Which Muscles Does Bicycling Strengthen?

Masters in Exercise and Sports Science

Bicycling provides an effective form of cardiovascular and muscular endurance exercise that targets a number of muscles in your body. While you might reasonably expect to work your lower body while bicycling, you may be surprised to realize you can also get an effective upper body workout.

Which muscles does bicycling strengthen? Cycling can strengthen muscles in the legs, upper body and core.

There are four major groups of muscles in your legs that work together to perform the basic cycling motion. These include:

Gastrocnemius - The visible calf muscleSoleus - The underlying muscle of the calfHamstrings - A series of muscles that run along the back of the thighQuadriceps - A series of muscles that run along the front of the thigh

In addition to the muscles of the legs, the gluteus muscles of your butt play an important role in cycling. The basic movement goes something like this:

As you press your leg downward against the pedal, your quads activate to extend your knee and your hamstrings to help you perform this movement with control.When your leg is almost fully extended, your hamstrings and glutes will engage as you finish the knee extension and begin flexing your knee and pulling your leg upward.During this transition between the upward and downward movements, you engage your calves as you press the ball of your foot against the pedal and raise your heel.You will also engage your quads, particularly the muscles attaching to your hip flexors, as you pull your thigh upward toward your hip.

As you perform the entire cycling motion, your legs will "feel the burn" as you alternate between different target muscle groups.

Cycling isn't just a lower-body exercise. If you're cycling outside or you're participating in a group cycling class, you'll have to engage your upper body and core as you traverse different types of terrain. For instance, if you're riding a bike outside and you're riding down a bumpy hill, you may find your upper body and core engaging as you push and pull against the handlebars to help you maintain your balance. Similarly, if you're exercising in a group cycling class and you're instructed to increase the resistance, stand up and ride up a "hill," you'll need to pull against the handlebars to generate more power to continue the exercise.

When cycling, form is important, and keeping your back and core tight will help you prevent injury. Many new cyclists are tempted to slouch or rest their upper body weight against the handlebars, but this prevents you from getting the best workout possible. You'll strengthen your lower back and abs by keeping your back and torso straight while maintaining a 30 to 40 degree angle between your back and the bike's seat.

Whether you're exercising indoors or outdoors, you can do a number of things to maximize your workout. First, make sure you're working at a moderately difficult to very difficult resistance level. If the resistance of the pedaling motion allows your legs to fly around in an uncontrolled or semi-uncontrolled fashion, you're not pushing against enough resistance. If you're cycling outdoors, try to incorporate hills or periods of sprinting into your workout - these more difficult bursts of exercise will help strengthen your legs while also improving your cardiovascular capacity. Similarly, if you're working out on a stationary bike, choose a program or a routine that forces you to work harder for short periods of time with intermittent rest.