How Biking Can Help Boost Your Immunity

August 19, 2020

Riding a bike has numerous health benefits. Regular bike riders have seen health improvements including weight loss, lower blood pressure, better sleep and reduced stress. Developing a weekly cycling routine is a great way to enjoy the outdoors while improving your cardiovascular fitness, strengthening your bones and helping prevent disease. In addition to all those benefits, there are also long term benefits of cycling on immune system. Here are some of the ways hopping on two wheels can boost your immune system and ward off disease.

Ways We Can Support Our Immune System

Our daily habits can have a significant impact on our immune systems. From changing your diet to adding regular exercise to your daily routine, you can make small changes to reap big benefits later on. Consider these five ways to support your immune system:

Clean Up Your Diet: Eating whole foods like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts and seeds provides you with plenty of antioxidants, which give your body an extra line of defense against infectious diseases. Foods that are rich in fiber maintain gut health, keeping your belly full of helpful bacteria that can fight intestinal illness. Adding healthy fats from foods like fish and olive oil has been shown to reduce inflammation.
Cut Down on Sugar: Added sugars in processed foods contribute to a number of health conditions, including risk for obesity, heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Limit your sugar intake to help maintain a healthy weight and eliminate conditions that can make diseases more dangerous.
Start An Exercise Routine: Getting into the habit of exercising for about 30 minutes each day has major health benefits. Studies have shown that moderate exercise like bicycling, jogging or brisk walking can help bring down inflammation and could support regeneration in immune cells.
Drink Plenty of Water: Your body needs to be properly hydrated to run well. Drink at least eight glasses of water a day to prevent dehydration, which has multiple negative effects on your health.
Set a Sleep Schedule: Getting enough sleep is essential to staying healthy. Studies have shown that people who get less than six hours of sleep each night are more likely to catch a cold. Make a habit of getting at least sevenhours of sleep every night. Wind down before bedtime by limiting screen time and taking steps to relax before lights-out.

With a handful of health habits, you can support your immune system and play defense against disease.

Studies that Support Biking Has Boosted Immunity

Scientific studies show that moderate exercise helps boost immunity. So, does pedaling your way down a beach trail qualify as moderate exercise? Absolutely!

A 2018 study reported by The Guardian and published in the journal Aging Cell found that cycling not only improved overall health for participants aged 55-79. It also helped boost their immune systems. Participants who cycled regularly for the study saw changes to the organ that creates T-cells, a type of immune cell. That organ usually starts to shrink after age 20, but according to the study, regular cyclists in the older age category were producing just as many T-cells as young people did.

Long Term Benefits of Cycling On Immune System

Over time, cycling helps keep the immune system young. Participants in a 2018 study who had cycled most of their lives were found to have the immune systems of a young person — even though those participants were at least 55 years old.

In addition to the apparent benefits of regular exercise, outdoor cycling boosts the immune system by helping riders absorb light that encourages vitamin production. Maintaining a schedule of 150 minutes of cycling each week has benefits, including better sleep and reduced stress, both of which lead to a stronger immune system.

Whether you’re already a regular cyclist or you’re getting back on two wheels for the first time in years, biking is a great, low-impact way to get plenty of the type of moderate exercise that boosts immune systems. Sixthreezero offers plenty of bikes perfect for regular exercise, from city bikes to cruisers to hybrids.