How good is cycling?

yann
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by yann »

Audax67 wrote:If it makes you sweat, fine.

-Making you sweat is a surrogate indicator for demonstrating that one has "stressed " on's Cardio-Vascular System. In other words that you have done some work requiring a bit of exertion!
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bigjim
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by bigjim »

Yes regular cycling is great for health, but I'm not convinced it is paarticularly the best. There is the pollution from vehicles we are forced to breath in and the ever present danger, plus of course the close passes and abuse that does cause some stress.
Running, jogging on woodland paths or swimming must be better I would have thought, although cycling can be more enjoyable.
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horizon
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by horizon »

bigjim wrote:Yes regular cycling is great for health, but I'm not convinced it is paarticularly the best. There is the pollution from vehicles we are forced to breath in and the ever present danger, plus of course the close passes and abuse that does cause some stress.
Running, jogging on woodland paths or swimming must be better I would have thought, although cycling can be more enjoyable.


The great thing about cycling is that it doesn't have to be an organised activity - it can be just part of normal life, going shopping, travelling to work and so on. You don't have to "do" cycling, you just get on with what you need to do. In this way it doesn't need so much of a time allocation, can be regular and self-reinforcing and even saves money. If you lead a busy life, it can be the difference between exercise and no exerise. Unlike say swimming and even walking, it has the potential as well to replace the car for lots of journeys. Not everyone incorporates cycling into their everyday lives but those that do can derive great benefit from it.
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softlips
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by softlips »

The best exercise is one you as an individual enjoy. If you enjoy it you will continue doing it and do it consistently.

Cycling seems to be the most popular exercise taken by the cardiologists and cardiac surgeons I work with. It's good for the cardio respiratory system and is very low impact. You can do it alone or in a group and once you've bought the kit it can be cheap - I say 'can' as for most it isn't as they upgrade bikes and kit etc.
ianrobo
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by ianrobo »

rmurphy195 wrote:
and T2 diabetes - which the exercise keeps in check.



How ?

T2D has nothing to do with exercise whatsoever, if it did how did some athletes get it ?

If you are using exercise to control this then you are getting it wrong and T2D is curable within a matter of weeks if you are prepared to make drastic dietary changes.

that choice is up to you of course.
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mjr
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by mjr »

rmurphy195 wrote:Agreed - as for any sort of exercise. Add to that you can roll downhill, pedal more gently or as hard as you feel. (Joggers can't do that!)

Well, joggers can sometimes catch a bus home. Cyclists can't do that around here unless they've a folding bike. Sorry - just being contrary really ;-)

bigjim wrote:Yes regular cycling is great for health, but I'm not convinced it is paarticularly the best. There is the pollution from vehicles we are forced to breath in and the ever present danger, plus of course the close passes and abuse that does cause some stress.

We breathe less pollution cycling than those running busy routes and the main advantage for walking quiet routes in https://www.theguardian.com/environment ... port-video was that the route was even quieter than the quiet cycling route IIRC.

The danger, whilst a worry and therefore a deterrent to mass cycling which it's worth reducing, is far less than the danger from less physical activity - but maybe not the stress if you suffer road rage from others (another thing worth tackling by supporting the Road Justice campaigns and similar)... but I'd say the best cycling is stress-relieving, although not everyone cycling has yet discovered it. That's why I think it's worth sharing the enjoyment you describe.

bigjim wrote:Running, jogging on woodland paths or swimming must be better I would have thought, although cycling can be more enjoyable.

Yes, cycling on woodland non-motorised routes tops it all IMO.
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Vorpal
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by Vorpal »

ianrobo wrote:
rmurphy195 wrote:
and T2 diabetes - which the exercise keeps in check.



How ?

T2D has nothing to do with exercise whatsoever, if it did how did some athletes get it ?

If you are using exercise to control this then you are getting it wrong and T2D is curable within a matter of weeks if you are prepared to make drastic dietary changes.

that choice is up to you of course.

Exercise uses the glucose in your blood, so it help keep the glucose levels in your blood regulated. It also makes insulin work more effectively, and increases your metabolism, so that you can use glucose faster/better. That doesn't mean that athletes can't get it, though I would expect the percentage of athletes with T2 to be somewhat lower than in the general population.

Also, exercise should be *part* of treatment, at least for those who were sedentary or overweight when they got their diagnosis. Some people who have been sedentary find that exercise is enough to control their blood glucose level, though most people need a combination of diet and exercise.

Exercise also helps people with T2 to avoid long term complications, even if it does not contribute much to controlling glucose levels in their blood.

It is possible, you know, for people who have healthy diets to get T2. Just like it is possible for people who exercise to get it.
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by bikepacker »

softlips wrote:The best exercise is one you as an individual enjoy. If you enjoy it you will continue doing it and do it consistently.

Cycling seems to be the most popular exercise taken by the cardiologists and cardiac surgeons I work with. It's good for the cardio respiratory system and is very low impact.


Two good points there. For me cycling is the most enjoyable form of exercise I know. I do swim and I do quite a bit of walking but neither give me the enjoyment I get from cycling.

Your medical point is the same as the advice I have always been given when having any examination or taking part as a guinea pig in anti hay fever experiments. Having followed that advice for the last 20 years doing around 10,000 miles a year, I am now 74yo and not taking any medication whatsoever.
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by Vorpal »

The Benenden Healthcare Society Limited, Be Healthy Magazine, Spring 2018 wrote:One hour's cycling adds an extra hour to a healthy person's life, according to David Spiegelhalter, the Winton Professor of Risk at Cambridge University

If everyone in the UK cycled (or walked) for around 20 minutes extra a day it would ease the burden on the NHS by El.7 billion, according to a Transport for London study

Cycling to work reduces the risk of developing cancer by 45% and of heart disease by 46%

During exercise cyclists experience a 28% increase in blood flow to the brain, which may help reduce the risk of developing certain types of dementia
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bigjim
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by bigjim »

I don't commute any more so my cycling is a leisure thing. I hate the cold and damp, hailstone, ice, snow, gales etc. So this winter I have really struggled to get out on the bike. I still manage about 5k miles a year. However I have been hiding out in the gym, swimming and lifting weights or go for a long walk when possible. I'm a bit off cycling at the moment as it's so hard to get my fix. I'll now suffer as I'll be so cycling unfit when I get back in the saddle. Luckily I'm off to Mallorca at the end of Feb. :)
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NUKe
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by NUKe »

Roadster wrote:It depends on the terrain as well. Here in the hilly Pennines, some physical exertion is difficult to avoid during a 40-minute bike ride, whereas in (say) East Anglia, it would probably be somewhat easier.

Unless its 40 minutes down hill.

East Anglia is not all flat and when it is you invariably have to suffer the wind. it doesn't matter where you are really 40 minutes on a bike is 40 minutes of good exercise. I don't mind the jokes I have had to suffer them from Friends and family since moving to East Anglia 30 years ago. In fact I would say someone in east Anglia has a better chance of getting and staying fit.
Last edited by Vorpal on 19 Jan 2018, 2:32pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: fix quotes
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Roadster
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by Roadster »

No offence intended to people living in East Anglia, NUKe, I assure you. Actually, your point has already been made by Drossall on the 27th September, so no need to labour it unnecessarily nearly four months later.
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NUKe
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Re: How good is cycling?

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I had not realised it was a such an old thread, why did someone resurrect it.
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by Vorpal »

NUKe wrote:I had not realised it was a such an old thread, why did someone resurrect it.

Because this is an internet forum. :lol:
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mjr
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Re: How good is cycling?

Post by mjr »

Vorpal wrote:
NUKe wrote:I had not realised it was a such an old thread, why did someone resurrect it.

Because this is an internet forum. :lol:

Recycling is almost as good as cycling!
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