Get a good elliptical. It will work out your entire body (unlike stationary bikes) and not hurt in case you have knee problems (like treadmills). Put the elliptical in front of TV if you like and do 30-45mins every other day. I was 193lbs in August. I'm 174lbs now. Though I'd say I'm more of an exception because I gain/lose weight really fast. Nevertheless, I highly recommend a good elliptical - both my wife and I love the one we got.
Each machine has its strengths and weaknesses. I find that stationary bikes tend to get really uncomfortable after awhile, too. My posture isn't the best and I feel like I suffer on a bike because of the hunching I feel like I have to do in order to grip the bars in front of me. It's also worth mentioning that a mediocre seat can definitely be painful after a period of time.
In the bike's defense: as a runner, spinning on the bike is an absolutely awesome to maintain cardio-fitness after a running injury.
The other huge advantage to the elliptical machine is your body works far harder than a bike while feeling like it's doing a lot less - I checked this with a heart rate monitor and an all-out effort on a bike did the same as what felt like only medium effort on the elliptical.
I second this. My wife and I also have an elliptical, and it's much easier to handle in the morning, rather than running. Although in the spring/summer/fall I tend to enjoy running outside in the morning over the elliptical.
