Schwinn 250 Recumbent Bike Review

A Review the Schwinn 250 Recumbent Bike

A Schwinn 250 review by an owner: I have tried many various bikes in my mission to find a quality exercise bike.

I knew I wanted a recumbent bike vs an upright or other style right from the start due to the numerous benefits of recumbent over other types.

Finally after trying a multitude of different bikes at different stores, fitness clubs, some friends houses, etc; I settled my focus on the Schwinn 250 recumbent bike.

This Schwinn 250 is a solid exercise bike but it may not be the ideal match for every single person, I entice you to continue reading and find out why and if it’s right for you.

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Why the Schwinn 250? The Pluses

The Schwinn 250 is a recumbent bike, in case you want to know the differences between an upright, check out one of our other articles here: Recumbent Exercise Bike Benefits

As mentioned, I’ve tested a lot of different bikes and the sheer quality of this Schwinn 250 is hard to beat. By this I mean it’s a rock solid machine, sturdy, quiet and comfortable. Other machines I’ve tested which come close to matching the quality of this bike are upwards of $1000+

The computer that comes with it has programmable workouts and is able to have different profiles for different people using the bike. This is a huge plus for me as my wife likes to use it too and she can have her own workout setup. With other bikes that I’ve tested you would have to manually change all the settings each time for each person. On top of this the multicolored back-lighting is pleasant on the eyes and the screen is adjustable in height for users of different sizes without having to crane their necks. It even has a built in heart rate scanner which will help optimize your workouts.

The seat is quite comfortable for both of us, me being 6 foot 220lb and my wife being 5’4, we both find it very comfortable to sit on for up to a couple hours even (haven’t tried for much longer than that in one sitting), it’s well padded and just a good solid seat. And of course, the seat supports multiple positions as well, again perfectly accommodating our different sizes.

As for the actual workouts themselves, again the Schwinn 250 does not fall short. There are 26 different pre-programmed workouts built into the computer each designed to step you up and push you to your limits. The flywheel has up to 16 different resistance levels which are adequate for pretty much any possible personal level of fitness. I used to do 600lb squats a few years ago so I’ve got some pretty strong legs but with the higher resistance levels this bike is still very capable of exhausting my legs.

Schwinn 250 Negatives, Does it Have Any?

As is with everything, the Schwinn 250 does have it’s flaws too, fortunately those flaws only involve the initial setup and learning how to use the computer and even I have some solutions to share to make the process easier.

I actually owned a Schwinn 240 before I upgraded to a 250 and the 240 came with terrible instructions on how to assemble the bike. Schwinn has since fixed this issue and the 250 comes with far better instructions and all the parts are well labelled for easy put together.

The only major flaw I’ve experienced with the 250 was learning how to use the computer, once you know how to use it, it’s not a problem but the instructions that come with it are not the best. I highly recommend going to Schwinn’s website and downloading the computer manual, it will help a lot and pretty much solve the problem.

Another odd thing to note is that when I received my Schwinn 250 and started to build it I noticed that a few of the parts had already been pre-assembled and had to actually be disassembled in order to fit them all together with everything else. Doesn’t make a lot of sense… not a huge problem, just a bit annoying is all, again though, once it’s built it’s not an issue.

Lastly, quality control could be better, this actually should probably be in the other owners section below because I didn’t have an issue with this myself, but some users have received non-working computers. Fortunately though both Nautilus (the company that makes the Schwinn 250) and Amazon’s customer service is excellent and you will have no issues getting replacements if you do have an issue.

Other Owner’s Opinions of the Schwinn 250

Most owners seem to comment on the quality of the build and the remarkable quietness of the machine, it being one of the quietest models available on the market and it’s highly flexible resistance levels giving you everything you can handle.

One owner was appreciative of the Schwinn 250’s many different exercise programs, mentioning the bike’s ability to remember the personal information of its users. The cup holder is smartly placed next to the console, instead of under the seat, and the basket to store magazines and other various items is smartly placed as well.

My Experience with the Schwinn 250: Concluded

I have personally found the Schwinn 250 to be compact, stable, solid and secure. This recumbent bike provides me with a strong workout and is certainly capable for users of all fitness levels. The computer and it’s workout programs will allow me to stick with a long-term exercise bike program to get the results that I’m looking for.

I used to bike outside a lot on the street and one of the best parts about picking up one of these recumbent bikes has been that I don’t need to be concerned about keeping my coordination or balance while out on the road or worry about dodging cars and other obstacles (people?). I can ride any time of the day regardless of the weather or light levels. All of this on a bike that feels very high quality and that I’m quite satisfied with, the Schwinn 250.