Hop On A Bike: 7 Significant Benefits Of Indoor Cycling
The health benefits of indoor cycling include all of the outdoor biking perks but with a few significant twists. Check them out!
Outdoor cycling is a fantastic low-impact training session that contributes to many health benefits. Unfortunately, the weather does not always go along with your schedule, and not everyone is comfortable riding a bike outside.
The good news is that you can acquire the same benefits with indoor cycling. You can do it on a stationary bike, either solo or in a group class, in the luxury of your home.
If you are hopping on the bike for the first time, many cycling machines and indoor bikes offer tutorials to help you get started.
Health Benefits Of Indoor Cycling
Here’s a rundown of some of the health benefits of indoor cycling:
1. Burns Calories
If your goal is to shed some pounds, riding a stationary bike can undoubtedly help. And to reach your goal, you must be consistent with your cycling training sessions. Consider riding your stationary bike every day for about half an hour.
For newbies, try to do at least two indoor biking workouts every week. Please note that the number of burnt calories will depend on your workout intensity. Meaning, the more you ride your bike and the harder you work, the more calories you burn.
According to Harvard Health Publishing, a 70kg person who cycles thirty minutes at nineteen miles per hour can burn at least 421 calories. But remember that this caloric expenditure is only an estimate.
Your calorie burn largely depends on your resting metabolic rate, body composition, weight, age, sex, and other factors.
2. Gentle On The Joints
Indoor cycling is essentially a low-impact cardio training session that’s gentle on your joints. This exercise is generally used in therapy for joint-related problems since it rids some of the impacts of other types of exercise like running.
What’s more, climbing aboard a cycling machine is relatively easy on your body because it is connected to a fixed accessory, which is the pedals. Hence, it’s a gentler option for those who’d like a high-intensity exercise without causing stress to their joints.
3. Builds Endurance
Cycling is an excellent form of cardio. It improves your heart health while beefing up your muscular endurance. And just like outdoor cycling, stationary bikes support cardiovascular fitness.
But there’s an additional perk. There is no freewheeling or wandering on a stationary bike, which means you have to get moving continuously.
Over time, you’ll feel stronger and may want to raise the time and resistance on the machine to keep training your muscles.
4. Boosts Your Mood
In general, doing any type of physical activity or workout routine, such as indoor cycling, is linked with reduced anxiety and stress.
Conveniently, you don’t need to spend too much time riding the bike to reap the mood-boosting benefits.
According to a 2013 study, just fifteen minutes of hopping on the bike can help lower down cortisol levels among people suffering from anxiety and depression.
5. Customizable And Convenient
Many people say they are too busy and don’t have the time to exercise. If you’re one of these people, then maybe you need to have another workout excuse.
Take note that one of the benefits of indoor cycling is that you can do it for as much available time you have, all in the luxury of your home.
Cycling indoors is the perfect alternative to outdoor cycling for many people because of its convenience. On top of that, the weather does not affect your training session, and you can adjust the resistance and speed to control the intensity.
As such, you can easily create a workout plan that suits your needs. What’s more, the terrain is determined by your resistance, allowing you to create a unique workout experience every time you hop on the bike.
You can do endurance or recovery rides or add flat roads or hills. See the best stationary bikes for apartments now to get yourself one.
6. Strengthens Lower-Body Muscles
As we age, it’s crucial to keep our joints healthy to prevent muscle imbalances and stiffness. Keep in mind that fully-functioning joints help surrounding muscles acquire more strength during a workout. In return, it makes your training sessions more effective.
The good news is that one of the benefits of indoor cycling is joint-friendliness. Cycling helps stimulate the joints. Hence, helping the bones.
And because stationary bikes can mimic the outdoor terrain, you will ride in and out of the seat, thus targeting your glutes, calves, hamstrings, and quads.
7. Safer
Indoor cycling is much safer than biking on the road. It avoids cycling-related endangerment from risky roads or vehicle traffic, making it the best workout option for people living in an area that is not friendly for outdoor cyclists.
Final Words
Indoor cycling is a good workout platform for anyone who wants to stay healthy and fit.
In a short period, you can undoubtedly get a great exercise done all in the comfort of your home.
To maintain this exercise, it’s important that you have fun and explore the many different terrain modes.
