There are many good reasons to cycle more. We have researched how daily cycling can affect your body, mind, environment and finances – and show you the best things to look out for before you get started. You should also get started to place your sports betting early to catch the early bird bonuses.
Cycling is booming. Especially in larger cities, more and more people are using their bikes to get around. In Düsseldorf, for example, weekday cycle traffic in the city center has doubled since 1999. And the coronavirus pandemic has further intensified this trend. Berlin recorded a 17% increase in the first half of 2020 compared to the same period last year. There are many reasons for this – not least the desire to do something for health and the environment. But what exactly happens when you switch from car to bike and cycle every day?
HOW IT IMPROVES YOUR PHYSICAL HEALTH
The positive effects of cycling on our bodies are not only shown in numerous studies, you can also feel them yourself as soon as you get on your bike: Exercising in the fresh air is good for you, you get your cardiovascular system going and increase blood flow to your muscles and brain. And the best thing is that you don’t have to cycle for long to do your body so much good.
1. cycling increases your fitness – and your life expectancy
According to a Swedish study, people who cycle 30 minutes a day have a longer life expectancy than those who don’t: the cardiovascular system and muscles are strengthened, blood pressure drops and physical fitness increases. Why is that? Our body is designed for maximum efficiency. This means that it adapts as well as possible to the demands placed on it. So if you used to travel by car or public transport and now cycle these routes, your body adapts to the new circumstances so that it can cope with them more easily in the future. Small disclaimer: This also means that your physical fitness will decrease again if you stop cycling every day.
2. cycling helps you lose weight
Cycling just a few kilometers a day can help you lose weight. This is because you burn more calories compared to driving, taking the public transport or even walking, making it easier to reach a calorie deficit at the end of the day – which is what you need to lose weight. You can burn up to 250 kilocalories with 30 minutes of cycling at a moderate pace, depending on your body weight. A French study in 2018 suggested a positive effect of cycling on reducing obesity: the test subjects lost weight, reduced their hip circumference and their body fat percentage.
3. cycling helps you to prevent diabetes
Cycling can also help prevent diabetes, according to a study from Denmark. According to the study, just one hour a week can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by up to 28 percent. And even those who are already diabetic can regulate their blood sugar levels better with regular, relaxed cycling.
The reasons why daily cycling is good for your body could go on and on, but so that you don’t have to sit down to read this text, let’s move on to why cycling is also good for your mind.
YOUR MENTAL HEALTH
Many people who try the switch from car or public transport to bike report that they arrive at work and back home more relaxed. Scientific studies support this impression.
1. cycling improves your concentration and reduces stress
Exercise while cycling improves blood flow to our brain, provides it with more oxygen and allows it to function better. Cycling also reduces stress and increases our well-being, as shown in a study by the University of Zurich, among others. Almost 9,000 respondents stated that they felt less stressed when they cycled their daily journeys. This is mainly due to the fact that cycling helps us to reduce the stress hormone cortisol. It also eliminates stress factors such as annoyance in traffic jams, crowded subways or the search for a parking space.
2. cycling can help to alleviate depression
Both the lowering of our cortisol levels and thus our stress levels and the steady pedaling motion when cycling can possibly help people with depression. A study by the University of Tübingen points this out. The researchers had older people with depression cycle on an ergometer for around 30 minutes. Blood levels were measured before and after the bike ride, which play a key role in the development of depression. While these values of depressed people were worse than those of healthy comparison subjects before the endurance exercise, they had normalized in almost all study participants after the 30-minute bike ride.
3. cycling can help prevent dementia
Lack of exercise is a known risk factor for dementia. Cycling is therefore also suitable for reducing the likelihood of developing dementia – and may even help people who already have the disease. Numerous studies have shown this. A Spanish study, for example, examined the cognitive performance of residents of a retirement home. The 39 test subjects were divided into two groups. One group rode an exercise bike for at least 15 minutes a day, while the other group did not. The result: attention, cognitive ability and visual perception of the surroundings improved significantly in the cycling group compared to the control group.
