In the following post, we will examine the benefits of cycling. This sport has to get recent significant popularity among healthy lifestyle enthusiasts, who might be right. This exercise is versatile and adaptable to everybodys needs, which makes it accessible, but it could also reduce its effectiveness.
We know that cycling can bring very positive benefits. However, there still is too much to know about cycling and its effect on body fat. Would cycling help to reduce fat? Can I use it to increase my muscle mass?
Table of Contents
How many calories does cycling burn?
Distance in miles | Time Estimation | Burned kcal |
2 miles | 10 min | <100 kcal |
3 miles | 15 min | 100 to 200 kcal |
3.5 miles | 20 min | 250 to 300 kcal |
5 miles | 30 minutes | 350 to 400 kcal |
10 miles | 1h | 700 to 800 kcal |
20 miles | 1h50 | 1500 to 2000 kcal |
30 miles | 2h40 | 2200 to 3000 kcal |
How Many Miles On A Stationary Bike Is A Good Workout
Pedaling is not synonymous with burning calories. It is necessary to consider a series of variables that influence calorie burning while cycling, among which time, resistance, speed, and weight stand out. It will not be the same going on a touring bike as on a mountain bike or a race bike since the first we cannot add resistance and increase the effort, while the second we can.
When calculating the calories, we burn with the bike. You must bear in mind that to start burning calories takes a minimum of 30 minutes of activity. From that moment, we will begin to burn calories.
Weight is also a determining factor since the higher the weight. The more calories are burned. Something also happens with speed; the higher the speed, the more calories burned. So the estimated calorie burn by bike is:
A 30-minute bike ride: burn over 100 kcal
A race bike: a weight of 79 kilos at 19 or 22 km / h burns around 346 kcal, while if the race rate is between 22 and 26 km / h, the calories burned will be around 420.
A mountain bike: with the same weight, 79 kg, and approximately 30 minutes of travel, up to 336 kcal can be burned with this bike.
An exercise bike: if the pedaling speed is high and we exceed 30 minutes, the calories burned are around 451, even when pedaling on static bikes. This is because we can add variables such as resistance or slope.
Benefits of cycling for Health and Burning Fat
Cycling is one of the most productive sports and can be exercised with different objectives. You should consider cycling if you are thinking about losing weight and burning fat. Thats true. Cycling helps to lose weight and is undoubtedly one of the most conducive disciplines to do it, to leave that excess weight. Why?
Firstly, to burn fat, you must carry out constant and relatively prolonged exercise at 60 and 80% of your physical capacity. Cycling is undoubtedly an activity governed by these intensity intervals in its most idle versions. It exceeds 80% only on ascents, although they can be done more sustainably.
So by duration and intensity, cycling improves most sports to lose weight by burning fat. Of course, mix interval training with explosives once you get a physical tone, always prioritizing consistency over intensity. You will improve your weight loss. There are quite a few keys to losing weight if thats what youre looking for.
It is often said that going hard makes you burn carbohydrates while going at a constant rate burns fat. It has its share of truth because your body, when faced with a sudden demand for energy, will pull sugar first, then carbohydrates. The last thing is fat, so it is better to go slower and hold on longer to get to that dreaded strip of fat and lose weight.
Furthermore, If you want to build muscle mass with the bike, you have come to the right place. The bicycle is a beneficial instrument since it allows you to transport yourself wherever you want without spending fuel and without polluting. It will also help us to have a better body.
Does cycling burn fat on thighs?
One of the central myths about cycling is the question: can cycling eliminate fat from the thighs? Well, it doesnt have anything. Fat is generally removed from the entire body and ultimately disappears where it started to accumulate: normally the abdomen in men and the gluteal-femoral region in women.
Localized weight loss is a false belief, leading many people to perform endless crunch crunches, glute, and thigh exercises, among others. These exercises do not make sense unless you plan to prepare some regional dance.
After exercising, it may seem like you have lost weight or volume, but after a while, when the body returns to its normal temperature, that fat returns to its original place. Tennis players clearly show that losing weight or fat in a specific region is impossible. Despite using one, these athletes have the same fat percentage in both arms, much more than the other.
If you want to lose fat in an area of your body, you should know that fat can only be used as an energy source in aerobic exercises, in which large muscle groups are involved, working at moderate intensities. Forget about compression belts and thermal garments.
Cycling fat burning zone.
One of the methods to optimize our training for this purpose is to stay in the fat-burning zone when exercising. But how do we stay there, and what exactly happens in this area? The fat-burning zone is between 60% and 70% of our maximum heart rate. This is the strip in which the body uses fat for fuel without entering into the dreaded muscle catabolism. The fat-burning zone helps us obtain energy from the fat stored during and after exercise: this is important since once we stop running or get off our bike, our metabolism consumes that fat that we want to eliminate. The body will continue to break down fat for energy long after you have left the gym.
During training, we should use a heart rate monitor to stay within this burned area. Any model and brand can be valid if it indicates our heart rate. Frequent riders recommend using a model that shows both the number of beats per minute and the percentage, and I have the option to program it so that every time I leave the Fat burning zone emits a visual and audible signal.
Does cycling give you a flat stomach?
Cycling is ideal for toning the lower body muscles and abdominals, thanks to the posture and strength you do with the exercise. But, to strengthen the abs with the stationary bike, you have to follow a series of guidelines that will help you focus part of your effort on this part of your body. You can exercise the abdominal area by using a stationary bike or cycling outdoors because this sport focuses all the effort on the leg, gluteal area, and the center of the body. But to achieve more visible results, you must consider a series of tips to do abdominal crunches on the bike that will help you strengthen your muscles to the maximum.
To tone your abdomen with the bike is to squeeze the abdomen by placing your back completely straight and then return to the most curved position to activate the muscles in the area. We recommend that you accompany these movements with deep breaths and perform 3 sets of 15 repetitions so that the area works to its fullest.
Does cycling in the gym reduce belly fat?
Many of us struggle with our belly and its fatness, which is not suitable for our health. Thinking that bike rides will bring us down that belly quickly is a mistake many of us have made, but not all is bad news. The good news is that you already have the tool to get rid of that tummy forever. Yes, your bicycle is the best tool. The key is to increase the intensity with which you pedal and perform a variety of interval exercises that will help us speed up your metabolism, produce growth hormones, and other benefits that will help us burn that unwanted fat forever. And yes, your bike can do all of that.
Studies have shown that pedaling with a higher intensity helps the body release growth hormone, which helps burn fat and maintain muscle. High-intensity exercise also helps level your appetite and releases hormones that regulate hunger and satisfaction more effectively than low-intensity exercise. Therefore, increasing the intensity of your pedaling will help you not to be as hungry and burn abdominal fat.
Does indoor cycling burn fat?
Indoor cycling is still in fashion. Thanks to its enormous benefits, it continues to be so in the coming years, especially as one of the preferred alternatives for those who want to lose weight and reduce belly fat. Among indoor cycling, option spinning has captured the most attention. The indoor cycle is somewhat more recent and would be the perfecting of spinning. The indoor cycle focuses on improving performance and, more specifically, on certain physical qualities. The indoor bike also has the warm-up and return to calm phases, in addition to the workout or specific work moment. In the workout, the famous intervals are worked, and the requirement is maximum at certain times. The indoor cycle is also open to everyone, but it is generally recommended to have a minimum physical condition to enjoy this modality fully. Indoor cycle bikes are also more technical and sometimes have other indicative values such as watts or cadence.
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