Why Cycle for Fitness?

The exercise ones body gets while cycling is generally linked with an increase in health and well being. According to studies carried about by the World Health Organization, lack of physical activity is second only to smoking tobacco as a serioud health risk in developed countries, and consequently many tens of billions of dollars of healthcare costs are incurred in treating this. The WHO's report proposes that increasing physical activity is a public health 'best buy' and that riding a bike is a 'highly suitable activity' for this. The British cycling charity Sustrans has found that investment in cycling facilities can give a 20 to 1 return from health and other benefits. It has been estimated that approximately twenty life years are gained from the the physical health benefits of road bicycling for every life year lost through injury.

Bicycles are often used by people looking to increase their fitness and cardiovascular health and consequently cycling is especially helpful for those with arthritis of the lower limbs who are unable to pursue impact or weight bearing sports that would cause problems for their knees and other joints. Since cycling can also be used for the every day purpose of transport and commuting, it can be easy to ride regularly and need less self-discipline to exercise.

Due to the rider being seated most of the time, cycling is a relatively non weight bearing exercise that, similar to swimming, does little to promote bone density. Cycling standing up and out of the saddle, on the other hand, does a better job by transferring more of the rider's body weight to the legs. It used to be thought that cycling while standing was less energy efficient apart from aerodynamic resistance, but recent research has proven this to be untrue.

Cycling on a stationary cycle is frequently advocated as a suitable exercise for rehabilitation, particularly for lower limb injuries due to the low impact that it has on the joints. Cycling on static bikes or turbo trainers is commonly used in conjunction with knee rehabilitation programs.

As a response to the increased first world sedentary lifestyle and consequential obesity of its population, one approach to be adopted by many organizations concerned with health and environment is the promotion of active travel, in which walking and cycling are promoted as safe and attractive alternatives to motorized transport. Given that many journeys are for relatively short distances, there is considerable scope to replace private motor car use with walking or cycling, though in many cities this may require some infrastructure modification, particularly to attract those who are less experienced and confident at negotiating traffic on a bicycle. Various cities around the world such as Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Oxford manage to promote bike use as a form of regular transportation. For these types of riders the need for power meters and heart rate monitors is lessened as just the act of riding a couple of miles is enough of a health boost.