How Cycling Helps in Weight Loss: Here's The Guidance & Diet For This Stress-Buster Aerobic Exercise

Working out in the gym can turn out to be monotonous, due to which many people stop their exercise after some time. While most of us have enjoyed cycling during our childhood days, not many are aware that it can even help us shed some kilos. Cycling can be fun as you could use your bicycle to reach out to your favourite beautiful location. Let's take a look at how cycling can help in weight loss, along with the guidance and diet for this stress-buster aerobic exercise. Is It Safe to Wear a Face Mask While Cycling? Precautions You Must Take to Prevent Shortness of Breath.

Cycling For Weight Loss

If you want to lose weight, all you need to do first is make an investment for buying a cycle. Cycling regularly for at least thirty minutes, five days in a week, can help you lose weight. However, be sure to improve your pace with time. When you ride a bicycle at a higher pace, the body relies on the anaerobic metabolism system. This means that when you ride faster, you will burn more calories and, thereby, lose more weight. As per a study published in the Harvard University, riding a bike at a moderate speed of 12 to 13.9 miles per hour can help a person weighing 70 Kg shed 298 calories in 30 minutes. Five Health Benefits of Cycling.

Guidelines For Cycling

Cycling apart from helping lose weight is indeed leisure and the best stress-buster activity. Be sure to go for a long ride once a week, probably during the weekend. Choose a good location for your ride destination like a riverside place or a hillside or a dam closest to your locality. This will refresh your soul and make you feel very satisfied and happy. Do make a point to include a hilly or high elevation ride in your routine regularly. This will help you tone your lower body muscle and also strengthen your core. While cycling, it is necessary to maintain a good posture and also practise stretching of muscles regularly to avoid injury. Twice in a week, train your lower body and upper body muscles by doing bodyweight resistance exercises and core exercises for improvement in cycling performance. Include exercises like bodyweight squat, jump squat, speed air squat, alternative leg lunges, push-ups, planks and other isometric core workouts. Check the video below for proper cycling posture.

How to Prevent Lower Back Pain While Cycling

Diet For Cycling

For effective weight loss result, do cycling for thirty minutes in the morning in empty stomach. Early in the morning, the body is in a fasted state and it uses the stored fat from the body for providing energy. However, that can be moderate level of cycling. While going for long-distance cycling, be sure to eat a healthy complex carbohydrate meal just 30 mins to 60 mins prior to cycling. Also, carry a bottle of water, granola bar, banana, dates and nuts in your bag while going for a long-distance ride. Ensure that you take lean protein and healthy carbs throughout the day in your diet to avoid muscle soreness. Avoid foods which are processed and high in saturated fat. Also, reduce the intake of refined sugar as it hinders athletic performance. Stick to green leafy vegetables and most importantly, stay hydrated.

If you are a person who loves to ride more off-road and on rough terrain, then you should invest in MTB (mountaineering) bicycle and if you prefer riding on regular terrain with high pace, then you can go for a road bike. However, MTB is always better when it comes to pricing and can be used both for off-road as well as regular terrain. Cycling can help in weight loss, but be sure to avoid exceeding your daily calorie intake.

(This article is written for an informative purpose and should not be substituted for medical advice. Kindly consult your doctor before trying any tips.)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 07, 2020 04:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).