Bike riding is a pastime for some, a weight loss method for others, and for people like seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, it's a career. Whether you are a weekend biker or competitive athlete, two things are common when you saddle up on the bike--you burn calories and tone muscles. The main muscles used are in the lower body.
Buttocks
The buttocks contain three muscles known as the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus. All three parts get worked when your thighs move downward during the cycling motion. This is called hip extension.
Quadriceps
The quadriceps have four parts--the vastus lateralis, rectus femoris, vastus intermedius and vastus medialis. All four parts get worked when you perform knee extension. You experience this motion when your leg moves into the downward pump while pedaling.
Hamstrings
The biceps femoris, semimembranosus and semitendinosus are the three parts of the hamstrings muscles that are located on the back of the thighs under the glutes. Whenever your knees go from a straight to bent position, you activate your hamstrings. This is called knee flexion and it takes place during the upward movement of your legs while biking.
Core Muscles
The core muscles consist of the rectus abdominis, inner and outer obliques and erector spinae (lower back muscles). Every time you get on a bike and start pedaling, these muscles contract to keep your body balanced and to help with drive strength of your legs.
The hip flexors are smaller muscles that run from the front of the hip into the stomach. Any time your thighs move toward your stomach, these muscles get activated. This happens during the upswing of a pedaling motion.
Lower Leg Muscles
The lower legs have multiple muscles that get worked during biking. The gastrocnemius and soleus are the two components of the calves. The gastroc is on top and the soleus is on the bottom. Every time your foot goes into plantar flexion where your toes point down, your calf muscles are being worked. More emphasis is placed on the soleus when your heel is down and toes point up.
The tibialis anterior is a sheath of muscle that runs down the front of your shins. In similar fashion to the soleus, the tibialis anterior gets activated when your toes point up.
On the sides of the lower legs are two muscles that get worked in unison with the calves. They are called the peroneus longus and brevis. The longus is the larger of the two and together they are known as the peroneals.
Member Comments