Lost on my bike that goes nowhere :)

[itsmeveve]

I have a stationary bike, the first two days I went 20 mins (set to #1). I get next to no exercise at all. So I would think i should have felt some muscle burning. So I turned the resistance knob (#8) till I started feeling some burning. The problem is I can now only do 10 mins on the bike, but I do feel it!
I goes to #10.
My question is should I turn it back down so I can go longer? Or keep it higher where I feel it? What setting is going to be the better work out for me?

Thanks in advance.

[RunbikeSki]

Hi itsmeveve,

It kinda depends on your goal. If it is weight loss, conventional wisdom says that longer rides, 30 minutes or more, that get your heart rate up and build a sweat, but don't leave you panting will burn more fat. Shorter intense rides, on the other hand will tend build muscle faster than the long rides. Since you need mucscle to endure the longer rides, maybe mixing it up is the key.

Hopefully 1 or 2 of our "in house experts" will weigh in. I'm mostly speaking from experience.