7 Health Benefits of Biking to Work

Biking is a low-impact aerobic activity that can improve one's fitness. (Image via Pexels/Pixabay)
Biking is a low-impact aerobic activity that can improve one's fitness. (Image via Pexels/Pixabay)

Biking is a low-impact aerobic activity that can improve one's fitness and overall health. It's a practical exercise that many people can utilise as a form of transportation, social activity or competitive sport in their daily life.

It'sa well-liked physical exercise, as it's easy to start and appropriate for most fitness levels.

One of the most time-effective ways to include regular exercise in your daily routine is to ride your bike to work or the store. Every day, an estimated one billion people use bicycles for transportation, entertainment or sport.

The benefits of riding are as diverse as the stunning roads you can find. They include physical health as well as mental benefits and an almost certain expansion of your social circle.


How Biking is Beneficial for Your Health?

The benefits of biking are obvious to those already involved in the sport. However, in case anyone needs more motivation to ride a bike, here's a list of seven significant advantages:

1) Helps Lose Weight

Regular biking, especially at a high intensity, can help you burn more calories and reduce body fat, which supports weight management.

According to research, sprinting and strength training combined with regular biking can momentarily boost your metabolism and develop muscle, enabling you to burn more calories even at rest.


2) Improves Mental Fitness

According to a YMCA study, those with an active lifestyle have a well-being score that is 32% more than that of inactive people.

Exercise can improve your mood in a variety of ways, including the natural production of endorphins and adrenalin, as well as the increased confidence that comes with accomplishing new goals.

Biking mixes outdoor activity, sight-seeing and physical activity. You can choose to bike alone, which can give you time to think through problems or issues, or you can ride with a group to expand your social network.


3) Builds Muscle Tone

Biking's resistance component means in addition to burning fat, it also helps build muscles, especially in the glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps and calves. People with more muscle burn more calories even when at rest, as muscle is leaner than fat.

To be clear, unless you spend a significant amount of time on the track, you won't develop quads like a track sprinter. However, you'll get a nicely toned derriere.


4) Improves Cardiovascular Health

Heart attacks, strokes and high blood pressure are examples of cardiovascular illnesses. Your heart, lungs and circulation are stimulated and improved by regular biking, lowering your risk of cardiovascular disorders.

Biking helps your cardiac muscles become stronger, and lowers your resting pulse and blood fat levels.

Additionally, research has shown that commuters who bike to work have lung function that is two to three times better than those who commute by car. Biking can ward off heart disease, according to a 14-year Danish study of 30,000 participants, who were aged between 20 and 93.


5) Develops Brain Power

Exercise has a long history of being connected to brain health, including the lowering of cognitive alterations that can make us more susceptible to dementia later in life.

According to a 2013 study, biking can increase the blood flow to the brain by 28% overall and up to 70%. Additionally, in some cases, blood flow to some areas increased by 40% even after activity.

The study found that one should cycle for 45–60 minutes at 75–85 percent of our maximum 'heart rate reserve' (maximum heart rate minus resting heart rate), four times a week.

Improved blood flow is important, as the blood transports all kinds of constituents that keep us healthy. Of course, nothing prevents you from riding more.


6) Promotes Better Sleep

In this day and age, insomnia is a common condition. Biking can help folks who have trouble falling or staying asleep. It can be easier to fall asleep if you exhaust yourself on a bike.


7) Low Impact Exercise

When examining the advantages of riding, exercise is a major topic of discussion. Do you think going for a run would be simpler?

As running involves weight bearing, injury rates are higher. Running involves carrying weight; biking does not. When long-distance runners and cyclists were compared as exerciser groups, runners were found to incur 133–144% more muscle injury, 256% more inflammation and 87% more DOMS than cyclists.


Takeaway

Although biking is less prone to cause injuries by overuse, injuries can happen occasionally. A professional bike fit is advised, as cutting corners can result in higher physiotherapy costs.

Biking does not help build bone density as much as other activities due to the absence of weight bearing. So it's a good idea to incorporate some strength training into your programme.

Edited by Bhargav
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