People who say this make me laugh because it is extremely obvious that you don't exercise, either indoors or outdoors. It's like asking "why would anyone ever buy an oven when you literally could just eat the raw ingredients", presumably you've just never consumed food before.

There are benefits to stationary cardio. 1) More convenient 2) Easier to zone out 3) Built in pacer 4) Safer 5) Doesn't matter if it's snowing/raining/humid/hot/dark. 6) Can be done from home, relevant if you have kids, on call duties, etc 7) Good way for adults to learn how to ride a bike in the first place 8) two people can run next to eachother at different paces while chatting 9) can be stopped at any point and you're never 2 miles from your destination 10) Some people just don't enjoy riding in the road, and riding on sidewalks is illegal in many areas 11) can be set for very long downhill or uphill segments that aren't realistic in the real world 12) easier to follow a class/routine.

Like. People aren't just idiots. They use them because there are good reasons to use them.

It's more about being comfortable while doing it. Running or biking in scorching heat, the freezing cold, or a stormy day sucks ass whereas I can do the same things in a temperature controlled environment.

You do realise treadmills aren't just a US thing, right?

And bad weather is also a thing, right?

Treadmills are used everywhere, my confused American friend.

The nature here is actually very beautiful if you take the time to explore it. It is sparse in some areas but parks are a good place to walk or bike with no vehicles.

Gyms have loads of them in the UK too though so it isn't just being a shithole. Trivially easy to walkor cycle along coastal paths here.

I know people who spend several times more on exercise bikes than I spend on real bikes.

I have a stationary bike and a real one, and I use both. I agree with your points, but stationary bikes are not the cause.

I’ve never lived in any place in the usa that is so much a shithole you couldn’t bike or run outside. Now, obviously that’s privilege to not have lived in a bad area, but the majority of Americans do not live in a bad area. I don’t think gyms even exist in bad areas anyways.