The Best Exercise Bike Mats

Buying Guide

If you’ve added using an exercise bike to your at-home fitness routine, you’ll want to get an exercise bike mat to both protect your floor and offer stability during your rides. Without a mat, your bike’s feet can scratch up the floor and cause damage, and the bike can also slip around while you work out. In addition, a good exercise mat keeps any sweat off the floor and reduces some of the vibrations that others below you could hear.

You’ll want to consider your bike’s footprint to shop for a mat that’s large enough. These accessories usually measure at least 30 inches wide by 60 inches long, although some narrower mats exist. If you have a very large exercise bike, you may need a mat that is 72 inches long or more.

Both foam and rubber exercise mats exist and can suit different surfaces and needs. Rubber mats tend to be very durable and flexible enough for both carpet and hard floor surfaces. On the other hand, foam bike mats tend to work better for hard surfaces since you’ll have less stability with carpet. They might also get damaged more easily than rubber mats. With either type of bike mat material, you’ll often see a pattern that helps with gripping so the machine doesn’t slide around.

You can find exercise bike mats in different thicknesses too. You might like a thin mat for portability if you plan to move around your bike or take the mat when traveling. Ideal for carpeted surfaces, thin mats may offer less durability and not absorb vibrations well enough. On the other hand, thicker mats suit hard floors and can do a better job reducing vibrations and noise. Therefore, you might choose a thick mat if you live in an apartment and don’t want to disturb your neighbors below.

You should also look out for some special exercise bike mat features that come in handy. For example, you can find scratch-resistant mats that can look better for longer. You’ll also find mats that are resistant to water and sweat to do a better job of keeping your floor dry.

• You might wonder if you need to get the same brand of exercise mat as your bike. While you could do this, you can usually just use any mat as long as the size is compatible.
• Most exercise bike mats come in the versatile color black. However, you can sometimes find them in red, blue or other colors that might match your tastes or the room where you work out.
• Even a durable exercise bike mat can get damaged if you place your bike on it or move the bike off of the mat too roughly. Therefore, you’ll want to take care to lengthen the mat’s lifespan.
• You might notice that your exercise bike mat smells weird when you first take it out of the packaging. This should go away in a few days, but you could let the mat air out somewhere before the first use if it bothers you.
• You’ll need to clean your mat regularly since the sweat can build up and get stinky, and the moisture can cause mold to grow. Try using a wet cloth with soap and water or looking for special cleaning wipes for exercise mats. In addition, be sure to wipe your exercise bike down at least each week and use an antibacterial solution for the best results.
• If there’s enough padding, your bike mat can work comfortably for yoga workouts. You might use the mat for other types of exercise equipment as well.
• As your bike mat gets sweaty, it can become very slippery, so you’ll want to be careful stepping on and off.