Spinning Is Easy on the Knees and Great for the Heart

Whether you call it a spin class or indoor cycling, 30 minutes spent working with a cycling instruction represents a half-hour of fantastic exercise that is both easy on the knees and great for the heart. Indoor cycling is an excellent option for anybody looking for low impact exercise.

If you are new to the whole spinning thing, think of it as riding a stationary bike on steroids. Indoor cycling is purposely designed to be a cardiovascular workout. It is designed to work the heart and certain muscle groups without putting undue stress on the joints. In that regard, indoor cycling is incomparable.

Indoor Cycling and Cardio

A few months back we published a blog post talking about the importance of cardio in a typical exercise routine. We encourage you to go back and read that post for all the details. In short, cardiovascular exercise is an important component in maintaining overall good health. Cardio, by design, works the heart muscle. In turn, the work strengthens the heart muscle and makes it more efficient. A more efficient heart improves overall health.

The great thing about spinning classes is that they emphasize cardio in a low impact way. By 'low impact' we mean your body is not experiencing significant impact with the ground or exercise equipment. By comparison, running is a high impact exercise.

Indoor cycling is popular among people who used to run but can no longer do so because of knee, hip, and ankle issues. Their bodies can no longer handle the physical impact of running – even on a treadmill. With an indoor bike, they can still get a great cardio workout while preserving those precious joints.

Working Those Muscle Groups

Riding an indoor bike straight up and with no extra enhancements does a good job of working the heart and many of the muscle groups in the lower body. Indoor cycling tones the legs and thighs. It helps to tone the core as well. But what we do is more than just simple cycling. Our cycling classes combine additional elements to work other muscle groups as well.

For example, we combine both sitting and standing positions. We incorporate arm movements, torso movements, etc. Our more advanced classes might even involve things like working a set of hand weights while cycling.

The point is to exercise as many muscle groups as we can. If you're a beginner, don't worry. We do not incorporate most of the advanced techniques in beginner classes. Beginners focus mainly on the cycling aspects, giving them the opportunity to get comfortable with the sport. They only move on to more advanced classes when they are ready to do so.

It is Time to Take up Spinning

If you've been looking for a low impact exercise that offers great cardio benefits, perhaps it's time to take up spinning. Here at Mcycle, we offer a full variety of indoor cycling classes for every level. Things are still somewhat limited due to coronavirus restrictions, but we will gradually be expanding our on-site offerings as circumstances allow. In the meantime, you can sign up for virtual classes.

You can also develop your own spinning routine without taking a formal class. Just do a little bit of online research to learn what indoor cycling is all about. There is plenty of information out there. With a few hours of research, you can establish your very own routine.

Remember, indoor cycling is a low impact exercise with great cardio benefits. It offers a fantastic workout for the heart while still being easy on the knees.