Will biking in any way get in you shape for running?

Question

ie: will biking enough eventually increase running stamina? or do they work different muscles therefore making you have to run to get in running shape?

Answer 1

it will help you in long distence running and hiking i know because i bike alot you should also run. running is tougher because you cant contenue on the speed that you have.

Answer 2

it helps to increase stamina and works basically the same muscles used for running. so.. yea it does.

Answer 3

It might help to get your heart used to aerobic exercise.

Answer 4

The muscles that are used are similiar and biking will def. help get you in shape, but running is different and the pounding on your legs is a lot different

Answer 5

They concentrate alot on your muscles based around your knee however i feel that cycling alot may damage you before running , try running on a tread mill at a slow speed then increase it a few notches up then keep increasing and decreasing your speed then do it for so many days and will get you in fitter shape for running , also have a hot bath before you run as the warm water relaxens muscles in your legs meaning you dont have to do alot of stretches.

Answer 6

Biking is a good workout to do on your running-off-days, it takes less stress on your knees.

Answer 7

you leg muscles will develop more.. you will have a more powerful stride

your stamina will increase

you will be more able to run fast speeds for longer distances

you will learn to pace yourself

your breathing will become more suitable for running

Answer 8

The main muscle you want to increase for running and or biking is your heart and yes it will definitely get stronger from riding a bike. You will also be increasing your lung capacity doing either too.

Answer 9

no

Answer 10

...

It seems like you are asking two questions here, both of which are very interesting to me.

Can biking increase running stamina?

Can you only bike and not run and still get into running shape?

**The skinny**

Biking will increase running stamina.  You can bike, not run, and get into shape to run.  

However, if you bike and run, you can get into better shape for running than if you biked and did not run.  

And interestingly, if you bike and run, you can get in better shape for running than if you ran and did not bike.

**Biking constraint**

A challenge with biking is keeping your cadence and resistance up so that you are always working at a moderate or higher level of difficulty.

**Biking only**

Given that you can do that, by doing biking only (and not running) the benefits to running include the following:

-you develop your cardiovascular system - your heart will get stronger and your lungs more efficient, as well as your entire vascular system will become more efficient in transporting gases, nutrients, and wastes.

-you develop stamina = endurance.

-surprisingly, you develop speed in running.  Biking can act like body building for your legs, especially your upper legs in both the front (quadriceps) and back (hamstrings).  Increased strength, over time = increased speed (once you do start running).

Also, if you bike properly, focusing on the upswing of the pedaling motion, you develop hamstrings much moreso than if you did not bike.  In developing your hamstrings, you become faster in the "paw up" portion of a running stride, which brings you close to the optimum leg turnover speed (if you weren't there already), and again, faster speed.

**Biking and running**

The advantage to both biking and running include the following:

-you gain all the benefits of biking.

-you condition your leg muscles to the impact of running.  You just can't mimic that impact on a bike, elliptical, exercycle, or Spin(r) cycle.

-you condition your muscles to the precise motions of running.  Bicycling, well, is a cycling motion, around and around.  Running is an up and forward motion.

Specificity kicks in here - you need to activate and train the specific muscles in the specific motions of a sport to do well in that sport.

-personally, I don't think you can maintain as high a heart rate bicycling as you can running.  Which means that you can't strengthen your heart as much, or use your lungs as much, in bicycling as in running.  So if you are running, you're getting into even better cardiovascular shape than if you were just biking.

Regards,

Phil

***A personal note***

Two years ago there was a stretch of 5 months when I couldn't run at all.  To maintain fitness, I used an exercycle about 5 times a week for an hour or so at a time.

That winter, after using only the exercycle for about 2 months, and no running, I was still able to enter a half marathon and do fairly well.  Certainly not my best, by any means, but a decent time nonetheless.

**Another personal note**

I've been running many a year.  This last fall I committed to doing a triathlon (happening in 4 days, now!).  To prepare, I began Spinning(r), participating in Spin classes up to 3 days a week, 2 hours at a time, as well as continuing to run.  (Spinning is using a special exercycle with a 30-40 pound flywheel, so if you do it properly you maintain moderate to high resistance throughout a workout).

One of the results I've experienced is significantly increased leg strength.  My legs are stronger now than they have been in the last seven or eight years.  This year I've been racing half-marathons, and so far the times are only dropping.  With the triathlon coming on, I've switched moreso to biking.

Biking "with the big boys" has been more than I can handle.  I've just noticed, though, that I can do a much harder workout, and not nearly as long, Spinning, than I can biking.  Maybe the biking will equal the Spinning, over time, and provide equal benefits.  

Paradoxically, I do know that going forward, it's going to be Spinning or bicycling functioning as the core of my running training.  I will be relying on one or the other to provide me with strength (=speed), and just a higher level of comfort moving faster over long distances (i.e., half and full marathons).

Answer 11

It tones the muscles and increases your stamina, but still may take awhile for you to adapt to running---it's a start, however!

Answer 12

It will tone your muscles and help you increase stamina but you may take a while to adapt to running.

Answer 13

its called cross training..

it'll work but not as quickly

running will help you run

not rocket science