E-Bike Versus Classic Bike Intervention Trial

University of Basel33 enrolled

Overview

The effects of active commuting with an e-bike, as compared with a "classic" bike, on cardiorespiratory fitness and vascular health are largely unknown. To assess whether active commuting with an e-bike or a classic bike increases peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak) in untrained and overweight individuals.

Riding an electrically assisted bicycle (e-bike) is thought to be suitable to increase physical activity in daily life, to promote health, and to increase cardiorespiratory fitness in normal-weight individuals. The positive effect of commuting to work by a normal bike on cardiorespiratory fitness has been shown to be an important predictor of cardiovascular mortality in previous studies. We thought to improve maximal oxygen uptake by commuting to work by e-bike vs. classic bike. Besides cardiorespiratory fitness we assessed arterial stiffness as brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity as an independent predictor of cardiovascular events and all-cause mortality.

Study Type

INTERVENTIONAL

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

NONE

Enrollment

Conditions

Physical Activity Obesity

Interventions

Commuting to workBEHAVIORAL

Commuting by an electric assisted bike to work for a period of 4 weeks at least 3 times per week

Eligibility

Sex: MALEMin age: 18 YearsMax age: 50 YearsHealthy volunteers:

Medical Language ↔ Plain English

Inclusion Criteria: body mass index 25-35 kg/m2, and willingness to commute to work by e-bike or by normal bike at least 3 times per week with a one-way distance of ≥ 6 km. Exclusion Criteria: cycling as a leisure-time activity, active commuting to work or exercise training more than once per week within 4 weeks before the start of the study, uncontrolled cardiovascular diseases limiting cardiorespiratory fitness, stage II arterial hypertension (systolic blood pressure \> 160 mmHg, diastolic blood pressure \> 95 mmHg), renal diseases, uncontrolled diabetes mellitus (HbA1c \> 6.5%), or active malignancy or chemotherapy during the past 6 months.

Locations (1)

Department for Sport, Exercise and Health, Sports and Exercise Medicine, University of Basel

Basel, Switzerland

Outcomes

Primary Outcomes

maximal oxygen uptake

maximal oxygen uptake measured on a cycle ergometer with a ramp protocol

Time frame: 4 weeks

Data from ClinicalTrials.gov

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