Originally Posted by
tjspiel
This
study was done with competitive cyclists so it probably doesn't apply to people commuting short or moderate distances. It also apparently doesn't apply to triathletes
I wonder though about those of us who also tour for long distances or do things like centuries. Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to incorporate some weight lifting or at least some extra calcium into the mix.
Cycling is very good for your bones and your general health, competitive sports like pro cycling is probably less healthy.
I recently read a study that followed bicycle commuters over some years, the study had some surprising results for me; Bicycle commuters had significantly less risk of fractures and broken bones. I always assumed that bicyclist would suffer more broken bones from bicycle accidents. But even though some cyclist fall of their bikes and break eg. their collar bones, their exercise strengthen their bones so much, that in general their stronger bones are less likely to fracture when falling in the bathroom (compared to their control group). So the overall bone strengthening effect of the bicycling exercise far outweighs any risk of breaking bones when cycling.
Also bicycle commuting drastically reduced pregnancy and birth complications, and also reduced the chances of getting cysts both benign and malignant.
If the health benefits of bicycle commuting could be had in pill form it would be the drug of the century.
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Regards