Is cycling an aerobic exercise?

Cycling was a common thing in the past, because bicycles were people's means of transportation. But now fewer and fewer people ride bicycles. If they ride bicycles, more people regard it as a form of exercise. So do you have a specific understanding of whether cycling is an aerobic exercise? Let’s analyze it for you below. Through the analysis and understanding of these contents, we can know whether cycling is the right sport for us.

It depends on your exercise intensity. You need to understand what aerobic exercise is. Muscle contraction requires energy supply, and the direct source of energy is adenosine triphosphate (ATP). The content of ATP in muscles is very limited, only 0 after intense contraction. Therefore, there must be a temporary storage form of energy to replenish ATP in time to ensure that the muscles continue to contract. This reserve substance that can replenish ATP is called creatine phosphate (CP), which quickly transfers high-energy phosphate bonds to adenosine diphosphate molecules under the catalysis of enzymes to form ATP. However, CP can only be used for short-term replenishment. The most fundamental way to ensure the energy supply for muscle contraction is to rely on the oxidation of sugars and fatty acids.

Both sugars and fatty acids can provide energy for muscle contraction through aerobic oxidation. Aerobic metabolism requires oxygen to ensure the reaction, which is called the oxidative system, to ensure the energy supply for moderate-intensity endurance exercise. High-intensity activities involving sustained intense muscle movement require anaerobic oxidation for energy supply, namely anaerobic glycolysis of the lactic acid system, due to insufficient oxygen supply. The lactic acid produced by anaerobic glycolysis enters the blood through the muscle cell membrane, reaches the liver for gluconeogenesis, and then directly replenishes blood sugar.

Therefore, low-to-moderate intensity exercise that uses aerobic metabolism to provide energy is called aerobic exercise (aerobic exercise); high-intensity and ultra-high intensity exercise that uses anaerobic metabolism to provide energy is called anaerobic exercise (anaerobic exercise).

I believe that after understanding the content introduced above, everyone should know what kind of sport cycling is. After all, there are various types of sports around us, so after we understand the nature of these sports, we can choose the most suitable exercise method to achieve the most ideal and most satisfactory exercise effect.