Can I lose weight by riding a bicycle: the benefits and driving rules

Cardio is a highly effective tool for improving health and weight loss. Can I lose weight while cycling? Yes, because a two-wheeled coach loads the largest muscles of the body( buttocks) located in those places that you want to pull up the most. A bicycle helps to burn weight not only in the lower part of the body, but promotes the formation of a sports figure, the training of the respiratory system, practically has no contraindications.

The use of cycling

There are several factors that say confident "yes" to riding a bike. It's not just a walk in the open air and the opportunity to lose weight: the bike will make your exercises regular, effective. You can completely replace the bike ride using any transport to overcome the way from home to work and back, saving money and time, while not allocating special hours for training in the gym.

A bicycle is the way to communicate with like-minded people. Bike trips to nature, trips to the river or mountains - these activities additionally motivate and develop the habit of living an active lifestyle. Groups of bicycle owners can be combined in the following directions: extreme descent, bike tours in the countryside or stunt driving, according to the level of training. If you are not able to overcome 40 kilometers of the track or are not ready to climb a bike in the mountains - choose a group that corresponds to the degree of your fitness and how much you can drive in a day.

How many calories burned

Cycling is an energy-consuming activity, but how much you will burn calories depends on so many factors. Among them, the terrain, speed and manner of driving, own weight, road surface and even the presence of a tailwind or headwind. Determine exactly how much energy will be burned from your bike tour, but there are certain numbers that allow you to navigate the calorie consumption when riding a bicycle:

• We take as a basis a leisurely( 6 km / h) bike tour of a thin( up to 50 kg) of a person in windless weather on a flat asphalt road - 250 calories.
• The dependence of calorie consumption on speed is almost linear: if the rate of the bicycle rises by a third, then the flow rate also rises. Let's say you accelerated to 9 km / h - you will spend 332 calories, 12 km / h - 500 calories, etc.
• Every 10 kg of weight( not so important, own or additionally loaded) is added to the consumption of another 60 units of energy. That is, if your weight is 70 kg, then at a "base" speed of 6 km / h you will spend 250 + 120 = 370 calories.

Intensive training on a bicycle can reach up to 800 calories per hour, but this is not the most important plus of such physical exertion. The fact is that the bicycle gives tension to all muscle groups of the body and these muscles are in the tone for another two to three hours after a 40-minute workout. At this time, the greatest fat burning occurs, and calories go away even at rest.

What muscle groups are involved in

The load of all muscle groups is the main difference between a bike ride and an exercise bike. When using the simulator in the hall, you do not need to keep balance, move the body around corners, strain / relax your hands on bumps. Therefore, an exercise bike will not give you the same effect as a bicycle. Does the simulator help to lose weight? Yes, but in the gym should use additional fitness exercises to load the rest of the body muscles.

The biggest and most useful tension when training a bicycle is heart muscle. Cardio-operations trigger the metabolic processes in the body, and this strongly affects the state of your figure. Food that enters the body is digested faster, and a significant part of the nutrients becomes a building material for growing muscles, rather than fatty deposits.

Rules for biking for weight loss

If you have chosen a bicycle as the main means for losing weight, you need to observe a few simple rules:

1. Duration of the workout. It is necessary to start from 20 minutes, gradually increasing the load. Choose the intensity of riding a bicycle and the difficulty of the route so that during the specified period you "exhale" not less than 80-90%.You do not have to remain strong enough to continue driving. Short intensive training is ideal for burning weight, as after its completion of 2-3 hours there is an increased expenditure of calories of the body.
2. Regularity of lessons. You must bike at least 3 times a week. Such intensity will not allow the muscles to relax and will constantly maintain them in the right tone. The process of weight loss will be permanent.
3. Drink plenty of water after exercise. During intensive workings, do not load your kidneys with liquid. Drink only after finishing the workout. Do not drink 30 minutes before the start of loads.
4. Leg warm-up required. Before the trip, do a five-minute warm-up with a stretch of legs to avoid injury during intense training.

How to choose the right bike and accessories

Much in this matter depends on your financial capabilities, place of residence and tasks. There are no minor points here, every detail is of fundamental importance. Some of the most important:

• Bike frame selection. The height should be 10 cm below the waist. Due to this, the load is distributed evenly, the torso is not overstrained and it is possible to exert all the weight on the pedal.
• Selection of bike wheels. If you plan to travel only in the city line on the asphalt surface, you will need a narrow aluminum rim - it creates less resistance when driving. If in your locality such roads are not enough, then it is worth choosing wider disks and tires - they will smooth out the blows and will not slip through the mud.
• Saddle selection. Bicycle for weight loss should be approximated by its functionality to sports, so the seat should be narrow. Walking( wide) saddles are more suitable for unhurried trips to shops or excursions.
• Helmet is an indispensable accessory. Bike helmets are made of plastic and polystyrene and weigh about 200 grams. Correctly matched, it is absolutely not felt on the head and provides sufficient ventilation during driving. When you fall, it will keep your skull from fracture.
• Points. Always wear this protection when riding a bicycle. Good bicycle sunglasses should be securely attached to the head and have removable glasses for driving in the daytime and at dusk. The ingress of insects or a small pebble into the eye, unprotected by glasses, in many cases leads to an accident. Do not neglect this protection.

The clothing of a cyclist must be specially adapted for this sport. Tightening shorts or leggings with a thermo-effect, a T-shirt with pockets on the back - all the elements of the biker's clothes should easily drain sweat and ventilate. Do not use cotton cloth for your workouts - it collects sweat and can cause overheating even in cool weather. Shoes - only sports, well-ventilated sneakers or special bike.

Training program for men and women

What is useful for an exercise bike is that each athlete can flexibly choose the degree of load for his abilities. It is important to create a competent schedule for increasing the intensity and to keep a constant monitoring of achievements. Many simulators have a special calculator for these purposes. Exercises do not differ in masculine and feminine. Most of the load falls on the lower half of the body as in a bicycle, but men will lose weight first from above( in the abdomen), and women from below( around the buttocks and thighs), because weight loss begins with the largest fat deposits.

Interval training

The essence of the interval training is that at certain short intervals you give your body different loads. Different muscle groups work, burning fat takes place with maximum speed. Here is an example of one of these exercises( depending on the level of your preparation, the intensity, technique and run-time can vary):

1. 10 min.warm-up - jumping rope.
2. 3 min.- measured, slow driving( 5-6 km / h).
3. 3 min.- increase in speed to 8-10 km / h.
4. 1 min.- Set the load on the bike 10 ° rise - keep the pace 8-10 km / h.
5. 2 min.- hold the speed of the bike at 8-10 km / h, but pedal while standing.
6. 3 min.- return to the saddle, the pace is 8-10 km / h.
7. 30 sec.- set the climb to 12 ° - keep the pace 8-10 km / h.
8. 30 sec.- Rise of 15 ° with the same rate.
9. 1 min.- Set the rise to 12 °, the speed of 8-10 km / h.
10. 1 min.- set the rise to 15 °, maintain a speed of 8-10 km / h.
11. 1 min.- 7 ° lift, bike speed - 15 km / h standing on the pedals.
12. 3 min.- lifting 3 °, bicycle speed - 20 km / h sitting in the saddle.
13. 1 min.- lifting 0 °, bicycle speed - 15 km / h.
14. 4 min.- recreation. Get up from the simulator, walk around, jump.
15. Repeat steps 11-13.

Short sprint

This is an intensive type of exercise, in which the maximum allowable( pulse rate up to 160 beats per minute) cardio-loading for a short period of time - 20 seconds is given. This load is followed by a relaxed ride - 20 seconds, and then again the maximum intensity. Such cycles need to be done at least 6. As a separate training, such a sprint is not very effective for weight loss, but as a final exercise for fitness classes is very suitable.

Video: Do ​​weight loss training work

A popular video blogger talks about the benefits of weight loss with a bicycle, debunks some of the myths and fears associated with the fear of excessive pumping feet. Want to see which muscle groups are involved in driving and how to achieve the maximum result from training? See the video, which also describes the benefits of group training on bicycles, which diseases are a contraindication for cycling and which ailments are easily cured by regular cycling.

Feedback on the results after losing weight

Lena, 28 years old : I got on a bicycle three years ago with a weight of 80 kg. Now my weight is 55 kg and for me the answer to the question, whether it is possible to lose weight, simply riding a bicycle, is obvious! I simply stopped using the bus to get to work and back, and the first results I noticed after 3 months - the kilograms began to melt before our eyes, muscles appeared, and then the figure.

Lisa, 32 years old : If I am asked if it is possible to lose weight heavily by riding a bicycle, I will answer that she herself became a "victim" of this phenomenon. I dropped 20 kg in half a year on my "iron horse".Just once I decided that I would ride a bike 3-4 times a week outside the city in the forest or on the river. Has received weight reduction, a harmonous figure( now at me of 53 kg) and weight of a plus in addition.

Nastya, 42 years old : I remember how I first got on a bicycle 10 years ago. Then I would never have believed that he would forever change my life. Since then, I've wound up tens of thousands of kilometers and dropped( in the first year) 24 kg of mass. Now my weight is 48 kg. The bike helps me to always stay in shape, be light and ready to travel at any time.