Benefits Of Biking

Why You Should Start Cycling

Cycling is a healthy, low-impact exercise that can be enjoyed by people of all ages, from young children to older adults. It is also fun, cheap and good for the environment. Here are some of the reasons why you should start cycling.

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Cycling Improves Cardiovascular Health

You get the same cardiovascular benefits from cycling that you get from any other form of aerobic exercise. During cycling, the heart beats faster than usual. This exercises the heart and promotes good health. Studies showed positive results in terms of cardiovascular function. Those who participate in activities such as cycling, walking and running improve cardiovascular function. Hence, cycling is great for your heart. Cyclists are less likely to develop high blood pressure.

Weight Loss

Cycling is an excellent exercise for burning calories. It is a good way to control or reduce weight, as it raises your metabolic rate, builds muscle and burns body fat. A person cycling with a speed of 10 mph burns 260 calories in an hour. Cycling must be combined with a healthy eating plan if you’re trying to lose weight. It is a comfortable form of exercise and you can change the time and intensity, it can be built up slowly and be varied to suit you.

Strengthens and Tones Muscles

Regular working out helps a person maintain a lean body. Cycling is an activity that involves a great deal of pedaling. It exercises not just the muscles in the front of the thighs and the buttocks but also the arms, back and the core muscles. It is actually an overall physical workout and involves the movement of almost every part of the body. Studies have shown strong evidence showing that the health of muscles is directly related to cycling. On top of it all, cycling is gentle on your joints and helps preserve cartilage.

Increase Your Brain Power

Cycling helps build new brain cells in the hippocampus which is responsible for memory but starts to deteriorate from the age of 30. Researchers from the University of Illinois found that a five percent improvement in cardiorespiratory fitness from cycling led to an improvement of up to 15 percent in mental tests. A study conducted by Charles Hillman back in 2007 also showed that exercise boosts brain power and helps to stave off Alzheimer’s in the elderly. Cycling is said to boost blood flow and oxygen to the brain, which fires and regenerates receptors, explaining how exercise helps ward off Alzheimer’s.

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Develop Stamina

Cycling helps increase the body’s stamina and gives a boost to the endurance capacity of a person. Stamina refers to your body’s ability to endure extended periods of exercise. You can build stamina by cycling if you combine longer ride sessions with set training programs and some lifestyle changes. The aim is to make your body used to the drawing of energy for a long time without getting too fatigued.

Reduces Stress

Most scientific research has generally supported the idea that exercise helps to ease stress. Experts say that playing any kind of sport can reduce stress and helps improve your self-esteem. Bicycle riding can be taken up for reducing stress and having fun. “Cycling is one of the most effective treatments for stress and in many cases has been proven to be as effective as medication – if not more so,” said Neil Shah, of the Stress Management Society.

Improves Your Sex Life

According to health experts in the US, being more physically active like cycling improves your vascular health, which has the knock-on effect of boosting your sex drive. A study from Cornell University also concluded that male athletes have the sexual prowess of men two to five years younger, with physically fit females delaying the menopause by a similar amount of time.

Grow Your Social Circle

Cycling is an incredibly sociable sport. Joining a cycling club or group is an excellent way to grow your social circle, and you’ll probably find all the maintenance and training advice you may have been looking for there. Plus, you meet new people and develop friendships with people whom you share a common interest.

Benefits Of Cycling To Work

There are a number of advantages of cycling to work such as improved health, longer life, lower cost, higher energy level and cycling is also environmentally friendly. If your workplace is close enough and you are not biking to work, here are some of the major benefits of biking to work.

One of the biggest benefits of regular cycling is that it helps you remain fit. It is estimated that a 30 min bike ride can help in burning anywhere from 200 to 500 cal, depending on your weight. Also, you will not only burn off extra fat during cycling but you will also keep it burning at a higher rate for several hours after you are done cycling as it enhances the sedentary metabolic rate.

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Cycling is also much kinder to your joints, especially if you are overweight by a lot. It is one of the better ways to lose weight then jogging as cycling does not put too much strain on your joints. You not only become fitter when you cycle regularly but you also look younger.

Cycling significantly cuts down the risk of cardiovascular disease, all types of cancer, type II diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure and other ailments related to heart. A number of research studies have confirmed that just 150 min of cycling each week can make someone biologically younger by around nine years. Other research studies have also found that the risk of heart disease can be cut by up to 50% with regular cycling. Aerobic exercises help in accelerating your breathing rate which helps in stimulating the contraction of intestinal muscles and prevents bloating as well as various other diseases.

When you cycle to work, you also save a lot of money in the long run. Many people are not aware of the fact that operating expense of a car for a year is around $8000 whereas you will need to spend, on an average, only around $300 when you use a bicycle for commuting to work. You will not only save money on vehicle maintenance and running costs but also on your healthcare costs. It is estimated that being active just twice a week has the potential to lower the healthcare costs by around $400-$500 a year for obese individuals.

Bike Commuter in Portland Oregon

Since cycling is increasing in popularity, a number of cities all around the world have dedicated pathways for bicycles which make cycling a much safer activity as compared to driving a car.

When you shun your car in favor of cycling to work, you help in saving the planet. A car takes around 20 times the materials and energy used for making a bicycle. Also, operating a bicycle results in zero pollution whereas a lot of pollution is generated when you use a car. In most countries, a majority of carbon emissions are generated from road transport but you can help in cutting down the overall carbon emissions by using a bike for your commute.

Regular cycling also helps in increasing your self-esteem and confidence levels as you get fitter and leaner. In other words, it helps in lifting up your mood. When you cycle, you also get increased exposure to sunlight that also helps in increasing the level of serotonin in your brain. It has been observed that many people all around the world suffer from vitamin D deficiency whereas around 20 min of exposure to sunlight is enough for the body to synthesize enough vitamin D.

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Regular cycling also helps in removing cortisol, the stress hormone, from the body.

Overall, these are some of the major benefits of cycling to work. Cycling is becoming popular all over the world. It is cheaper, better for your health and good for the environment.