The Benefits of Bike Exercise

Exercise is great for keeping fit and healthy, and it's an important part of any weight loss program, along with a review of your diet.

They say that walking is the king of exercise, and with good reason, but bike exercise holds most of the benefits of walking without the stress on ankle and knee joints.

You can exercise inside your home on a stationary machine, which is ideal for catching up on your favourite TV program, or you can do the real thing outside, which gives you the benefit of fresh air and sunshine in addition to your exercise - unless it's raining of course!

Benefits Of Bike Exercise

• Simple to do
• Low cost
• Indoors or outdoors
• No special area needed other than the road - or your floor.
• Excellent cardiovascular workout
• Calorie burn
• Tones muscle, especially legs
• Low impact, less chance of injury

The calorie burning benefits of bike exercise are well publicised, but the total calories burned are dependent upon the duration, intensity and frequency of exercise, plus your weight - the more you weigh, the harder you work in order to propel yourself forwards. A 126-pound human will burn approximately 360 calories per hour, this total rises to 600 for a weight of 210 pounds.

When you consider that it takes a calorie burn of 3500 to lose one pound of body fat, you can see how frequent bike exercise can help dramatically in your goal to lose weight. The key is consistency, if you cycle for half an hour, five days a week you can lose half a pound in a week. Now this may not sound like much but throughout the course of a year that could add up to a total loss of 25 pounds, just through cycling alone! That's why it is important to be consistent. Make cycling a habit, don't succumb to the temptation of missing a day or two here and there, otherwise you'll be right back to where you started.

Cycling can be done solo or as part of a group. There many cycling clubs all over the country and they are a a fine environment for making new friends who share your interest in fitness. Of course cycling done be performed as part of a gym routine, but the real strength of the activity is that it can be done virtually anywhere.

Equipment - other than the initial purchase - is not expensive, and doesn't extend past a purpose-designed cycle helmet and appropriate clothing to suit the weather.

Bike exercise not only has many benefits, it is fun and a splendid activity for the whole family - so get pedaling!

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Check out this article: What Is The Difference Between Aerobic And Anaerobic Exercise? to get more info on this topic.

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