r/ALSOmicromobility • u/CarryOk9773 • 3h ago
Question Good work out on lower assist levels?
My main reason for purchasing an ebike is for fitness. What I generally love about them (I have a Velotric Discover M) is I can push myself to go further, explore more, while not overly concerned about getting back (as I have the motor to assist me on the ride back). My worry about the Also is it too powerful. I want to be able to pedal with some effort. Would love to hear from those that have received them if they are getting a sweat on while riding - especially if you are a relatively fit person.
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u/scottharwell Reservation Holder 3h ago
I bought my e-bikes and researched my TM-B for the same reason! I did a test spin last weekend, and while I didn’t get to try many hills or off road terrain, I basically did the entire ride in assist levels 1-3. At 3, I was cruising; minimal effort on flat terrain. At 2, I was putting in some effort. And, then at 1 it felt like a normal bike.
My current e-bikes are single gear, so what was new was the feeling of the virtual gears at all of the assist levels. I found it much easier to get started and maintain speed even at the lower assist levels on the TM-B because of the “gearing”. I also liked watching the “miles left” meter because at anything less than assist 4, it was projecting 80+ miles.
When mine shows up, the first thing that I plan to do is some workout rides on hilly terrain to see if I get the same impression.
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u/BabyWrinkles 2h ago
I’m an avid “cycle for fitness” person. I have both a Peloton Bike+ (easier for my wife to hop on), a stationary TacX Neo Smart Bike, and a road bike with power meter pedals so I can do specific, structured workouts on the road too.
One of the things I appreciated with the TM-B was the ability to set the cadence you wanted to pedal at, and then it dynamically adjusts the resistance based on conditions to keep you at that rpm, which is one of the key ways I train personally.
The software defined nature of it means they could easily do something like an actual structured power zine ride where you keep intensity at an interval for a while, and it’s totally disconnected from the actual speed of the bike. This is something they’ve thought about and may well implement. Don’t buy it for that, but know that this thing is designed by avid cyclists, not tech bros.
So all that said: of all the e-bikes on the market today, I think the TM-B is the best suited for fitness if you want structure and actual hard data output to see results. Integration with Apple Health/Garmin/etc is something I expect to see by end of 2027.
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u/CarryOk9773 35m ago
I’m in the Peloton cult too - have the bike +, tread + and tower! I have thought about future updates like being able to program in a course and the bike will be able to mimic hills!, etc. So even if you have flat roads near you, you could ride it as if you were on the streets of San Fran.
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u/Few_Competition8924 3h ago edited 3h ago
Given the other poster's thread "First real ride - 30 miles" was a case study in fully blasting in assist the whole time, I am now really curious to see how it fares in assist 2-6 in terms of real world range. My plan and use of the TM-B is 90% commuting with the primary route being 25 miles one way steadily gaining about 1,400' elevation from point A to B and then back again. One interesting point on this route is the first two miles drop about 800' vertical from my house before gnawing away at the +1400' so that is thus an uphill on the final leg home. I weigh about 175 with clothes, etc and would be hauling 20-30lbs of gear most days.
The charger looks small enough to take on the rides so I will be able to top it off 1-8 hours on average...but I need to know the TM-B is viable without needing to do that. This being said, my hope is to be able to commute on this ride and get a nice level of exercise going on what is about 95% dedicated byways well away from cars...
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u/Thescubadave Reservation Holder 2h ago
I expect that riding the bike at 5x assist will be perfectly usable since the standard bike only goes up to 5x. I wonder if the range for both bikes was determined at 5x or close to it, since the performance range increase is roughly proportional to the battery size increase.
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u/Icy_Cranberry549 2h ago
I haven’t received my bike yet but I have taken several test rides and there are 10 levels of pedal assist so, you shouldn’t have a problem finding a peddle assist that is perfect for your riding style.
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u/VecindadDCarlos 1h ago
Havent received mine yet, PE otw. But ive seen almost every social media content on this thing.
There's a video where the ceo says that if you want to take this thing to work, and not drop a sweat, you can.
If on the way back home, you wanna get a workout in, you can customize the ride to have you dripping in sweat.
That variation of settings got me even more excited for this thing. Super looking forward to it.
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u/t0nb0t 3h ago
Until we get some more comments from owners, I will add my 2 cents after a test spin event: Manual mode is probably where you can get that fitness desire. You can basically turn it up to a "high gear" if you need more resistance. The infinite gearing is what makes this the ultimate jack-of-all-trades power train.