electric bike so its definitely getting the old ticker pumping but definitely not to the extent a non motorised bike would achieve.
– Cycle from home. For me this is a big one. Previously I had to take my bike 5 miles in a car to get to the cycle track (I still do at times) but now I can just leave the house and get pedalling wherever I want. I do still worry about cycling on the road as drivers really don’t seem to consider cyclists all that much, but I definitely feel more confident cycling on the road with the electric bike; I really do with there was a better cycle infrastructure here though as I now appreciate just how bad it really is!
Cons
– Being called a cheater and being asked what the point in cycling with an electric bike is. This one gets really old, really fast. I don’t think people understand just how hard it is to do anything when you weigh 320lbs, but I can assure you, everything is extremely hard, including just a simple walk or climbing the stairs. When I point out to people that it enables me to get light exercise when otherwise I couldn’t get any they tend to understand it a bit more. I’ve also noticed that people think it pedals itself, this seems a misconception that I’d love to see the major bike retailers address.
– On my journeys I’ve noticed an incredible lack of places to securely lock my bike up, I honestly thought this day in age the world would be much more accommodating to cycles, but there really is nowhere to lock it up half of the time which unfortunately prevents me quickly nipping to Tesco express to pick up a few things and instead having to reach for the keys.
– No accurate way to measure calorie burn, I’d love to be proved wrong here, but there’s just no accurate way that it can be measured, I often halve what apps tell me I’ve burnt but this is just a pure guess.
Highlights
– For me, the biggest highlight has to be a group of lycra clad cyclists clearly laughing at me as they past (I really am getting used to this). As they cycled up a rather nasty incline I don’t think they were expecting this lump to attempt cycling up behind them.. But I did.. The group were just silent (though I’m not sure if this is because they were peddling like buggery to get up the hill as I eased up). It felt good, I know I had an incredible advantage over them, but it just felt good!
So in summary, I absolutely love my electric bike, it gets me out and about and u genuinely enjoy it; it allows me to get some light exercise and enjoy the little bit of sun that we get here in Wales. I would strongly suggest getting an electric bike to anyone, I imagine that the fitter you are, the more fun it would be (you’d definitely get a hell of a lot more miles than I do!)
