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15 Reasons to Get an Electric Bike
Are you wondering if an electric bike is the right choice for you? Consider the following 15 reasons to get an electric bike. I wanted to make this a list of 10, but there are just so many great reasons to get an electric bike that I could not stop at 10. Reasons for getting an ebike range from having fun to getting fit to … getting to work!
No. 1: Ebikes are Incredibly Good Fun!
Do yourself a favor and go watch some people test-riding electric bikes. Almost every one of them reacts the same when they set off for the first time – a momentary look of surprise, followed by a giant smile and sometimes even a whoop of joy! You can see exactly this response on the faces of the people in this video:
This is a reaction to suddenly feeling as if you have super powers! And once you are out riding, you are freed up to have fun and explore and enjoy.
Related Post: 7 of the Best Cheap Ebikes, 2022
I remember thinking, “I wonder what’s at the bottom of that hill?” and then deciding I was not going to go and find out, because then I would have to climb back up that very intimidating hill. With an electric bike, I can ride wherever I like! And that goes for everybody, because options like electric trikes and electric recumbents mean it is possible for almost anyone to have fun on an electric bike.
Related Post: Hub Motor vs Crank Drive Motor – Which is Better for an Electric Bike?
No. 2: Electric Bikes Enhance Health and Fitness, even if You Have Challenges
You’d think a regular bike would keep you fitter than an electric bike – and you’d be right, if you rode the regular bike as much as you rode the electric bike. But trust me, the average cyclist just will not ride a regular bike as much as an electric bike. Would I ride my regular bike up the steep hill I live on just to buy a bottle of wine or a loaf of bread? Would I ride it when I’m hauling 50 pounds? Not likely – I’d take transit. Sadly, this would not make me fitter. But my electric bike will make me fitter.
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I remember thinking, “I wonder what’s at the bottom of that hill?” and then deciding I was not going to go and find out, because then I would have to climb back up that very intimidating hill. With an electric bike, I can ride wherever I like! And that goes for everybody, because options like electric trikes and electric recumbents mean it is possible for almost anyone to have fun on an electric bike.
And I’m not the only one – the latest research shows a third of regular bikes are used less than 25 times a year, with 46% being used a paltry once or twice a week. However, 30% of people with electric bikes use them at least once a day, and a whopping 81% ride their bikes at least once a week.
Bottom line, as verified by the Transport Research Laboratory in the United Kingdom: electric bikes are used at least twice as often as regular bikes. And as we all know from the workout machines that serve as laundry dryers in basements all over this great continent of ours, machines only make you fit if you actually use them. Aslak Fyhri at the Institute of Transport Economics summarized:
“People travel twice as much on the electric bike [as on a regular bike], both in terms of kilometres, amount of trips, and as part of the total transportation. The effect of having an electric bike was particularly strong among women. They did far more trips with their e-bikes than men did. Men, on the other hand, often went for longer trips once they were out cycling.”
Read more here about how research proves electric bikes make people cycle more – especially women.
My electric bike has made it possible for me to live mostly car-free, and for most people, that is just not possible on a regular bike. I do most of my every-day commuting on my electric bike. So despite the fact that I am a strong cyclist and often have a lot of fun on my regular bikes, my very high level of fitness is mainly the result of my electric bike, not my regular bikes. The same applies to Maggie. And together, we can even use our electric bikes for the grocery shopping!
My electric bike uses a combination of pedaling and electric assistance – it’s called a Pedelec system, and gives you assistance in proportion to how much you pedal. The exercise you will get on an electric bike like this is good, low-intensity cardio exercise, often of long duration. For example, commuting to work on an electric bike might provide you with 30 to 60 minutes of low-intensity cardio, twice a day, five days a week – for a possible total of 12 hours per week of exercise. This adds up to a whopping amount of exercise done and calories burned – all in the time you would normally have done nothing but grow old, depressed, stressed and fat while trapped in traffic in your car.
