Is it good to ride a bike every day or should you rest every so often when first starting ?

Question

Is it good to ride a bike every day or should you rest every so often when first starting ?

Answer 1

For the 1st 3 days or so, it won't hurt if you are riding hard. But after that, the body is repairing those muscles. Think of it like car repair. You don't drive it while the car is in the shop. That said, on the days you aren't riding, you can cross-train other areas. You could do weight lifting for upper body strength, stretching/yoga, or even core type exercises. Yoga might sound silly to some, but it is a truly wonderful workout that will allow you to be much more limber and get rid of the waste product your muscles have built up while riding. This means faster and better recovery between rides. Hard rides should be no more than every other day. After awhile those hard rides won't be so hard and you can go more often.

Answer 2

It would greatly depend on how far, how fast, if there are hills, if the bike is stationary, recumbent, or regular old bike that is rode outside.

If a person starts slowly there probably isn't anything wrong with riding daily. I would start every other day to get used to the work out.

I bought a bike this year in June and so far I've been on it twice. I had good intentions. Now it sits on my back porch looking at me.  There are a lot of hills in my neighbor hood. Ouch!. My muscles were sore the first time I got on it.

I'm the type that gets a new exercise equipment and use it the first day out of the box...and fold my laundry on it the rest of the year. My dog sits on my weight bench more than I do.

Answer 3

When you ride you are building muscle. Your intensity will dictate how much you can ride. i would recommend that you make sure to get 8 hours sleep to allow your body to rebuild efficiently.

I would suggest at least riding for an hour 3-5 days a week to get started. Also maybe set a goal to ride in a local charity ride….they have them every weekend. This will give you a goal. Maybe you want to ride in next month ride in the 35 mile group. Then the 50 the 62 and on day the 100.

Setting goals really helps me.

Answer 4

in training or fitness recovery is every bit as important as work.  you can work yourself into a hole.  like anything it takes time for your body to adapt to something new.  i would plan some rest days in at first especially..  too much too soon can cause overuse problems such as tendonitis.  start with every other day, and if you dont have any issues you can always add more days.

Answer 5

As with most athletic endeavors, you need to give your body a rest from time to time.   If you are pedalling a short distance every day, you probably dont need a day off.   If you a riding long distances or mountain biking every day, then a day or two off a week is recommended.

Answer 6

I'd say about 45 minutes every other day. Longer on Saturdays. And give yourself a break on Sundays.