For one CAROL Bike rider, fitness is more than just a physical pursuit. It’s a mental challenge that has become central to his life, pushing him to break through barriers not only in health but in mindset. With over 550 REHIT rides under his belt, rider Ed Brown has transformed his fitness, increasing his Fitness Score by 56% and cracking the top 200 on the global leaderboard. But for him, the mental benefits of CAROL Bike have far outweighed the physical gains.
Mind over matter
“It’s not just a great physical workout, but a mental one as well,” Ed shares. While the cardiovascular and fitness improvements have been impressive, it’s the psychological aspect of the rides that has left the deepest impact. The signature REHIT Intense ride, with 2×20-second sprints, might seem simple on the surface, but for Ed, it demands more mental toughness than anything else.
“I don’t just roll out of bed in the morning and hit the bike right away—I have to psyche myself up for it if I want to get a good result,” he explains. Every ride becomes a mental game, one where he has to tap into the proven physical benefits of the workout and draw motivation from his past. “I allow myself to tap into my ‘dark side’ a bit and think about the people who haven’t believed in me or tried to stand in my way.”
The intense focus required for each ride has had a powerful impact on his mindset. “The discipline, determination, and ‘grit’ it takes to bang out a good ride gives me a sense of confidence that carries over into other areas of my life that might seem completely unrelated on the surface,” he adds.
PB alert: Pushing boundaries and setting new records with each ride.
New heights unlocked: Ed’s fitness score soars as he pushes the limits.
From plateau to peak
A pivotal moment in Ed’s CAROL journey came when he saw the Ultimate CAROL Bike Resource video—in particular, the section with CAROL CEO Ulrich Dempfle performing the REHIT Intense ride himself. “Before I saw the video, my performance was plateauing, and I couldn’t reach my target score of 35 no matter how hard I tried,” he recalls. Watching Ulrich stand up during the sprints opened his mind to new possibilities. Since then, he’s adopted new strategies, including focusing on the power dial during sprints rather than counting the seconds, which he says has been far more productive.
Beyond the physical challenge, the data-driven nature of CAROL Bike has been a key motivator for Ed. “I love that the bike provides tons of objective data that you can use to analyze and track your performance,” he explains. This data allows him to push himself even harder, constantly chasing new goals and improving his ranking on the global leaderboard.
For Ed, the combination of mental and physical effort is what makes CAROL Bike unique. “If I took all of it less seriously, it would still be a good physical workout, but the psychic benefits wouldn’t be the same.” It’s the mental edge, the discipline, and the deep sense of accomplishment that keep him coming back to CAROL Bike, ride after ride.
Photo credit: Formation NYC
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