erig007

i believe there isn't a simple answer, it depends on how you ride your bike.
i have done weight bearing exercises on squat machines before and it is very similar to what i do on my bike when carrying groceries toward summit (standing, pulling the bar and pushing like crazy on the pedals)

Loose Chain

Swim, bike, run and weights/machines

LC

tjspiel

A properly done squat (weight on your shoulders and supported by arms) is a big lift that works lots of muscles. It's hard to image anything you can do on a bike working the same way. What you're doing might be sufficient to deal with bone density issues. I can't really say one way or another, but it's not the same as a squat.

erig007

You can try something pretty similar yourself. Next time you climb a hill try to do that with the highest gear ratio possible. You will normally pull (not push) the bar with your hands like if you were lifting weight in order to increase pressure on the pedals. Arms, back, shoulders, legs, abdominal, all your body will be working out.

vol

The first two both have the same problem. I suppose swimming is even less bone-strengthening than cycling.

polishmadman

Is there any differences between cyclists bone density and a person who drives a car and sits in an office? They get less strength training than any of us.

wolfchild

Mashing big gears on a bicycle is NOT the same as using a heavy barbell and doing deadlifts, squats or power cleans. Cycling does does absolutly nothing to strengthen your upper body, your back , your core. Excercises such as dedlifts , power cleans, squats, work and strengthen your entire body from top to bottom. Even proffessional track racers follow a weight training routine as part of their training.

fietsbob

Maybe when assigned to the International Space Station.. lack of gravity has effects.

erig007

Well i have been doing squats, weight lifting etc for years. For the last 4 years, the only thing i have done is riding my heavy bicycle everywhere. (and eat proteins like beans, milk, tuna etc). (and some one time work out like the squat challenge here on this forum or skiing once a year for instance). I have lost some muscles but most of them are still there so much that people when they see me still asks me if i do some weight lifting. Just carrying my heavy security chain or my grocery bags is weight lifting by itself. Climbing stairs carrying my heavy bike is work out by itself. There is probably as many ways to ride a bicycle as there is people on earth.

tigerteeuwen

i am your density!

i mean destiny...

GeoKrpan

Take your fixed gear and go climb some big mountains, don't sit down for one second. It will be a more intense workout for your upper body, back and core than any gym session.

wolfchild

I've done many hilly and long distance rides on my fixed gear and yes it's an intense workout, but it's not even close to an intense workout session using weights and gymnastic rings. I commute fixed everyday. Cycling will NOT develop your upper body strength or increase you bone density. Only weights and other forms of resistence training will do that. Why do you think proffessional track cyclist and sprinters follow a weight training routine ??. Because it increases their performance.

erig007

Because they ride 10 pounds bicycles

wolfchild

No it's not because they ride 10 pound bicycles... They do it to increase their explosive strength/power, which in turn will increase their performance on the track.

GeoKrpan

I ride with guys who follow a more orthodox training regimen, going to the gym. They are probably stronger, in the gym, but on the road there is no comparison. Who is stronger? I've ridden single speed for 5 years, 50,000 miles, and my upper body, back, and core are far stronger than they've ever been which I totally attribute to doing big climbs, standing, on a single speed, 48x17, 75 gear inches. My brother is a personal trainer and he does not agree with you.

Loose Chain

I did not say any different, but nonetheless, total fitness is achieved by a balanced fitness routine that includes all four fitness pillars.

LC

wolfchild

I don't own any geared bikes anymore...Riding fixed gear and singlespeed has definetly helped me to become a stronger rider...Weight training and other forms of resistence training has increased my overall level of fitness and strength more then cycling... How much resistence does riding a bicycle provide for your arms, shoulders, core , back ?? vs lifting a heavy barbell overhead... There is a huge big difference between riding a bicycle and lifting a heavy barbell.

GeoKrpan

I was just reading about the geography of Ontario. It doesn't seem to have the climbing opportunities of Southern California. I can understand your point of view. I'm not trying to be mean or snide but it is likely that our experiences are much different. If there weren't so many hills and mountains around here I would probably be spending some time in a gym too.

tjspiel

I'm sure it is a very intense workout but it's a different type of workout than pure weights and doesn't load your frame (by frame I mean your skeleton), the same way something like a squat or dead lift does. Climbing a mountain is at least partly a cardio workout and that's not really what weights are about although you can get some of that too depending on how you approach it.

Think about it. In a squat your frame is supporting the barbell + weights from the shoulders on down. It takes the force of BOTH your legs to lift that weight and typically only a handful times before you rest. Meanwhile your upper body is supporting all of that weight. Then you do it again for whatever number of sets you do. A lot of people start with something like a 5 X 5 (5 reps for 5 sets). A very different type of workout than climbing a hill.

Another key point is that not only are your legs extending under that load, you also bend your legs under load while you lower the weights. Nothing simulates that on a bike while climbing a hill. You might get some of that going down a hill on a fixed gear assuming you're using your legs for braking.

No matter what you're doing on a bike, only one leg is driving at a time and that's all the force your upper body deals with other than supporting it's own weight.

Again, from a bone density standpoint climbing a hill on a heavy bike might be a perfectly adequate form of exercise, but to say it's equivalent to a squat or dead lift doesn't ring true for me.

GeoKrpan

Climbing a big mountain, single speed, standing, 75 gear inches. You are doing one legged squats lifting the weight of your body and bike for hundreds of repetitions without rest.

erig007

You nailed it. Does it really matter if it is the same workout or not? Unless you want to go into bodybuilding what matter is that your workout help you stay in shape and not lose bone density.

Squat and climbing a hill are just different workout. Doing squat you carry probably more weight on your back but don't do much load on your stabilizer and core muscles. When climbing a hill nearly all the weight switch from the right leg to the left leg and vice versa making your core and stabilizer muscles of the upper body work to balance. Furthermore, you don't rest much between "sets". You probably know that the less time you rest between sets the more intense it is. As far as i'm concerned the way the hill i have to climb is made requires i do that in 4 intense steps with 3 less intense one in between which is more or less like 4 sets.
Climbing a hill is not as specific as squat. With that comes pro and cons. Climbing a hill will probably make more muscles work but you will need to stop when the weaker muscles will give up.

Anyway, this thread is about bone density not becoming Mr universe. What matter is to keep or increase your bone density. You can do that by carrying more weight than usual or make your bones handle impacts. And focusing on the result we are trying to obtain i don't see a big difference between squat and climbing a hill on a bicycle.

It would be nice to compare bone density among pro racers (who don't take forbidden substance) between those who climb those who sprint and those who roll. We can notice morphological differences though.

It can be with clipless pedals. Even without them i use grip on my pedals to increase torque when climbing so i pull the pedal up about 1/4 of the time.


https://velonews.competitor.com/2009/...about-it_99433

We know what happen to pro racers regarding bone density what we don't know for sure is why and implying that we should worry about what could happen to the average commuter because it happened to pro racers is just too far fetch for me.
A thing i see is that my upright position of average commuter result in my back having to handle atmospheric pressure like everybody else. My calorie intake is probably not as limited as what pro racers do. I probably don't spend as much time on a bike as pro racer do. etc...

kookaburra1701

Maybe if you're using a Smith machine or something. When I'm ass-to-grass at the bottom of a squat, trust me, my abs are working hard.

To the OP - I don't worry too much about bone density, even though I've already lost one ovary in my teen years. I lift weights (heavy weights + low reps) and get at least an hour of purring kitty time before bed.

https://io9.com/5871423/can-suits-tha...elp-astronauts

cycle_maven

There's probably a bunch of other factors influencing the bone density of pro cyclists, beside the fact that cycling doesn't stress the bones very much. When your body fat gets near 5%, you're gonna have all sorts of problems, including calcium metabolism.

deeth82

How I know when my brain is ready to call it a day: I read this and immediately thought "What is boxfighting?"

Regarding stickfighting...Eskrima? And the more important question: Do you wear a mask?

More to the point: I think cycling as an all-encompassing exercise isn't the way to go. Much like the post I referenced, it's good to spread things out a bit over several disciplines.

Booger1

For the last 35 years I haven't slept well for just that reason.......