‘Bequem’ is a German word that means comfortable. For most of us, leading a comfortable life means being able to focus on different things at different times, also moving forward with them all.
So, as the famous saying goes, Life is indeed like riding a bicycle.
In this fast-moving world, cycling not just regulates the air pollution of our environment but also regulates our lifestyle in various aspects. As cycling can be affected by people of all ages, it is relatable to each and every one.
Now let us go through the following benefits we can experience mentally and as well as physically because of cycling.
#1 Mental Boost
Cycling helps one to focus on the road thereby shifting the thoughts away from regular day’s errands. It provides us a sense of accomplishment after each and every ride. This is mainly because cycling is an exercise that releases endorphins, which in turn helps to lower the stress levels.
Thus it makes sense why most psychologists tell taking a ride every morning on your cycle. Making it one of the most fun, cheap and beneficial mode of workout.
#2 Core Workout
Though we just agreed that cycling is one of the fun-filled workouts it is no way less than any other core workouts. Cycling benefits so much in building the core muscles and abdominal. While cycling as the rider maintains the cycle in balance and sits upright its strengthens the spine to a greater extent.
#3 Health Benefits
Cycling is more or less an aerobic activity that workouts your lungs, heart, and blood vessels. Thereby, causing you to perspire more and breathe deeply, which will improve the overall fitness.
Apart from these, health benefits from regular cycling are decreased body fat levels, improved joint mobility, posture, and coordination.
Also, cycling benefits for specific health issues and diseases like breast cancer. According to the research done by ASCO Ph.D. doctorates, cycling helps to reduce the side effects of cancer treatment.
As cycling helps to reduce the stress level by taking the rider away from the sedentary lifestyle, it can help prevent cardiac issues such as heart attack or stroke. People suffering from high blood pressure would find cycling more beneficial.
Cycling also addresses one of the most alarming situations in the current generation, obesity. Weight control is highly possible via cycling as it raises the metabolic rate. Steady cycling for an hour can help to burn around 300 calories. So, one hour a day for a week can ensure the burning of over 2000 calories. British researchers suggest regularly cycle half-hour every day as even it can help to reduce 5 kilos of fat within a span of one year.
Cycling is an ideal form of exercise if you are facing osteoarthritis. As this health issue is caused because of wearing down of tissues at the ends of bones, cycling can help in reducing pain and improving joint movements.
Type 2 diabetes is a serious health condition where the pancreas can’t make enough insulin that is needed for your body. That is, your blood sugar levels are increasing. Insulin injection is thus taken to help glucose get into your cells to give them energy. Regular cycling can even be an alternative for insulin injection, that’s the extent of the beneficence of cycling for diabetes patients.
#4 Gym Goers
“Life is too short to skip a leg day” is one quote which you can find in almost every gym. If one is able to walk or climb stairs after a leg day in the gym, it means he or she hasn’t trained well that day. When the leg workouts can be too tiring and hard, people tend to skip those leg days at the gym and end up with chicken legs.
Cycling can be beneficial for gym goers who find it hard to improve their laps on leg presses at the gym. Cycling aids immensely in improving the lower body muscles. It strengthens the leg muscles without over-stressing them.
#5 Environment Friendly
Reducing our carbon print is the need of the hour and by riding a cycle we can accomplish it more easily. Riding a cycle is not just a low-impact option for the human body but it also has a very low or no impact on the environment as well. The first good thing we get from riding a cycle is the reduction in air pollution. And of course, a little heavier wallet as fuel consumption gets saved.
Parking your cycle would never be an issue like getting your car parked within a crowded parking lot.
How about a future where valet parking considers parking your cycle as well?
-Sanjay S Prakash