In a Nutshell:
FitDesk Bike Desk is a very good, collapsible bike desk, perfect for people with limited space. It is recommended for anyone who is 300-pounds or less looking for a bike desk optimized for light to moderate daily use.
Value for the Money
Comfort
Usability
Brand Reliability*
Overall Rating
3.9/5
Benefits
Drawbacks
Recommended For: Anyone who is 300-pounds or less looking for a bike desk optimized for light to moderate daily use.
Are you unhappy with your level of daily physical activity? Does the thought of joining a gym turn your stomach? Are you looking for a way to incorporate a fitness routine into your existing workday without sacrificing productivity? If so, then you’re going to like what you read about in this review, especially if you’re a little cramped for space and don’t have a lot of room for a big, hulking piece of exercise equipment.
While bike desks certainly aren’t for everyone, they can be a powerful component of your daily fitness routine and, if used regularly, will help you lose weight and achieve whatever fitness goals you set for yourself.
The FitDesk Bike Desk is a great product, but as you’ll see in the sections below, somewhat narrowly focused toward a very specific subset of potential buyers. Is the FitDesk right for you? Read on and find out!
An Overview of the FitDesk Bike Desk
It looks like an exercise bike with a few interesting add-ons. That, or something close to it, is likely to be your first impression, and it’s certainly not wrong. Given that the FitDesk Bike Desk looks like it belongs in your home gym, it might not be a good fit, aesthetically for your home. It will certainly stick out like a sore thumb in any room other than a home gym, but people who are interested in bike desks and other unconventional office seating solutions don’t usually have a problem with that; they tend to be more interested in results!
Results, of course, revolve around the capabilities of the machine, and we’ll get to that in just a moment. Before we do, though, let’s take a quick look at the core stats of the FitDesk, which is currently has two versions on offer: the Fitdesk Bike Desk 2.0 and Fitdesk Bike Desk 3.0.
Both Fitdesk versions have same dimensions as follows:
These numbers paint a picture of a bike desk with a surprisingly small footprint that’s useful to the vast majority of the market. More supported user weight is always better, of course, but with a 300-pound weight limit, some 90% of the market could make use of this model.
It’s also delightfully lightweight, which, given how easily it can be folded when not in use, makes moving it from one place to the other a simple proposition, further enhanced by the inclusion of two wheels added for that very purpose.
The one disappointment here is the limited number of resistance settings, but we’ll have more to say about that in the next section.
Features of the FitDesk Bike Desk
Adjustability, Comfort, and Capabilities
Let’s start this section of our FitDesk Exercise Bike review with the weakest aspect of the chair’s design. It’s not comfortable enough to spend a full day in.
The bicycle-style seat is sufficiently padded for a short ride, and you could probably get away with spending up to two hours or so on the seat, but after that, you’re going to want to get up, stretch your legs, and un-numb your butt.
The company did include a seatback, but like the seat itself, it’s very small – about the size of a pancake. While that’s better than nothing, it’s far from optimal and again, not something you’ll want to lean back on for the entire workday, uninterrupted.
The upshot is that both the seat and the seatback are height adjustable so at least you can get the seatback where you want it most, it’s just a pity there’s not more of it. Like the seat, the desk’s position can also be adjusted so you can get it at the height and angle you’re most comfortable working in.
One disappointment, though, is the limited number of resistance adjustments available. The first few adjustments on the low side all feel pretty similar, so from a practical perspective, you’re left with 4-5 genuinely different resistance adjustments. That’s fine for a basic workout, but that’s all this bike is really capable of giving you.
There is one hidden gem of a feature, though, that will serve as a pleasant surprise. The bike desk comes equipped with resistance bands tucked under the seat when you’re not using them.
Simply reach down, grab them, one in each hand, and you can give your arms a good workout while you’re pedaling. That’s a very nice touch that gives you a much more complete workout than any other bike desk we’ve seen. We love it, but we’d love it even more if there were more adjustment options available, both for the bike and the tension bands for your arms.
In addition to being adjustable, the desk itself holds a couple of surprises. First, where some bike desks utilize a padded forearm and wrist rest, the FitDesk uses a pair of strategically placed “massage bars” that are positioned so that they hit your wrists and forearms as you’re typing or working with a laptop or tablet on the desk itself.
Although they don’t look it at first glance, these are actually amazingly comfortable and really add something to the experience. We were impressed, and we think you will be too.
Even better, just like old-style school desks, the work tray contains a flip-up storage compartment big enough to hold a touchscreen tablet or other miscellaneous office supplies.
It’s a great finishing touch, and we wouldn’t be at all surprised to see competitors begin to copy it.
The FitDesk Under Desk Cycle sports a small LED screen and control panel, which lets you track how far you’ve ridden (in either miles or kilometers, at your option), how long you’ve ridden, or how many calories you’ve burned, but there’s a drawback.
Given the positioning of the LED display, if you put your laptop on the work desk and open it, you completely lose sight of the display. In our view, this would be better located on the side of the desk closest to you, or even side-mounted so you could keep an eye on it while working.
It’s a minor complaint, granted, but still worth mentioning.
Fitdesk 2.0 vs 3.0
The Fitdesk bike desks have minor differences as follows:
Accessories!
Although it’s true that the base model is a bit bare-bones, one thing we really like about the FitDesk is the fact that the company offers a few accessories that, in our view, really round out the design. Sure, it adds a bit to the cost, but they really do add a bit of polish. We’ll give you a quick overview below, and you can find the accessories on the company’s website, here.
The Desk Extension Kit
The default size of the work tray is certainly enough to get the job done and is capable of supporting most laptops, but the desk extension kit really takes it to the next level, giving you more space for the stuff you need to stay productive and adding a handy cup holder or, if you don’t want to use it for that purpose, it’s a great place to stash pens and other small supplies.
The Universal Saddle Adapter
This is another high-value addition, especially given that the default seat leaves something to be desired, especially if your goal is to use the bike desk for extended periods at a stretch.
With the adapter in hand, you can use the existing seat to get you started, then shop around for a bigger seat with better padding that fits you perfectly.
The Water Bottle Holder
This one really isn’t essential if you get the desk extension kit, but if you invest in this too, then you can reserve the cup holder on the desk extension for other supplies. Either way, it’s a low-cost, high-value addition.
The Assembly Process Isn’t Bad
Like most of these types of products on the market today, the FitDesk does not come assembled.
Fortunately, the company did a pretty good job on this front. Not only are the assembly instructions clear, but the process of putting it together to get it ready for first use isn’t bad.
True, there are a lot of parts, and the initial sorting and prep will take a bit of time, but once you’re organized and ready to begin, you’ll find that the production quality is quite high.
All the holes line up properly, which means you won’t have to wrestle any of the pieces into position before fastening them together.
From start to finish, it will probably take you about an hour, and you can cut that time by fifteen minutes or so if you have an assistant standing by on the day your desk arrives.
You can also pay an extra fee for expert assembly, but we don’t really recommend it unless you just don’t want to be bothered with the process. The fee is rather steep, and the process is simple enough that it won’t be problematic for most people.
Pros and Cons of the FitDesk Under Desk Cycle
In no particular order, here are the things we like best about the FitDesk:
Those are all good things, but this model does have a few limitations to be mindful of. These include:
At the end of the day, it comes down to mindfulness. As long as you’re aware of what this bike desk is and is not so good at, it can be a superb product. If you buy in the blind or ignore its limitations, you’re likely to be disappointed.
On the whole, though, we feel that the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
Final Thoughts: FitDesk Exercise Bike Review
The FitDesk Bike Desk is very much a niche product in a niche market. In our view, the following is the profile that best describes the ideal user for it.
Someone who:
The more of those that apply to you, the happier you’re going to be with the FitDesk. On that basis, we provisionally recommend it.
Recommended Reading
Exerpeutic 2500 Bicycle Desk Review
We analyzed the Exerpeutic 2500 Bike, a stylish choice for bike desks, offering exercise and functionality.
Flexispot Deskcise Pro Bike Desk Review
We examined the Flexispot Bike Desk, an office alternative ideal for occasional use and those with limited space.
REFERENCES & RESOURCES
- FitDesk, Official Brand Website.
- FitDesk Bike Desk User Manual.
- The Potential of Bike Desks to Reduce Sedentary Time in the Office: A Mixed-Method Study, ScienceDirect.
- Cycling on a Bike Desk Positively Influences Cognitive Performance, NCBI.