Cycling vs Running | Which one is better?

Cycling and Running both are Cardio exercises that’ll help you burn calories, build lean muscle mass and get into shape. But, which one is better?

Muscles Used while running

Primary Muscles include while running is Quads, Hamstrings, Calf Muscles, Hip Flexors, and Glutes.
All these muscles get engaged actively while running.

Secondary Muscles while running include Core Muscles, Abs, Biceps, and Triceps.

Core muscles provide stability to the upper body while running. On the other hand, the biceps and the triceps help in pushing the body forward in the running motion.

Muscles involved in Cycling

Glutes, hamstrings, quads, and the calf muscles. When we cycle, push the pedal down, the glutes and quads work together to provide power and strength. Once the pedal reaches the bottom the calf muscles and the hamstrings work together to bring the pedal back to the top position. This completes one revolution of pedal.

Back muscles and arms support and balance the upper body, help in steering the handle.

Which one impacts the muscles more?

Both running and cycling will build lean muscle mass primarily in the lower body. Running is slightly better than cycling in terms of intensity and muscles used.

Injuries

Running gets us more injuries as running is an intense form of exercise. The weight of the body adds up with the ground forces which put pressure on the joints and the knees.

Cycling is a low-impact cardio exercise. It limits impact stress on weight-bearing joints.

Weight Loss

Both help to burn calories but at the very basic level, weight loss will depend upon calories consumed and burned. Running burned more calories as compared to cycling in 1 hour according to an experiment performed by Global Triathlon Network.

Running tires the body out earlier as compared to Cycling. Hence calorie burn gap can be covered if you cycle for a longer duration.

Investment Required

Cycling has an investment that would last for a longer time. Running has the upper hand in case of lesser investments.

Conclusion

Both are great exercises to burn calories, build lean muscle mass and get into shape. In the end, it all boils down to what you enjoy more.
running supported by cycling is a great balance.