Written by Kirsten Yovino | CPT Brookbush Institute
Fact checked by Tyler DiGiovanni, BSBM
FACT CHECKED
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At first glance, an assault bike may look less than impressive with its old-school vibe and none of the flash of a Peloton. But, no accessories are needed for this machine, which provides an incredible workout using only a no-frills bike and attached fan.
The full-body cardio machine works your anaerobic energy system (the same energy system you rely on to lift heavy weights!) while boosting your cardiovascular endurance.
It's also easily incorporated into high-intensity interval training or Tabata-style workouts, meaning the calorie burn is high, and the time it takes to burn them is low.
Table of Contents:
- What Is An Assault Bike?
- Is The Assault Bike A Good Workout? (Hint: it is!)
- 5 Best Assault Bike Workouts
- What Muscles Do Assault Bike Workouts Work?
- Assault Bike Benefits
- Air Bike Form Tips
- FAQs
Not only does an assault bike work your entire body, but it also exercises your mental toughness. You’ll appreciate the extra willpower the next time you need to push yourself to get one last rep in.
WHAT IS AN ASSAULT BIKE (AKA AIR BIKE)?
An assault bike, also known as a fan or air bike or fan bike, takes cycling up a notch by incorporating the upper body into the workout. Your arms will pump like you're cross-country skiing, while your lower body cycles through some powerful resistance.
Another difference between the assault bike and a more traditional stationary bike is that the attached fan makes the resistance harder the faster you pedal. No one said a cardio machine needs a fancy screen to be effective.
IS THE ASSAULT BIKE A GOOD WORKOUT?
The assault bike is an incredible head-to-toe workout that challenges your aerobic and anaerobic systems, simultaneously improving your endurance and strengthening your muscles.
The exercise equipment targets your chest, back, arms, abdominals, obliques, and legs. It's also a true workout superstar for high-intensity interval training and Tabata workouts, making it a full-body exercise that torches calories. In fact, if you're looking for a fat-burning HIIT workout to help with weight loss, the assault bike is the equipment for the job.
Research shows the air bike leads to additional muscle mass and more cardiovascular work than a leg-only pedaling bike1. Study participants increased their heart rate to between 163 to 170 beats per minute, exceeding the requirements for a high-intensity workout. The air bike burned max calories, increased muscle, and improved the cardiovascular system.
5 BEST ASSAULT BIKE WORKOUTS
Before starting any of these assault bike workouts, take 5 to 10 minutes to warm up, which you can do by pedaling at an easy to moderate pace.
1. Air Bike Rounds for Time Circuit:
Rounds for time (RFT) is a CrossFit term that describes a workout in which you try to complete a certain number of rounds of an exercise routine as quickly as possible.
The RFT possibilities are endless, but these two assault bike workouts are perfect for getting you started. For both of these, you’ll spend time on the air bike and then hop off to perform the additional exercises.
Air Bike RFT Version 1 (8 Rounds):
|
Activity |
Duration/Reps |
|
Pedal as fast as you can |
40 seconds |
|
Push-ups |
12 reps |
|
Mountain climbers |
10 reps |
|
Jump squats |
10 reps |
|
Jumping jacks |
10 reps |
Note: This is one round of the workout. There are a total of 8 rounds in this workout routine. Once you wrap up jumping jacks, round 1 is complete. Hop back on your bike for round 2, pedaling for 40 seconds, and repeating the list of exercises. See how quickly you can complete all eight rounds.
Air Bike RFT Version 2 (8 Rounds):
Rather than staying on the air bike for a set number of seconds, this version requires you to pedal, push, and pull until you burn a certain number of calories. Hit your calorie requirements, and then perform the list of exercises below, repeating the circuit as quickly as you can for eight rounds.
|
Activity |
Description |
|
Burn 80 calories on the assault bike |
Pedal, push, and pull until you reach 80 calories |
|
Jump rope |
20 seconds |
|
Speed skaters |
10 reps |
|
Side-to-side plank walks |
10 reps |
|
Half burpees |
10 reps |
Note: This is one round of the workout. There are a total of 8 rounds in this workout routine.
2. Reverse Tabata Assault Bike Workout:
Tabata is an interval-format workout that burns calories quickly while improving your anaerobic energy system. As this assault bike workout style targets your anaerobic system, built-in rest sessions are crucial for letting your energy replenish, making the reverse Tabata a great option.
Put in 10 seconds of hard work, followed by 20 seconds of rest. This routine starts at 8 rounds, but as you build your endurance, you can add more rounds. It's a simple workout, but very effective.
|
Activity |
Duration |
|
Pedal at max speed |
10 seconds |
|
Rest |
20 seconds |
Note: This is one round of the workout. Repeat this round 8 times for the entire workout routine.
3. Pyramid Intervals:
Pyramid assault bike workout intervals are deceiving as they start with less work (hooray for 10-second sprint sessions followed by 50 seconds of rest!) but quickly increase the all out sprint duration while decreasing the rest periods.
The highest work session lasts 50 seconds, and then you begin reducing the sprint time and re-increase your rest time. Eleven minutes in duration, this pyramid workout is grueling and pushes your endurance to the next level.
Complete one 11-minute round of this assault bike workout, pedal at a slow to medium pace (aka a recovery pace) for 5 minutes, and then perform the pyramid intervals one more time.
Pyramid Assault Bike Intervals:
|
Minute |
Activity |
Duration (Sprint/Rest) |
|
1 |
Sprint on air bike |
10s sprint / 50s rest |
|
2 |
Sprint on air bike |
20s sprint / 40s rest |
|
3 |
Sprint on air bike |
30s sprint / 30s rest |
|
4 |
Sprint on air bike |
40s sprint / 20s rest |
|
5 |
Sprint on air bike |
50s sprint / 10s rest |
|
6 |
Sprint on air bike |
55s sprint / 5s rest |
|
7 |
Sprint on air bike |
50s sprint / 10s rest |
|
8 |
Sprint on air bike |
40s sprint / 20s rest |
|
9 |
Sprint on air bike |
30s sprint / 30s rest |
|
10 |
Sprint on air bike |
20s sprint / 40s rest |
|
11 |
Sprint on air bike |
10s sprint / 50s rest |
Note: You can perform this routine for up to 2 rounds, completing each round in 11 minutes. Adjust the intensity to your fitness level and ensure proper form during sprints.
4. Air Bike Calorie Intervals:
The best way to burn calories in a full body air bike workout? You guessed it: Set a workout goal to burn calories. With a calorie burn goal for each minute, the air bike intervals get progressively more challenging as the workout progresses.
Pedal, push, and pull until failure, and track your progression each week to keep an eye on your gains. Every minute added to your time means more progress.
Put in the work at the beginning of each minute, pedaling hard to hit your calorie goal. Once you hit it, rest for the remainder of that minute, before minute 2 starts, and your calorie goal increases.
|
Minute |
Activity |
Calories to Burn |
|
1 |
Burn 4 calories |
4 |
|
2 |
Burn 7 calories |
7 |
|
3 |
Burn 10 calories |
10 |
|
4 |
Burn 13 calories |
13 |
|
5 |
Burn 16 calories |
16 |
|
6 |
Burn 19 calories |
19 |
|
7 |
Burn 22 calories |
22 |
|
8 |
Burn 25 calories |
25 |
|
9 |
Burn 28 calories |
28 |
Note: The table includes the first few minutes of the air bike workout as an example. Continue increasing the calorie goal by 3 for each subsequent minute until you reach your limit or failure. Adjust the intensity and pace based on your fitness level and monitor your form during the workout.
5. Timed Interval Workout:
The only way to make an assault bike more challenging is to throw burpees into the mix. This timed 6-round assault bike burpee interval workout has you air-bike at your highest intensity for 5 minutes, gradually increasing your burpees as you go.
We’ve programmed this workout for 30 minutes, but you can easily personalize this by shortening the time, increasing burpees, or ramping up your pedaling as your fitness level increases.
|
Round |
Activity |
Duration/Reps |
|
1 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 2 burpees |
2 burpees |
|
2 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 4 burpees |
4 burpees |
|
3 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 6 burpees |
6 burpees |
|
4 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 8 burpees |
8 burpees |
|
5 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 10 burpees |
10 burpees |
|
6 |
Pedal at highest intensity for 5 minutes |
5 minutes |
|
|
Perform 12 burpees |
12 burpees |
Note: You can replace burpees for future assault bike workouts too, with exercises like the push up, pull up, kettlebell swings, or even planks. You will still have an effective workout with any of these options, but burpees are arguably the hardest.
Bonus Assault Bike Workout:
For the ultimate calorie-burning workout, challenge yourself to burn 100 calories in the shortest time possible. Remember your time, and continue pushing yourself to beat it. Or, bump up the intensity, and see how quickly you can blast 200 calories.
WHAT MUSCLES DOES AN AIR BIKE WORK?
Almost every muscle in your body works during an assault bike workout thanks to the pushing, pulling, cycling, and resistance.
Just think of the different cardio options available in your gym: the elliptical does a great job working the arms, shoulders, and chest, while the rowing machine works the back. A treadmill, elliptical, rowing machine, and stationary bike require activation from the lower body muscles. Combine those movements and qualities into one powerhouse piece of gym equipment (ahem, the air bike), and you’ll activate every major muscle group.
Here's a breakdown of all the muscles working. Spoiler alert: There are a lot of them.
- Triceps
- Biceps
- Deltoids
- Pectoralis major and minor
- Latissimus dorsi
- Abdominals
- Obliques
- Erector spinae
- Hamstrings
- Hip Flexors
- Gluteus maximus, medius, and minimus
- Quadriceps
- Hamstrings
- Calves
6 BEST ASSAULT BIKE BENEFITS
The benefits of an air bike workout are plentiful. The following perks come when you perform rides on air cycles.
1) Builds muscle:
Remember that long list of muscles we just highlighted? Thanks to the resistance, each of them becomes stronger when using an air exercise bike.
As your lower-body muscles are cycling the entire time, and your arms are continuously working in a pushing-pulling motion during this full body workout, all of your major muscle groups engage for the duration of your air bike workout. Non-stop engagement plus resistance equals more muscle.
2) Burns calories:
Estimating calories burned during a workout is always challenging because it depends on several factors, including your height, weight, and exertion during exercise. But if you consider the demands an assault bike places on your body, which involves gaining muscle while building endurance, you can start to put two and two together that it’s a great calorie burner.
In addition, assault bikes are ideal for HIIT and Tabata workouts, which can torch calories in a short amount of time. Research comparing HIIT to resistance training, cycling, and running, found that one HIIT session that combines resistance training and aerobic exercise (in this case, the air bike) burns more calories and increases the heart rate more significantly than other exercises2.
As for calories burned, a separate study reviewed high-intensity interval training on a stationary bike and found that in just 2.5 minutes, broken up into intervals of five 30-second sprints followed by light pedaling, participants burned up to 220 calories3.
Five minutes of work for 220 calories equals 44 calories per minute, which is exceptional. Now, imagine using that same HIIT format on a bike where your arms and legs are both working continuously. How many calories you can burn is limitless! When pedaling at your fastest speed, you may be able to burn close to 80 calories per minute on the air bike.
3) Supports weight loss and sheds belly fat:
No workout allows you to spot target body fat, but as you burn calories during aerobic training and lose weight, you’ll lose excess fat everywhere, including the abdominal area. Research comparing HIIT to other forms of steady-state cardio, such as jogging, found that HIIT reduces more abdominal fat4.
HIIT workouts can reduce appetite post-workout, while the strain placed on the anaerobic energy system leads to a higher rate of fat burn. This is a great weight loss tool for everyone but can be particularly beneficial for an endomorph body type fitness routine.
4) Improves cardiovascular fitness:
As your major muscles move continuously against resistance while on assault bikes, your heart works just as hard.
Improving your endurance makes your heart more efficient at delivering oxygen to your muscles, and as your endurance improves, you can pedal faster to continue pushing yourself. This strategy keeps building your heart muscles while ensuring you avoid a plateau.
5) Improves mental toughness:
An intense workout pushes you mentally just as much as it does physically, and the assault bike is challenging to say the least. You will reach a point where your body is tired and wants to stop - after all, why does it matter if you quit 2-3 minutes earlier than you planned?
But push through, finish your assault bike workout, and you'll be mentally and physically stronger for having done it.
6) Beneficial for everyone:
Whether you are looking for a low-impact workout, one that will push your anaerobic system and aerobic system, boost your endurance, or help with weight loss, air bikes check all the boxes.
Now that you know the awesome benefits of Air Bikes you might be thinking about purchasing one. If so, make sure to check out our post that covers the Best Air Bikes on the market today.
FORM TIPS FOR THE ASSAULT BIKE
You now know the benefits of the air bike and the muscles it works, and you have a few great routines to work into your gym routine. The only thing left is to use proper form to get the most out of your assault bike sessions.
- Adjust your seat height. The most uncomfortable thing you can do for yourself is hop on your assault bike without adjusting the seat. You should have slightly bent knees when sitting; think 20 degrees or so. This position enables you to pedal with more force while protecting your knees.
- Lean forward slightly. Another strategy for additional force production, it helps you pedal faster and burn more calories.
- Keep your trunk still while pedaling. When on assault air bikes, keep the work in your arms and legs by not moving your torso side to side or back and forth. Moving your trunk area puts you at a higher risk of hurting your back. Keep your torso still so your core will have to work harder to stabilize your limbs and protect your back.
- Push, pull, pedal. Avoid letting one muscle group work harder than the rest when using a fan exercise bike. Just as much work should go into your upper body as it does your lower body.
FAQs
In search of more great air bike workout information? You've come to the right section!
HOW LONG SHOULD ASSAULT BIKE WORKOUTS BE?
Your workout length depends on your fitness level. If you are in the beginning stages of building muscle and endurance capacity, start with 10-12 minutes and work your way up. If you are in moderate shape, a good beginning place is 15-20 minutes, while someone very fit can target the 20 to 30-minute range. HIIT workouts place high demands on your body, so pushing past 30 minutes is unnecessary. If you reach 30 minutes and aren't thoroughly fatigued, pedal faster.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU DO AIR BIKE WORKOUTS?
Just as you shouldn't train the same muscle group on back-to-back days, that same protocol applies for high-intensity interval training on the assault bike. Strength training, HIIT, and Tabata rely on the anaerobic energy system, meaning your body needs time between sessions to build muscle and replenish energy stores. Beginners on the assault fitness air bike should aim for one session per week, while intermediate to advanced fitness levels can aim for 2 to 3 sessions per week. Make sure to give your body 48 hours between assault air bike workouts.
Air Bike Workouts: Summary
Well, there you have it! Everything you need to know about assault fitness bikes and maximizing your time on them. All you have left is to get to the gym, hop on one of these old-school machines, and prepare to burn calories, build muscle, and blast fat.
Trust me, it'll be one of the best full-body workouts you can do.
Want to bring assault bike (a.k.a. air bike) workouts to the comfort of your home? Check out our list of the 8 best air bikes on the market. Looking for a recommendation? Go for the Blitz Assault Bike from Bells of Steel. In our opinion, it is the best option on the market.
The Blitz Air Bike is the definitive choice for your home gym. Belt driven with an oversized fan and comes standard with wind guard, bottle and phone holder and a super comfy seat...
References:
- BROWNE JD, CARTER R, ROBINSON A, et al. Not All HIFT Classes Are Created Equal: Evaluating Energy Expenditure and Relative Intensity of a High-Intensity Functional Training Regimen. International Journal of Exercise Science. 2020;13(4):1206-1216. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7523891/
- March 2015 - Volume 29 - Issue 3 : The Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research. journals.lww.com. https://journals.lww.com/nsca-jscr/Fulltext/2015/03000/Caloric_Expenditure_of_Aerobic
- Sevits KJ, Melanson EL, Swibas T, et al. Total daily energy expenditure is increased following a single bout of sprint interval training. Physiological Reports. 2013;1(5). doi:10.1002/phy2.131
- Boutcher SH. High-Intensity Intermittent Exercise and Fat Loss. Journal of Obesity. 2011;2011:1-10. doi:10.1155/2011/868305
Kirsten Yovino
Author