How does cycling compare to running, i am unable to run at the moment because of a hamstring injury, so i thought i would give cycling a go, it doesnt aggravate my problem, but what i want to know is if i run 1 mile what would be the equivelant mileage to achieve the same fitness effect on a bike, is it the same? and is this a good substitute for running. Is there any forumite who can shed light on this for me please
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Somebody will no doubt prove me wrong!
Paul.
You must have been typing at the same time as me!
Shall we split the difference and go for 4 1/2 miles?!!
Having done both sports fairly recently I would agree that the 1/5 ratio is probably about right.
I used to think that cycling was as hard as it could get but having 6 months of 1/2 marathons and now xc under my belt I take that back.
I can honestly say that I have suffered more whilst running than I ever did on a bike!!
I was thinking about doing some rowing as this tends to get your heart working pretty hard - does anybody know if this is "in synch" or antagonistic to running?
1) neither use the range of muscles running does (my legs confirm this after first run yesterday)
2) It's worthwhile keeping up some form of Interval/rep structure
3) Heart rates seem to be lower for given effort
I have been doing a lot of cycling recently due to injury and I suspect that like for like i.e. over the same course the estimate of 4-5 is probably about right but I think it depends on how hard you push yourself. E.g. I use an indoor cycle quite a lot but set on a relatively high resistance level i.e. like constantly cycling uphill - doing this I would suggest the ratio is a lot closer. Plus cycling has lots of other benefits.
But yes you are right - keep the cadence high, and spin low gears and that'll make sure you don't bulk up.
Fixed wheel bikes are good if you feel brave, or spinning classes are excellent.
Both 2 very good forms of exercise.