Bicyle Riding

[Beautifuldisaster]

How efficient is biking for cardio? I ride at least 5 days a week for 30 - 45 minutes.....I don't feel as though I am making a difference. What do ya think?

 

[kmiller]

Are you taking a spinning class or are you outside? I do spinning 5xs a week and absolutely love it. My first week I could definitely tell a difference. That class with help you get into to shape no doubt about it, but I do sugest lifting weights at least a couple days a week. My spinning instructor told me to lose fat to get your heart rate up to 75 or 80, and if you can't breath through your nose then you heart rate is too high. But if you want to burn more calories then you need to raise you heart rate to 80 or so. I am not sure if that is right, that is just what she told me.

 

[Beautifuldisaster]

I ride outside...up and down hills and such ...I can tell a difference in the tightness of my thighs..or maybe its my imagination *sigh*

 

[Synpax]

Unless I am trying to go fast or am charging up a hill, I barely get out of zone 1 when I am biking. Zone 1 is where your body is making use of only some of the slow twitch muscles that burn fat for fuel. Zone 2 is where your body is using most of the slow twitch and is where you want to be. Beyond that you start to use glycogen and you cannot stustain nor will it help you loose weight.

It also takes a while to start to burn the fat in a single workout. At the start you are mostly using glycogen no matter how slow you go.

Try to maybe go for an hour or 90 minutes and you may balance that out by riding only three times a week. You may also wish to alternate in the workout to do 5 minutes hard, 5 minutes normal, back and forth.

 

[Beautifuldisaster]

Thank you synpax

 

[USMC fighter]

Try intervals, they work really well for me, since doing them on the bike, my bf % hasnt been higher than 8%

 

[silverfish]

I got a single speed mountain bike last winter. It really kicks your ass. I still do many of the same hilly single track but it's so much harder. My HR goes up and stays up until I'm done. I find when I go out with my regular mtn bike, I can go longer and stonger than before, and hills are so easy.

 

[Synpax]

Single speed.... I know that's gotten popular. How does it brake?

 

[silverfish]

Single speed.... I know that's gotten popular. How does it brake?

Haven't noticed a difference in braking. The handlebars are longer and that's a little tough to get used to.

 

[Synpax]

No, I mean, how exactly do you break? Do you have breaks on the handle bars?