An air bike serves many health purposes. The cycling motion involved in air bike sessions makes for efficient blood flow throughout your body. It’s an effective means of cardio and breathing exercise. The best air bikes make for good muscle building and toning fitness sessions.
You have to be knowledgeable about the types of air bikes, the cycling posture, and the pedaling speed for the best muscle toning results. Let’s take a look at the key muscles an air bike can help tone.
1. Leg Muscles
Our legs are pivotal to our effortless mobility. We hardly think about the steps we take to reach a certain destination, be it five full steps or steps covering a five feet distance. Our legs must be trained and kept in a fit condition for ease and mobility. This is why an air bike is highly encouraged. Major leg muscles are toned during the process of pedaling on an air bike. For intense training, push with short intervals and rests in between for recovery periods.
2. Calves
As you pedal, you exercise your calf muscles. These are the two muscles behind your shin. Any leg movement involves these muscles.
If you’re a beginner, it’s important to start off with gentle pedaling to avoid tearing. The more you exercise your calves, the stronger they become and the more they prevent cycling injuries such as shin splits.
3. Hamstring and Quad Muscles
When you pedal in a circular motion, you also use your hamstrings and quad muscles. The hamstring muscles are located at the back of your thighs while the quad muscles are those in front of your upper legs.
These muscles work together when you pedal so you don’t have to work any harder to target each of them at a time. Quad muscles work hard when you push down while the hamstring muscles get toned with every upstroke. Adding resistance to the pedaling motion on your bike makes for a more intense toning session for these muscles.
4. Back Muscles
The posture you take on the bike entails toning of your back muscles. Slouching comes naturally for many, but the cycling postures mean one has to sit in a position where one can pedal without resistance. Balance is needed and by doing so, you’ll be facilitating the movements needed to tone your back muscles.
5. Abdominal Muscles
A strong core is needed to be able to cycle on an air bike. If you wish to begin strengthening your core, you can start by gentle cycle sessions on the air bike and increase as you gain more strength. For abdominal strength, retract your belly button towards your spine and pedal with intensity if you wish to reduce abdominal fat.
6. Arm Muscles
Your arms can become toned by working with the handlebars of the air bike. As you stand or sit on the bike while holding on to the bars, you allow for arm flexing. Make sure to alternate bike days to avoid tearing arm muscles and to reduce the risk of muscle fatigue.
7. Shoulder Muscles
As you flex your arm muscles, your shoulder muscles will be simultaneously working. Sitting in an upright position with your arms stretched out to the bars helps with the stretching of your shoulders, resulting in toned muscles.
8. Heart
The heart is a muscle that needs to be exercised to reduce the risk of heart inflammation or enlarged heart condition. The heart is usually overlooked because one can’t physically see it from the outside. However, it’s the most important muscle that keeps us alive.
An air bike can help exercise the heart as it makes for a good cardio session. Make sure to consult your doctor before beginning any intense exercises that get your heart pumping fast.
Preparation
It’s important to note that you have to prepare your muscles for any toning sessions to avoid the risks of muscle tear, fatigue, and injury. Here are a few ways of preparing for an air bike session:
- Natural Pre-workout Supplements
Natural pre-workout supplements that contain ingredients such as Citrulline which is the amino acid that helps produce nitric acid, helping in the increase of blood flow throughout your body. These are recommended for high intense sessions that require energy and endurance.
The result of efficient blood flow is the build of the muscles that you’re toning while cycling. Pre-workout supplements can also help with alleviating possible muscle pain that comes after working out on the air bike.
- Hydrate
Dehydration during a cycling session can lead to different health conditions. You can experience fatigue, dizziness, muscle spasms, and fainting spells. Make sure to hydrate an hour before your cycling session and whenever you feel dehydration kicking in during cycling.
- Warm Up
Warming up your body by stretching might reduce the risk of muscle injury. If your muscles are numb and stiff, sudden intense pressure might cause tearing and pain.
- Consult Your Doctor
Consult your doctor before beginning any intense fitness sessions. Your doctor can guide you in terms of intensity and frequency depending on your medical history and condition.
Conclusion
Investing in a good quality air bike means directly investing on your physical well-being. The key muscles that you tone while cycling an air bike include leg, abdominal, arm, and heart muscles. Toned muscles make for flexible mobility and a general high quality of health.
For best results, you can include pre-cycling measures such as taking natural pre-workout supplements. These might give you the energy boost you need for your cycling session and contribute to muscle build-up and toning. Drinking water an hour before your session prevents dehydration which can cause health issues such as dizziness and fainting. To prevent possible tearing of stiff muscles, you can include a few stretching sessions just before cycling.
Make sure to consult your doctor before you begin any high-intensity exercises. Certain medical histories and conditions won’t allow for intense work outs. Your doctor can give guidance regarding air bike cycling. Make sure to invest in high-quality air bikes for the best fitness outcomes.
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