Cycling makes you fit. But why is that? And what does fit actually mean? What happens to the body through regular cycling training? We have investigated these questions and have approached four key areas of the body.
It's the same every year. As soon as the first rays of sunshine herald the arrival of spring, racing cyclists get their bikes out of the cellar, go for their first ride - and get sore. The bum hurts, not to mention leaden legs the day after. Nevertheless, they don't put their bikes back in the cellar, but look forward to the next round. But why?
Because they have the same experience every spring: After the initial pain comes the fun. "That's a big part of the fascination of road cycling," explains Dr Robert Eifler, internist at the Institute of Sports Medicine in Frankfurt. "Many people want to lose weight by cycling, but still have fun doing it. Anyone who has ever whizzed along a quiet country road in fine weather knows that road cycling can achieve this," says Eifler, who is an enthusiastic road cyclist himself. "What's more, road cycling is particularly good for endurance training, you do a lot of long and steady sessions, which gives you a good foundation and makes you physically fit," he adds.
But what does "fit" actually mean? Translated, it simply means "fit" or "adapted" - and that is exactly what happens to the body through regular training. Unaccustomed stresses, such as the first ride of the year, initially overtax the body. In order to avoid this embarrassment again, it memorises this stress and adapts to it so that it is better prepared for it the next time. This ability of our body is the prerequisite for being able to train in a targeted manner at all. If training stimuli are repeated, we can process them better and better - sore muscles are a thing of the past after just a few rides.
And this is exactly what newcomers to road cycling feel. Your pedalling becomes smoother as your muscles work more efficiently, your breathing becomes calmer as your breathing technique improves and your breathing muscles are strengthened. Your posture becomes more relaxed because the core muscles, which have to hold the upper body on the bike, adapt.
Through regular and long-term cycling training, the whole body gradually adapts to road cycling: The heart becomes larger and more efficient, the respiratory muscles work more effectively and can support the lungs better, the muscles - especially those of the legs - become stronger and more enduring. Such adaptation processes take place right down to the smallest units of the body, the cells.
Find out how the heart becomes more efficient, breathing more effective, muscles stronger and cells work more economically in our free PDF
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