People need to be physically active to become healthy and fit. Moving your muscles and joints regularly helps prevent life-threatening diseases like heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and arthritis. With constant body movement, obesity is significantly prevented.
Aside from exercising inside your home or a gym, riding a bicycle is undoubtedly one of many ways to be physically active and an enjoyable way to fight illnesses related to a sedentary lifestyle. Biking and cycling are two words associated with the use of a bicycle. Biking or cycling can be used as a mode of transportation, regular exercise, or even a sport. Termed as a low-impact exercise, biking or cycling keeps you active and beneficial to your health.
Biking for about two to four hours a week, your health will surely improve. Biking or cycling is not only good physically but also mentally. When you go cycling frequently, your stress levels will indeed decrease, thereby decreasing depression and anxiety. Keeping your body active improves joint mobility, strengthens the bones, improves posture and body coordination, increases muscle strength and muscle flexibility, and improves cardiovascular health. Undoubtedly, the list of the benefits of cycling can go on.
While we know the usual things biking or cycling can do, let us specify the health benefits of cycling with common health problems.
Obesity
Whenever you bike, your metabolic rate increases, thereby burning body fat faster. Though biking or cycling is a good start to lose weight, it is always best to combine this with healthy eating habits.
How much fat can you lose? Based on research, a week of biking as an exercise can burn 2,000 calories, while steady cycling can burn around 300 per hour. Even just half an hour every day can burn five kilograms in a year.
Cardiovascular Disease
Biking or cycling regularly improves your blood circulation and heart functions, thereby reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. As it strengthens your muscles, it is excellent in reducing the level of fat in the blood.
Diabetes
Diabetes is associated with people who lack physical exercise. Since cycling involves body movements that strengthen bones and muscles, the risks of developing diabetes are reduced.
Cancer
Research shows a good connection between exercise and cancer prevention. When you bike regularly, the risks of developing colon and breast cancer are significantly reduced. If you are recovering from cancer, biking or cycling is a good exercise to add to your healthcare plan. Side effects of treatment are seen to decrease as it improves your overall wellbeing.
Arthritis
Since biking or cycling places a smaller amount of stress on your joints, this makes it ideal for those who have arthritis. Biking also improves posture, balance, and body coordination.
While we can see many health benefits to cycling, you can still get injured when you fall off the bike or fail to control the speed, bumping into any stationary object. Injury and accidents are severe disadvantages of biking, but you can avoid this from happening with proper precautions.
Here are some bike safety rules that you must follow each ride:
- Follow traffic rules and use only the lanes specified for bikes.
- Always use your hand when signaling, so it is visible to others on the road.
- Do a hook turn from the road’s left side when you are turning right.
- Brake smoothly.
- Do not use headphones so you can hear what’s going on around you.
- Use bicycle safety gear such as a properly-fit helmet to protect your head, gloves to protect your hands, you should fit lights and reflectors on your bike for your road visibility, and horns or bells to help make a sound whenever needed.
- Wear appropriate clothing. Avoid loose-fitting clothing because it can get caught in the chains. It is also better if you wear bright or light clothes when you travel during the day and reflective ones when you travel at night.
- Wear the proper footwear. Choose shoes that fully enclose your heels and toes.
- If cycling is your primary mode of transportation, invest in bicycle gears for inclement weather and clothing that protects you from UV rays.
- Always use sunscreen. Choose a hat and sunglasses that can protect you from UV rays.
- Regularly check your bike and have it serviced at least once a year.
Biking is indeed an enjoyable way to stay fit and healthy. To reap its full health benefits, you must always pay attention to bicycle safety precautions. While biking is good for your body and the environment, do not hesitate to stop and rest whenever you feel pain or fatigue. If you are biking or cycling mainly for fitness, take at least one whole day to rest every week.
When riding a bike has been part of your everyday life, and you are going on a holiday in Madeira Beach, there is no need to worry. You can continue the fun by renting a bike through Island Marine Rentals. We are a boat rental company in Madeira Beach, FL, but we also provide rentals for bikes, scooters, paddleboards, and kayaks. Contact us now!
