Trend: Is e-biking a serious sport?

Michèl Gleich: Yes, because basically any kind of exercise counts as sport . Targeted physical activity is always good for mind and body. Depending on your age, performance level and sporting ambitions, regular sport and continuous training can take many forms. It doesn't always have to be about setting records according to the motto "higher, faster and further". There are so many great ways to be active: like going for walks, swimming, climbing trees, doing gymnastics with the kids on the monkey bars and even e-biking . To name just a few. The main thing is that you have fun and do something good for yourself and your health.

Question: Can I improve my physical fitness by using e-bikes?

Michèl Gleich: I make no secret of the fact that traditional cycling naturally improves physical fitness significantly more, as both the cardiovascular system and the targeted use of different muscle groups are more demanding. As a result of properly calibrated training, greater performance improvements can be expected. However, you can also improve your physical fitness in certain areas with e-bikes. For example, it's possible to reduce or even turn off the assisted motor power on all electric models.

This offers the opportunity—especially for beginners or those who initially feel unsafe on a bicycle—to get used to the strain and gradually improve. I also believe e-bikes are a great way for beginners and less able cyclists to explore regions by bike that might not have been accessible with a traditional (road) bike. I'm convinced that, out of respect for nature, it's better to use a bicycle—whether electric or muscle-powered—than a car.

During my last tour last weekend, I completed the journey from Berlin to the Brocken on my racing bike in nine hours. The total distance of more than 260 kilometers is already a challenge, which is further increased by the final climb on the mountain in the Harz Mountains. Here, too, I was overtaken by a few e-bikers on the Brocken Road.

But this was perfectly fine with me, because both I and the cyclist with electric assistance were pursuing their own personal, individual, athletic goals—regardless of where they started or how many kilometers they had already covered. In the end, we were both proud and happy to be standing at the summit. That's what matters, after all.

In my training sessions with my athletes, I consider physical fitness to include not only muscular performance but also mental abilities. E-biking can support you here, too, because the mental demands placed on you and your bike should not be neglected, for example, if you want to cover a winding route in a hilly forest. Concentration, stabilization, anticipation, and possibly quick decision-making are required and necessary here.

Michèl Gleich: As I've already mentioned, I see clear advantages in e-biking for beginners and people who, due to their fitness and health, can no longer cover longer distances on a traditional bicycle. E-biking offers a wonderful opportunity to explore nature and one's own potential. Furthermore, every bike on the roads helps nature and the climate.

If, for example, you are already reaching heart rate levels during moderate exercise that make a longer training session impossible, using electrical assistance is a good way to keep your exercise heart rate at a reasonable level.

E-bikes often weigh more due to the additional electronics and motor, which should definitely be taken into account when purchasing and using them later. However, newer models have already made significant improvements compared to the early days of e-biking. Furthermore, depending on the features, an e-bike is often more expensive than a comparable model without electric assistance.

Of course, regularly charging the battery is also a cost factor to consider. But compared to the use and potential repair costs of a vehicle, you'll be better off in the long run with an e-bike.

Question: How can e-bikes help with rehabilitation?

Michèl Gleich: Indeed, e-bikes can also support recovery – that crucial period after an illness or injury. In consultation with your doctor and the nature of the impairment, an electric bike is a wonderful way to get moving again, especially if your muscle strength isn't sufficient for a "normal" bike at first.

As part of my coaching of Olympic champions, world champions, and amateur athletes, I advise everyone, as long as muscular strain is medically and physiologically possible again, to exercise, regardless of the form. This is crucial for muscle building but equally essential for the often difficult mental phase after an injury. The goal is to rebuild both physical and mental self-confidence, regardless of the form and level of exertion. E-biking can be an important first step here.