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When it comes to working on your arms or more specifically, the mobility of your arms and shoulders, there unfortunately aren’t many options to use at your desk or at work. Sure, you could stretch or use bands, but those don’t offer quite the same set of benefits as one of the best desktop pedal arm exercisers would.
We’ve spent the past month or so testing out countless models and taking other consumers’ feedback into consideration to bring you the top exercisers on the market today. Also see: Desktop Pedal Exercisers – Buying Guide.
Best Desktop Pedal Arm Exercisers
| Vaunn Medical Folding Pedal Exerciser | Vive Pedal Exerciser – Mini Cycle Bike | AGM Mini Exercise Bike Pedal Exerciser Portable Cycle Arm and Leg | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Weight | 3 Pounds | 6 Pounds | 9 Pounds |
| Folding | Yes | No | No (integrated handle) |
| Height | N/A | 5” | 6” |
| Customer Ratings | 4.3 / 5.0 Stars | 4.0 / 5.0 Stars | 3.8 / 5.0 Stars |
Also see: Desktop Pedal Arm Exerciser Comparison Table
Quick Answer: The 5 Best-Rated Desktop Pedal Arm Exercisers
- Vaunn Medical Folding Pedal Exerciser
- Vive Pedal Exerciser – Mini Cycle Bike
- AGM Mini Exercise Bike Pedal Exerciser Portable Cycle Arm and Leg
- Hausse Portable Exercise Pedal Bike for Legs and Arms
- YOSUDA Under Desk Bike Pedal Exerciser
Desktop Pedal Arm Exerciser Reviews
#1- Vaunn Medical Folding Pedal Exerciser
- Weight: 3 pounds
- Folding: Yes
- Height: N/A
Boosting circulation, it’s also great for helping to recover sore muscles along with toning them, depending on what your goals are.
Expand To See More If you’re going to be using it at work and at home, you’ll appreciate how easy it is to transport. Thanks to the quick release folding mechanism, it folds up immediately into a compact shape. The lightweight arm bike also comes fully assembled so there’s no need to hassle with that. To track your workout and help accomplish your goals, you’ll find a multi-functional digital LCD monitor right in the front that shows your time working out, revolution count, revolutions per minute (RPM) and calories burned. To adjust the tension of the pedals, simply use the tension knob also located in front. To ensure you perform your desk exercises with 100% confidence, there are non-skid ribbed rubber feet on the bottom of the legs to make sure that it stays perfectly in place on smooth desktops, floors, tables, and more.
#2- Vive Pedal Exerciser – Mini Cycle Bike
- Weight: 6 pounds
- Folding: No
- Height: 5”
If you want an easy way to start toning up your arms, then this is an excellent option. Despite being so effective, it is a very straightforward design with little assembly required so you can start working out right away!
Aside from toning up your arms, you can of course use it to work out your legs or even just improve your concentration while working, drawing, producing music, and more.
The entire motion of the pedal from beginning to end is very smooth, making it easy to improve blood flow, stamina, as well as relieve stress and tension.
Expand To See More If your desk workouts also involve using your legs, then you’ll love the patent-pending design that fits under any desk! Standing just 12.5” it’s quite compact which makes it perfect for the office setting. On top of that, it sits nicely on desktops and tables, and stows away without too much hassle when you’re not using it. The low profile also aids in keeping it stable while pedaling, though the nonslip surface and molded finger grips also help with this. To customize your workout experience, there’s a conveniently located tension knob right in the front. Right above, you’ll also find a large LCD screen displaying RPM, time, speed, distance traveled, and calories burned.
#3- AGM Mini Exercise Bike Pedal Exerciser Portable Cycle Arm and Leg
- Weight: 9 pounds
- Folding: No (integrated handle)
- Height: 6”
The sleek matte black housing looks great in any office, though it’s very simple to stow away, too.
Standing just 12.6” tall, it works just as well on top of the desk as it does under it. Use it at home without taking up much space while you watch Netflix, hang out on your computer, and more. As it’s so lightweight, taking it with you in the car is no issue.
Expand To See More The low impact arm exercise machine is perfect for strengthening the muscles of both your upper and lower body while boosting blood flow, improving stamina, and loosening up tight muscles. To you’re your workout easier or tougher, there’s a tension knob right in the front. This is a huge help for staying concentrated especially while performing mundane tasks like many must do at their jobs. To see where you are in your workout, the desk peddler features an LCD screen right at eye level, displaying crucial stats like distance, time spent, count, total count, and calories burned. To keep it exactly where you want it to be, non-slip feet are there to help you out while the sturdy frame will hold up to heavy use.
#4- Hausse Portable Exercise Pedal Bike for Legs and Arms
- Weight: 8 pounds
- Folding: No (integrated handle)
- Height: 7”
The white and black model is made to last throughout regular and even daily use, so you can drastically improve your fitness just by sitting at your desk!
The arm pedal machine, much like the others, works well to improve circulation and aid in mobility work. If you’ve had an injury and are just getting back into the swing of things, this is a great low impact option.
As you get in better shape and stronger, you can adjust the resistance simply by turning the knob located on the front of the machine.
Expand To See More The LCD display on this one isn’t our favorite, but it’s still relatively easy to read due to the size and shows you RPM, time, speed, distance traveled, and calories burned. To reset your stats, simply long press the red button located on the bottom righthand corner of the LCD display. This arm pedal bike doesn’t fold like some of the others do, making it slightly less compact and easy to stow away. However, it does include a portable handle which really simplifies transportation. Including a 6-month warranty, you can purchase with confidence knowing you’re covered if you’re unsatisfied for any reason.
#5- YOSUDA Under Desk Bike Pedal Exerciser
- Weight: 8 pounds
- Folding: No (integrated handle)
- Height: 39”
If you’re not exactly a DIY kind of person, you can rest easy knowing that this one assembles in just 4 easy steps. In less than 10 minutes you can have it up and ready to go!
This top-grade piece of arm workout equipment allows you a great amount of flexibility with what you use it for.
If you’re recovering from a shoulder injury, the low impact machine will help to maintain or restore mobility without putting you in a stressful situation.
It also helps to improve circulation which further aids in recovery by more efficiently transporting essential nutrients and oxygen.
Expand To See More If you’re using it at the office, it’s important that you’re not only not bothering yourself, but your coworkers. The fact that this arm bicycle is practically silent with ultra-smooth motion makes it perfect for use during tasks that require intense concentration. On the front of the machine you’ll find both a resistance knob to adjust it to your liking, along with a multi-function LCD display that shows your time, distance traveled, speed, and calories while you’re working out. Four rubber non-slip feet will keep it in place while you’re using it, and when you’re finished you can easily tow it away with the handle design or store it under your desk.
Desktop Pedal Arm Exerciser Comparison Table
| Price | Weight | Folding | Height | Customer Ratings | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vaunn Medical Folding Pedal Exerciser | Price not available | 3 Pounds | Yes | N/A | 4.3 / 5.0 Stars | |
| Vive Pedal Exerciser – Mini Cycle Bike | $78.99 | 6 Pounds | No | 5” | 4.0 / 5.0 Stars | |
| AGM Mini Exercise Bike Pedal Exerciser Portable Cycle Arm and Leg | $39.99 | 9 Pounds | No (integrated handle) | 6” | 3.8 / 5.0 Stars | |
| Hausse Portable Exercise Pedal Bike for Legs and Arms | $43.99 | 8 Pounds | No (integrated handle) | 7” | 4.1 / 5.0 Stars | |
| YOSUDA Under Desk Bike Pedal Exerciser | $49.70 | 8 pounds | No (integrated handle) | 9” | 4.1 / 5.0 Stars |
Desktop Pedal Exercisers – Buying Guide
Now that you have had the opportunity to browse through all about the best desk peddler, have you decided which one is the best for your office space? If not, then there’s no need to be concerned.
For this exact reason, we’ve decided to take it upon ourselves to create the following comprehensive buying guide.
This guide will take you through each step of the selection process to ensure that by the time you’re finished reading, there will be no doubt which is the perfect machine for you!
Get ready to start feeling stronger and more mobile!
Portability
Think about where and how you’re going to be using your new arm cycle machine. Are you planning on just using it at the office?
If so, then you may not have to worry too much about portability, just getting a product that is compact enough to store easily under your desk.
On the other hand, if you’re going to be taking it back and forth from your home to the office, then you absolutely need to consider how easy it is to transport.
The Vaunn Medical Folding Pedal Exerciser is the best in this case, hands down. It folds up seamlessly into a compact, lightweight design that you can easily take with you anywhere you need it to go.
However, there are some other great options on our guide with built-in handles that aren’t as compact but still easy to carry around.
Purpose
Next, you’ll want to think of what you actually need it for. Are you using it for toning up?
Then you can probably opt for a machine with higher resistance levels as you’re going to need to really challenge yourself to burn fat and tone up the muscles underneath.
However, if you’re using it for shoulder therapy you really need some low impact exercise. This exercise will allow you to maintain or improve your mobility by keeping the muscles moving in an appropriate range of motion.
Shoulder muscles can easily seize up or get stiff without regular movement so this is crucial in rehabbing.
Ideally, the machine has the ability to adjust the tension from essentially a loose movement to so challenging that you can barely move the pedals.
Additionally, you’ll want the tension knob to be conveniently located so you can change it up at a moment’s notice.
Size and Weight
Aside from transportation purposes, you’ll probably want the arm bicycle to be easy to move around the desk or office.
After all, if you’re dealing with a shoulder injury then you shouldn’t be struggling to lift it up on the desk as this is putting you at greater risk of injuring yourself again!
The size should always be taken into consideration as well. A low-profile design is ideal as you can use it on top of your desk while still being able to clearly see your monitor or laptop.
Whether you’ll be using it with your legs or simply for storage purposes you also want a low profile that will work without coming into contact with the underside of your desk.
LCD Display
If you’re serious about real results, then you need to be able to track your workouts and statistics. An LCD screen is the best and most efficient way to do this. Each screen on the models listed above are great ones and big enough that they’re easy to read, even if you don’t have the best eyesight out there.
However, they vary a bit in which statistics they track and display. They will all (give or take a couple) show time spent working out, calories burned, revolutions, revolutions per minute, and sometimes more.
Non-Slip Features
One of the last things you want to happen is for your desk pedal machine to be slipping and sliding around while you’re using it. You need something to stay sturdy and not wobble around, too.
Look out for rubber feet that will hold it in place on a slipper desk surface, flooring, and so on. A solid frame is also necessary not only for durability purposes but to allow you to workout without inhibitions to yield the best results.
Noise Levels
It’s not only important for you to maintain your concentration but to avoid bothering your coworkers to have a machine that has low if any sound coming from it when in use.
Some are essentially silent during operation while others will begin to “buzz” or squeak as the pedals are rotated.
Warranty
As you may have noticed, some models come with your standard 30-day warranty while others offer much more time – up to a year for some! Unfortunately, there are even a few that don’t include warranties at all.
It’s common for the structural frame to be covered for at least 5 months, but if you can score a machine with 1-year on everything at least you can rest assured you’re receiving a quality model.
Price
How much are you willing to spend on one of the best desktop arm exercisers? It’s a good idea to create a budget for yourself before you start looking so you don’t accidentally spend more than you’d wanted to.
No matter what your budget is, we can assure you that we have an excellent selection that will fit it. Just keep in mind that if you do have the means of spending a bit more, it often pays for itself in one way or another.
When you go up in price, you’ll find that models are often comprised of higher-quality materials and with more care.
FAQs For Desktop Arm Peddlers
Q: What kind of benefits can I expect to see from these desktop peddlers?
A: First, what kind of benefits are you looking for? If you’re recovering from a shoulder injury then this is an absolute necessity.
It will allow you to maintain or even improve your mobility and will also help to strengthen the muscle, aiding in rehabilitation. In general, it can also help to strengthen and tone your upper and lower body depending on how you use it.
If you want a low impact form of cardio exercise it will help to improve your stamina while also improving blood circulation.
Q: What kind of weight limit can I expect from my desk pedal machine?
A: While they do vary slightly the typical weight limit is going to be around 200 to 220 pounds. If you have any doubts or concerns it is best to check with the individual manufacturer as it will list these details for you.
Q: Will I need anything else aside from what comes in the package upon receipt?
A: Oftentimes you’re going to need batteries to power the LCD screen and these are often required to be purchased separately.
If you’re not going to be using the LCD screen then you’re not really going to have to worry about this but we do recommend tracking your results one way or another.
Tips
#1: We recommend regularly checking out the machine and cleaning it.
Whether you’re using it with your hands, your feet or both, cleanliness is important. You don’t want to be touching whatever you have been walking through throughout the day.
Aside from that, your machine may require oiling at some point, and WD-40 will usually do the trick just fine to avoid any squeaks or awkward movements.
#2: Make sure to start out slow.
This goes double if you’re dealing with an injury that needs rehabbed or a recent surgery. However, in general it’s important to start out slow if you’re not used to this kind of exercise. You don’t want to pull any muscles.
#3: Never get the machine wet.
For some reason there are some people who try to use them while submerged in water, and this can not only risk rusting the product but will completely destroy most of them.
Summary
Now that you’ve had the chance to read everything you could ever want to know about the best desktop arm exercisers, which one will you be using in your home or office?
If you’re still unsure know that no matter which one you get, you’ll be receiving one of the best in the world. However, what’s most important is that you select the perfect product for you and your body.
We hope that our guide has helped you do just that. Thanks for tuning in and we’ll see you again soon!
Notice:
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Whether items sold on Amazon are deemed as eligible for HSA/FSA plans remains the responsibility of the buyer and their particular health plan provider. It’s ultimately up to the IRS and participating health plan providers to deem which medical and health products are considered eligible for the payment plans.
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