Beginner HIIT Workout on Rogue Echo (Air) Bike

If you have not already, be sure to check out The Complete Guide to High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

Total Time: ~20 minutes

Equipment Needed: Rogue Echo (Airdyne) Bike, Seconds Pro App, Heart rate monitor (to gauge intensity)

Prerequisites: Know how to adjust the bike seat (your knee should have a slight bend at the bottom of the pedal stroke).

The RPE Scale (Rate of Perceived Exertion)

The RPE scale typically ranges from 1 to 10, though some versions use a 6-to-20 scale (like the Borg Scale). In the context of your workout, the 1-to-10 scale is used, where:

• • RPE 1-2: Very light effort. You could do this all day—think of a leisurely walk or light stretching. Breathing is easy, and you can easily hold a conversation.

  • RPE 3-4: Light to moderate effort. You’re working, but it’s comfortable—like a brisk walk or a casual bike ride. You can still talk in full sentences, but you’re breathing a bit harder.

  • RPE 5-6: Moderate to somewhat hard. You’re definitely working now, and your breathing is noticeable. You can still talk, but it’s in shorter sentences. This might be a steady jog or a faster bike pace.

  • RPE 7-8: Hard effort. This feels challenging—you’re pushing yourself, breathing heavily, and can only speak a few words at a time. Think of a controlled sprint or a tough uphill climb.

  • RPE 9-10: Very hard to maximal effort. You’re going all out, like in a full-on sprint. Breathing is labored, talking is nearly impossible, and you can only sustain this for a short time.

Workout Structure

• • Warm-Up: 5 minutes

  • Main HIIT Session: 10 minutes (5 intervals of work and recovery)

  • Cool-Down: 5 minutes

Workout Breakdown

Warm-Up (5 minutes)

Before jumping into the high-intensity stuff, let’s get your body ready and familiarize you with the bike. Keep the effort light and focus on smooth movement.

• • 0:00 – 2:00: Pedal at a slow, easy pace (RPE 3/10, where RPE is Rate of Perceived Exertion—basically how hard it feels). Use both arms and legs, pushing and pulling the handles with each pedal stroke.

  • 2:00 – 4:00: Increase to a moderate pace (RPE 4-5/10). You should be breathing a bit harder but still able to talk.

  • 4:00 – 5:00: Add in 2 x 10-second “pickups” where you go slightly faster (RPE 6/10) with 20 seconds of easy pedaling between them. This is just to wake your body up.

Main HIIT Session (10 minutes)

Here’s the meat of the workout: short bursts of harder effort followed by recovery periods. As a beginner, we’ll use a 20-second work/40-second rest ratio. Aim for an RPE of 7-8/10 during the work intervals—this should feel challenging but not like you’re sprinting for your life. If you have a heart rate monitor, aim for 70-85% of your max heart rate during the work intervals.

Repeat the following cycle for 10 rounds (1 minute each round):

• • 20 seconds: Push hard (RPE 7-8/10). Pedal faster and drive through the handles—think of it like a controlled sprint. If you’re tracking calories on the bike’s monitor, aim for 5-10 calories in this burst (adjust based on how it feels).

  • 40 seconds: Recover at a slow, easy pace (RPE 3/10). Focus on deep breathing and loosening up your grip on the handles.

Tips for the Work Intervals:

• • Engage both your legs and arms equally. Don’t just pedal—pull the handles toward you and push them away with intention.

  • If you feel dizzy or overly winded, dial back the intensity or extend the rest period to 50 seconds.

  • Watch your posture: keep your back straight, core lightly braced, and avoid slumping.

Cool-Down (5 minutes)

Let’s bring your heart rate down and stretch out those muscles to avoid stiffness.

• • 0:00 – 2:00: Pedal slowly (RPE 2-3/10). Focus on deep, steady breaths.

  • 2:00 – 3:00: Stop pedaling and just use the handles to move the bike arms (super light effort). This helps loosen up your upper body.

  • 3:00 – 5:00: Dismount and do some basic stretches, if desired:

• Quad Stretch: Stand, hold one foot behind you, and pull it toward your glutes (30 seconds per leg).

• Chest Opener: Clasp your hands behind your back and lift slightly to stretch your chest (30 seconds).

• Hamstring Stretch: Step one foot forward, keep the leg straight, and hinge at the hips to feel a stretch in the back of your leg (30 seconds per side).

Why This Works

The Rogue Echo Bike is a beast for HIIT because it scales with your effort—the harder you push, the tougher it gets. For beginners, this 20/40 interval setup builds cardiovascular endurance, burns a decent chunk of calories, and teaches you how to pace yourself. Plus, it’s low-impact, so your joints won’t hate you afterward.

Programming the Seconds Pro App

Here’s how to program your Beginner HIIT Workout on the Rogue Echo Bike into the Seconds Pro app. The app is great for interval timers, and I’ll walk you through setting it up to match the structure of your 20-minute workout, including the warm-up, main HIIT session, and cool-down. Since the app doesn’t directly control the bike or track metrics like RPE or calories, we’ll focus on timing the intervals and adding notes for guidance. Note that the “Custom Timer” template should not be used for this workout, as it does not allow for easy looping of intervals without manually creating pairs for each repeat, which can be cumbersome. Instead, we’ll use the HIIT Timer template for a more streamlined setup. Let’s break it down step by step.

Step 1: Download and Open Seconds Pro

• Action: Download Seconds Pro, a paid app widely used for interval training like HIIT, Tabata, and circuit workouts. It’s available on iOS and Android.

• iOS Link: App Store

• Android Link: Google Play Store

• Once installed, open the app on your iPhone. You’ll land on the “My Timers” screen. These are instructions for the iPhone, Android may be slightly different.

Step 2: Select the HIIT Timer Template

• From the main screen, tap the “+” button to create a new timer.

• On the “Choose Template” screen, select “HIIT Timer” to start with the appropriate template for this workout.

Step 3: Set the Timer Name and Number of Sets

• Name: Tap the “Unnamed Timer” field and enter “Beginner Echo Bike HIIT” to identify this workout.

• Number of Sets: Set this to 5. This represents the 5 cycles of high-intensity and low-intensity intervals in the main HIIT session (each cycle is 1 minute, totaling 10 minutes).

Step 4: Set the Activity (Optional)

• Activity: Tap “Activity” (currently “Not Set”) and select “Cycling” if desired, or leave it as “Not Set” since this is optional and doesn’t affect the timer functionality.

Step 5: Configure the Required Intervals (Main HIIT Session)

This section sets up the looping phase of the workout with high-intensity and low-intensity intervals.

• High Intensity:

• Tap “High Intensity” (currently 0:00).

• Set the duration to 20 seconds.

• Rename it to “Push Hard (RPE 7-8).”

• Under “Color,” select Blue (or your preferred color).

• Under “Notes,” add: “Pedal faster, drive through handles—controlled sprint. Aim for 5-10 calories if tracking.”

• Low Intensity:

• Tap “Low Intensity” (currently 0:00).

• Set the duration to 40 seconds.

• Rename it to “Recover (RPE 3).”

• Under “Color,” select Red (or your preferred color).

• Under “Notes,” add: “Pedal slowly, focus on deep breathing, loosen grip on handles.”

• Start With Low Intensity: Leave this toggle off, as we want to begin with the high-intensity interval.

Step 6: Configure the Optional Intervals (Warm-Up and Cool-Down)

These intervals are added as separate phases outside the main looping set.

• Warm Up:

• Tap “Warm Up” (currently 0:00).

• Set the duration to 5 minutes (300 seconds).

• Rename it to “Warm-Up (RPE 3-6).”

• Under “Color,” select Yellow (or your preferred color).

• Under “Notes,” add: “0:00-2:00: Slow pace (RPE 3). 2:00-4:00: Moderate pace (RPE 4-5). 4:00-5:00: Two 10-sec pickups (RPE 6) with 20 sec easy pedaling between.”

• Cool Down:

• Tap “Cool Down” (currently 0:00).

• Set the duration to 5 minutes (300 seconds).

• Rename it to “Cool-Down (RPE 2-3).”

• Under “Color,” select Teal (or your preferred color).

• Under “Notes,” add: “0:00-2:00: Pedal slowly (RPE 2-3). 2:00-3:00: Use handles only, light effort. 3:00-5:00: Dismount, stretch (quads, chest, hamstrings—30 sec each).”

Step 7: Configure Extras (Alerts and Audio)

• Alerts: Tap “Alerts” (currently “Default Beeps”). Leave as “Default Beeps” for simplicity, or customize if you prefer specific sounds for interval transitions.

• Audio: Tap “Audio” (currently “No Audio Selected”). Leave as is, or select a sound if you want audio cues during the workout.

• Allow Overrun: Leave this toggle off, as we want the timer to stop at the end of the workout.

Step 8: Set the Overall Timer Color (Optional)

• Color: Tap “Color” (currently “Not Set”) and choose a color for the entire timer if desired (e.g., Purple), or leave it as “Not Set.”

Step 9: Add General Notes for the Workout

• Tap the “Notes” section at the bottom.

• Add the following:

• “Adjust bike seat: Knee should have a slight bend at the bottom of the pedal stroke.”

• “Work intervals: Engage legs and arms equally—pull and push handles with intention. Keep back straight, core braced.”

• “If dizzy or overly winded, dial back intensity or extend rest to 50 seconds.”

• “Goal: Build endurance, burn calories, practice pacing on the Rogue Echo Bike.”

Summary of Workout Timing

• Warm-Up: 5 minutes

• Main HIIT Session: 10 minutes (5 cycles of 20 seconds Push Hard + 40 seconds Recover)

• Cool-Down: 5 minutes

• Total Time: 20 minutes

Using the Timer

When you’re ready to start, tap “Start” on the main timer screen. Follow the intervals as they appear, using the notes to guide your effort and form on the Rogue Echo Bike. The app will automatically transition between the warm-up, main session, and cool-down, so you can focus on your workout without manually adjusting the timer. Keep your heart rate monitor handy to gauge intensity (aim for 70-85% of max during work intervals), and enjoy the session!

When using the below file, be sure to have the Seconds Pro App loaded first (above).

IMPORTANT: Once you click on the below timer, it will prompt to download a configuration file to your device. Once it is downloaded, you will need to navigate to the downloads location on your device. Once you locate the file and click on it, it should open to an import screen in the Seconds Pro App.

Get the help you need today…