Maui Bike Tours Riding a Bike Good Exercise

Bicycling is a popular mode of travel all around the world. It’s easy to do  and requires little more than balance and a well-built bicycle. Yet one of the  best benefits of biking, besides getting to places faster than walking, is that  it is good for you.

Riding a bike can definitely burn calories.  This is great if you are looking to lose weight. Even a 195-lb. person riding a  bike at a very slow rate of 12 mph can burn 531 calories per hour.  Step up to  the 20 mph racing speed and the calories burned per hour more than doubles to  1,416. Take your biking off-road on a mountain bike and you will burn 753 miles  per hour. One of the other reasons why bicycling is a good exercise is  that your body has several moving parts when you ride. Your legs are in motion  as long as you pedal, and your arms are in motion every time you turn.  They  also burn calories from your muscles tensing up in order to keep your balance.  If you bike up hills, your glute muscles do more work.  As you challenge these  various body parts, your heart rate increases with each pedal  stroke.

Depending on your biking posture, you can focus strengthening certain body  parts. Standing up as you pedal can put pressure on your lower legs, while  leaning back a little bit can focus on the glutes. By keeping your hands closer  to the middle of the handlebars and leaning forward, you can put weight pressure  on your forearms.

Caution must be exercised, however, for people with certain conditions. For  example, biking may not be good for you if you are in the early stages of  recovering from any knee problems. If you have constantly sore feet, pedaling  may seem uncomfortable. There is a general risk of injury as well, especially if  you have inner-ear balance issues or if you decide to bicycle in heavy traffic  or off road.  However, the general risks are easily mitigated when you learn the traffic rules  for bikers. Some states, like California, even have designated bicycle lanes in  order to reduce traffic accidents and to promote an emissions-free way of  travel. If done safely and with proper preparation, biking can be a fun, healthy  way to stay in shape.