Biking For Fun, Fitness And Adventure

Summer is a time most bikers dust their bikes and get it ready for use. A bicycle is easy to ride and one can fit it in one's garage or just about any small space. Bikes come in handy as a form of transport or just for recreation or a sporting event. Whether one is alone or enjoy the company of like-minded friends, biking can be a daily activity during all seasons of the year. Kids learn to pedal their new bikes while teenagers love to ride dangerously and adventurous adults go mountain biking. Balancing on two wheels and pedaling gives one a sense of thrill, independence and a rush of adrenaline if participating in an event. Riding on city roads or village lanes or at a sporting event requires bikers to adhere to safety rules. Investing in an expensive geared bike is insufficient if you throw all caution to the winds and ride without a good helmet.

Biking For Fun

Cycling for recreation can be enjoyable for all ages,men and women. Some love to use this means of transport with a carrier or a basket attached to the handlebar or the side to fetch fresh vegetables from the market everyday. If you have a friend who loves biking as well, chances are you will enjoy biking together in the afternoons or evenings and stop for a cup of coffee or a sandwich on the way. Some love to carry their bikes in the rear or the roof of their cars to parks or large open spaces and take off for a good long ride and coming back to the car for a small picnic. Those adventurous enough will choose mountains or hilly terrain to engage in what is termed as mountain biking. Specially adapted bikes are used for the purpose.

Biking For Fitness

Whether you are a fitness freak or not, an average man or woman requires some form of exercise in order to beat the battle of the bulge and stay in shape. Being able to burn off the excess calories is not enough,one needs to keep the body fit. Cycling builds up one's stamina if the biker sticks to a daily schedule and keeps increasing time and distance. For lack of time, some stick to a three-days-a-week schedule of one hour each. The benefits are instantly seen among habitual bikers. Increased agility, stamina, and alertness mark their appearance,and you guessed it, flat abs!

How Many Calories Are Burnt While Riding A Bike?

This is one question most people want to know, especially if they are on a weight loss program.Of course, biking can be substituted for your treadmill at home or your daily date with your trainer at the local gym. Or you can do a combination that suits your body type and interest.

Each style of biking has its calorie requirement. A bike racing at 20kph or more can help you burn about 1088 cals/hr. Depending on the type of road you are riding, you can expect to lose about 250 cals/hr.

Biking For Adventure

Like all sports, there is a rush of adrenaline at the start of every biking event and the exhilaration at finishing it , especially if you have won the event. Preparing for the event itself takes time and practice to perfect your biking postures and upping your fitness levels.

Mountain biking is a popular sport among those-who-dare bikers. Riding bicycles off the roads, over hard, rough terrain using adapted bikes comprises mountain biking. Some enterprising youth have a whale of a time in their backyards, gravel roads. A vast majority,however, prefer to ride off-road trails,go cross country, dirt jumping,downhill or free ride. definitely not for the faint-hearted.

You need to ask yourself a few questions here to choose what is right for you.

• Is cycling going to be a hobby or a sport?
• Am I going to ride city roads or dirt roads?
• Am I interested in mountain biking?
• Do I need to learn to ride or am I a good rider?

Depending on your answers, you will have to make a correct choice of the bike you are to buy. Specialized gear systems will be more expensive and you do not want to end up with a super bike meant for the trails to fetch your supplies from the super market. And conversely, you cannot think of using the one you already have in your garage that you use occasionally within the city to enter a sporting event or to hit the trail.

This knowledge will help you settle for a bike that suits your level of need and your purse.

Bicycle Riding can be dangerous and it is necessary for you to equip yourself for a hassle free ride. A good helmet is a must for all ages,so as to protect your head from injuries during a fall. Other accessories include body armor, and pads, gloves and glasses. A good cycle pump can be handy as also the first aid kit.

Riding a bike outdoors gives you a chance to interact with others and enjoy nature and notice changes in the neighborhood which you would otherwise miss.