Benefits of cycling: what happens to your body when you ride a bike

Of course, if you already like cycling, you don't need any more motivation, but it's worth being aware of the benefits it brings and try to get other people to start cycling too. Some of these tips can be attributed to any physical exercise, but as we are on a cycling website we are going to give the medal to bikes.

Benefits of cycling

In 2018 a study came out claiming that cycling could save around 10,000 deaths a year in Europe, and it was largely based on the great physical benefits of cycling. Let's take a look at what they are.

1.It's a sport that keeps your joints safe

It is true that cycling also has its own injuries, but it is undoubtedly much less harmful than other sports such as running, for example. When cycling, our joints do not suffer any impact and the weight of our body rests peacefully on the saddle.

RECOMENDADO

Easy to apply tips for riding faster

7 tips for cycling in the rain

Important keys to make your training work

Pogacar is the highest paid cyclist of 2024 and is proving why

Why the World Champion's jersey is rainbow

What bike size do you need? Here's how to find out

2.Improves circulation and trains the heart

Riding a bike allows us to lower our blood pressure and increase our maximum heart rate. In addition, it seems to help eliminate bad cholesterol and increase good cholesterol.

3.Helps us to age better

By cycling regularly, our feelings of fatigue will decrease and our energy levels will increase. All this, according to several studies, makes us more likely to age in a healthy way.

4.Riding a bike makes us stronger

Cycling a couple of times a week -at least 20 minutes per ride- will strengthen our immune system and keep infections and illnesses away. A very common thing among people who are fit is the fact that they get fewer colds and suffer less from these common illnesses.

5.Cycling improves your physique and makes you happier

Cycling at least twice a week -60 minutes each- will help you maintain your weight and reduce stress caused by work and everyday life. After the effort of cycling, our body generates a series of endorphins that lower our stress levels and make us feel good.

Benefits of cycling for 40 to 60 year olds

It's never too late, as the saying goes. In cycling this is also the case: it is never too late to start riding and start to feel all that this sport can give you. And if you are a mature adult, too. Even if you are between 40 and 60 years old, it can be a good time to take your first pedal. And scientific studies corroborate this.

Starting cycling in middle age: a guaranteed success

There comes a time in life when you know yourself better, you know for sure what you like, what you feel like doing and, above all, what is best for you. Because when that time comes, taking care of your health becomes another argument to look for new ways to do it, and cycling has a lot to say about it.

New studies confirm that it doesn't matter if you don't know what it means to get on a bicycle once you have reached maturity, but that the benefits are many, you will notice them in a short time and your health will thank you just as much as if you had been a cyclist since you were a teenager.

It is true that it is advisable to start practising sport at an early age. In fact, it forms part of healthy habits and is a fundamental pillar of a healthy life. Inculcating it in the youngest children is a fundamental task for society as a whole. Cycling, moreover, as it is a means of transport at the same time, is enjoyable from an early age and is an excellent sport to practise as a family.

But if you're in your late 40s and have never cycled before, it's certainly a good time to start. A study published in the scientific journal Jama Network Open this month sheds more light on this fact: cycling in middle and old age is not only good for anxiety and stress, but also for your circulatory system.

The study on new veteran cyclists

In this study, conducted on more than 315,000 people in the United States since the 1990s, all the individuals studied aged over 40 and under 61 reduced their cardiovascular risks by more than 40% and their probability of suffering from any type of tumour by more than 15%. Most significantly, these data were virtually identical to those who had already been playing sport since adolescence.

These data can lead to a serious mistake: because of this direct relationship, it seems intelligent to think that it is not necessary to do sport in youth if later, in maturity, cycling will give you the same results.

As you get older, what basically happens to your body is that cell regeneration is much slower. Therefore, to perform the same exercise you demand much more from your body. If you have done cycling or other sports, you will have slowed down this ageing and it will be less difficult for you to continue doing it. If you reach that age, you can do it, but it will require a much greater effort.

And that is the second argument for not waiting until old age to cycle: if you have not cycled regularly, if you do not have the routine and know how your body works when cycling, if you have not done it before, the chances that you will do it in old age are minimal. Most people who have not done sport during their lives do not do it in old age.

In short: it's never too late to start cycling; but no, don't wait until you're an old man without healthy lifestyle habits, a sporting routine and cycling experience to start.

Why should children ride bikes?

If we try to recall some of the happiest moments we had as children, we are sure that many of them include bike rides with family and friends. Until now, bicycles have been closely associated with children, but recent reports suggest that sales of children's bicycles are falling. Cycling has countless benefits for children and we should not deprive them of these benefits.

Cycling is one of the most complete activities a child can do. Teaching them to ride a bike is fun for adults and helps them to develop in a complete way. Both physically and psychologically.

By learning and riding a bike, children increase their physical endurance and acquire great skills in coordination and balance. All this has a decisive influence on the child's intellectual development while having fun at the same time.

The secret behind the success. Not the extra training - the right balance in life. #prouddad #noshortcuts #oneobsession #bikeonscott @gopro

Una publicación compartida de Nino Schurter (@nschurter) el 24 Jun, 2019 a las 1:22 PDT

With these compelling reasons, there should be no doubt about the benefits of cycling for children, but let's list them one by one.

Benefits of cycling for children

• Riding a bike is a low-impact joint activity that increases children's physical endurance while they play and have fun.
• Sedentary lifestyles and obesity is one of the main current problems in children and adolescents. Cycling can prevent many of the physical problems and illnesses that result from them.
• Riding a bike helps the child's body to consume the excess fat produced by a poor diet.
• Children who are physically active perform better academically and learn better.
• Children learning to ride a bike gain confidence and experience their first feelings of achievement.
• It is a good way to raise awareness about alternative means of transport in the city and about caring for nature in the mountains.
• In active children, cycling helps them to reduce their anxiety and feel better.
• Riding a bike strengthens the lumbar muscles and improves the position of the back.
• Outdoor exercise helps strengthen the immune system.
• Cycling is an activity that strengthens family ties. Cycling as a family is a shared hobby that creates stronger bonds between parents and children.

For all these benefits to be effective, we must remember that cycling should be a game for the child and should never be an obligation or put any pressure on the child. In addition, it is important that the bike meets the needs of each child and is the right size for them.

So if you have children in the family, don't hesitate to invite them to ride a bike and share the hobby with them.