Both running and cycling are popular forms of exercise that offer numerous health benefits. If your primary goal is weight loss, understanding the nuances of each activity can help you make an informed decision. This article explores the strengths and weaknesses of both running and cycling, providing insights into which might be more effective for achieving your weight loss goals.
Introduction to Weight Loss with Cardiovascular Exercises
Cardiovascular exercises, including cycling, walking, and running, are essential components of a balanced fitness routine aimed at weight loss. These activities elevate your heart rate, increase calorie expenditure, and promote fat burning, making them ideal for shedding excess pounds. By engaging large muscle groups and boosting your metabolism, cardiovascular exercises contribute to increased calorie burn not only during the workout but also throughout the day.
Cycling for Weight Loss
Cycling is a low-impact exercise that can be sustained for long durations, making it an effective tool for weight loss. It engages various muscle groups, providing a full-body workout that tones the body and increases overall calorie expenditure. The ability to gradually increase intensity makes cycling suitable for individuals at different stages of their fitness journey.
Cycling and Muscle Strength
Cycling can be superior to running if your primary goals lie around building strength. On the bike, you can adjust the resistance of the gears and ride in a way that targets specific muscle groups. Adjusting resistance mimics resistance training by continuously loading major leg muscles such as the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves, leading to more effective muscle development than running. Cycling will help strengthen your core as you pedal, build your calves with each pedal stroke, work your quads and glutes when you stand up out of the saddle as you increase resistance or climb up a hill, and target the hamstrings when you’re doing seated sprints.
Forms of Cycling for Weight Loss
- Indoor Cycling: Often done in group fitness classes, indoor cycling provides a higher level of resistance and intensity. Instructors and music can motivate you, making it an engaging way to burn calories and enhance endurance.
- Recreational Cycling: Enjoy the outdoors, fresh air, and scenery while riding a bike. This provides a low-intensity workout but allows for longer durations, contributing to weight loss over time.
- Road Cycling: Covering longer distances on a road bike requires stamina and training. It is an excellent option for burning calories and improving endurance.
- Cardio Training on a Home Trainer: Using a stationary bike at home offers the convenience of indoor cycling regardless of weather conditions or time of day.
Running for Weight Loss
Running tends to be the better cardio workout when it comes to weight loss, due to the high calorie burn you get. At the higher intensity you’ll be able to tap into on runs, you’ll see more weight-loss benefits because you’re using and recruiting more muscles in your body compared to cycling. Your leg muscles are working to keep you moving, your core is engaged to keep your posture upright, and your arms are pumping to engage the shoulders and back. This high-impact exercise, especially when done at high-intensity intervals or a comfortably hard pace, delivers a full-body workout-and burns a significant amount of calories, boosts fat metabolism, and triggers the continued calorie burn post-workout.
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Benefits of Running
- High Calorie Burn: Running is a high-intensity exercise that burns a significant amount of calories, making it a potent tool for shedding excess pounds.
- Cardiovascular Health: Running improves cardiovascular health, enhances endurance, and boosts overall fitness levels.
- Metabolic Rate: Running increases the metabolic rate during and after the workout, meaning your body continues to burn calories at an elevated rate even after you finish your run.
What Burns More Calories: Walking or Biking?
The number of calories you burn while walking or cycling depends on several factors, including your weight, the intensity of your workout, the duration of your workout, and your overall fitness level. In general, a person burns more calories cycling than walking because cycling has a lower impact on the joints, allowing you to train longer and more intensely than walking. The difference in calorie burn between cycling and walking can depend on several factors, such as the terrain you are cycling or walking on and the intensity of your workout.
Running Versus Cycling for Cardiovascular Health
A 2024 meta-analysis in Sports Medicine Open with 2.6 million participants found running reduces the risk of cardiovascular events and can help improve both resting heart rate and overall cardio fitness. When your resting heart rate is lower, your heart is more efficient at pumping your blood throughout your body. Running is great because you're really tapping into your VO2 max, the amount of oxygen your body can use during intense exercise; the higher your VO2 max, the more efficient your body is at using oxygen. This translates to better aerobic fitness, making your workouts feel easier and enabling you to do more challenging workouts.
Factors to Consider When Choosing
Whether running or cycling is better for you comes down to your personal preference and fitness goals. Both cardio modalities will provide a great workout, but cycling is the standout for building muscle, while running can better support weight loss and cardiovascular health.
If Your Goal Is Building Endurance:
Running and cycling are both excellent when it comes to improving your endurance, so pick whichever one you prefer. Run or cycle three to five days per week, starting with fewer days if you’re a beginner, then adding in more. For cyclists, ride for 30 to 35 minutes at first, then building up to 45 or 60 minutes on the bike. Your heart rate should typically be at about 60 to 75 percent of your maximum (220 - your age). Runners should run for 20 to 40 minutes at a time at a conversational pace. To push endurance, you can also add one to two tempo runs per week, which will help you increase your speed over time and become a more efficient runner.
If Your Goal Is Improving Strength:
Since cycling is better for building strength, you’ll want to hop on a bike three to four days per week. Take cycling classes that are 45 to 60 minutes long and play with the resistance, or ride outdoors for 45 to 75 minutes at a time, incorporating hill work. When cycling, make sure your heart rate is mostly at 60 to 75 percent of your max heart rate. If you prefer running, you’ll want to increase your frequency, lacing up three to five days per week for about 30 to 60 minutes at a conversational pace. Mix up your routine with track workouts or incline or hill work. To improve strength, it’s also integral to strength train at least two days a week and hit large muscle groups, like lunging and squatting during leg days. Do four to six exercises per workout, completing three sets of 6 to 8 reps, and lift to failure, which is when you can’t do another rep with good form, to maximize muscle growth.
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If Your Goal Is Losing Weight:
When it comes to weight loss, consistency is key, so choose the workout that you’re more likely to stick with. However, if you don’t have a preference, running three to four days per week for 20 to 30 minutes with an intensity component to your runs, such as a tempo run, where your pace feels challenging and it would be difficult to hold a conversation. If you want to cycle instead, bike for 30 to 60 minutes three to four days per week, making sure each ride is moderate intensity-between 50 and 70 percent of your max heart rate. Intermediate cyclists can bump up to four to six days per week. Combining either running or cycling with two to three days of strength training will help accelerate fat loss and prevent injuries.
High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) can efficiently decrease total and (intra-)abdominal fat mass (FM). Both cycling and running isoenergetic HIIT programs improved body composition in men with overweight/obesity. Sixteen men (age, 54.2 ± 9.6 yr; body mass index, 29.9 ± 2.3 kg·m -2 ) were randomly assigned to the HIIT-BIKE (10 × 45 s at 80%-85% of maximal heart rate, 90-s active recovery) or HIIT-RUN (9 × 45 s at 80%-85% of maximal heart rate, 90-s active recovery) group (3 times per week). Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry was used to determine body composition. Overall, body weight, and abdominal and visceral FM decreased over time ( P < 0.05). No difference was observed for weight, total body FM, and visceral FM between groups (% change). Conversely, abdominal FM loss was greater in the HIIT-RUN group (-16.1% vs -8.3%; P = 0.050).
Additional Factors to Consider
- Cost: Running is generally more affordable than cycling, as it requires minimal equipment.
- Chronic Conditions: Consult with your doctor before starting any new exercise, especially if you have a chronic health condition.
- Enjoyment: Choose the activity you find more enjoyable to ensure long-term adherence.
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