Cybex 500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent Cycle Owner’s Manual
For best results, pedal at 64 RPM or faster.
Bicycle Mode and Exercise Mode
The 500 series cycle offers two types of controlled resistance to give you your choice of
workout. In manual mode, the 500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent Cycle is in
bicycle mode;
during a program (including the heart rate program), it is in
exercise mode.
• Bicycle mode simulates riding a real bicycle across level ground. You choose from 21 gear
settings; at higher settings, there is more resistance-it's harder to pedal, but you go farther
for every pedal revolution. At any given setting, you can do more work by pedaling faster.
You can reach the highest work level only at high pedaling speeds.
Higher speeds require much more work than lower: 20 mph, for example, takes three
times as much effort as 10 mph. At high speeds, you can stop pedaling temporarily and
"coast," just as on a real bicycle.
• In exercise mode, the level you set determines the amount of work you do when you
pedal. If you change your pedaling speed, the 500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent Cycle
adjusts the resistance so you are doing the same amount of work. If you want to do more
or less work, you change the setting, not your pedaling speed. This lets the 500C Cycle
and 500R Recumbent Cycle control the amount of work you are doing at any time, so you
get the maximum benefit from the various programs.
If you slow your pedaling speed below 64 RPM, the 500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent
Cycle decreases the resistance (and workload). This is necessary so you can begin
pedaling from a stop.
In summary: In manual mode, you are in bicycle mode: changing the level setting changes the
resistance on the pedals, just like shifting gears on a real bike. During programs, you are in
exercise mode: changing the level changes your total workload; the 500C Cycle and 500R
Recumbent Cycle adjusts the resistance on the pedals to keep the work constant as you
change pedaling speeds.
Your Workout
There are two basic ways to use the 500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent Cycle: in manual
mode or using one of the preset workout programs. The following sections tell you how to
use each of these modes.
500C Cycle and 500R Recumbent Cycle's heart rate control program is covered in Chapter 4.
These instructions assume you are using the bike's alternator feature: the cycle is not
plugged into the wall; it uses the power generated by pedaling to light the console. If
you do have the cycle plugged in, you don't have to start pedaling before choosing a
workout mode, and the length of time it remembers information if you pause or after a
workout is determined by the idle time setting, as described in Chapter 2.
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