No matter how many times you’ve heard that Latin saying mens sana in corpore sano, you never cease to be amazed by how good you feel after exercising. Camaraderie, self-improvement, euphoria… There are so many positive sensations you experience when you ride a bicycle, whether it’s a road bike
, a mountain bike
, gravel
or an E-bike
that it’s not easy to describe it in words to someone who hasn’t experienced it firsthand. Cycling has been one of the most recommended sports by doctors for years, who advise their patients to do a fun, safe, and very healthy activity. Besides loving to pedal, have you ever stopped to think that maybe you should thank your bike for many more things than you realize? Here we show you the 6 most important ones.

1. For taking care of your body

Using your bicycle is saving you from a long list of ailments and spending on medication. As a prevention tool, it is very valuable because it protects you from the risk of developing different types of cancer and type 2 diabetes. Cycling is suitable for people of all ages and especially for those with back and joint problems, since it doesn’t involve impacts, as happens in other sports with jumping.

When you pedal, you are boosting your immune system and helping your body lose fat, but the list of cycling’s benefits for your body is almost endless: it improves blood circulation, reduces cholesterol levels, increases heart strength and lung capacity, strengthens muscles, and maintains bone density.

2. For taking care of your mind

There are few daily worries that can withstand a cycling workout or a day of competition on two wheels. While you’re pedaling, little by little your problems lose importance and fade into the background.

Surely you’ve experienced more than once the feeling that, when you get off your bike and take a shower, you see things differently and even find solutions you wouldn’t have found otherwise. That’s because your bike takes you away from stress, since when you use it your brain receives a powerful injection of endorphins and serotonin. Your mood improves, your self-esteem rises, and you shield yourself against anxiety and depression.

3. For helping you think more and better

Did you know that cycling improves your brain performance? This conclusion was reached in 2015 by a study from the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands. It claims that cycling increases the density of the brain's white matter, which is responsible for the connections your brain makes to perform its usual functions. It is not the only study that establishes a direct relationship between cycling and increased brain capacity, although it is the one that has offered the most evidence so far.

4. For helping you sleep better

Insomnia is almost a plague in today's Western society. In Spain, it is estimated that 20% of the population suffers from it. What if we told you that cycling helps you sleep more and more deeply? Pedaling is a perfect antidote to stress and anxiety and helps balance mental fatigue with physical fatigue.

However, remember to leave a 3-hour gap between cycling activity and going to bed so your body can relax and your body temperature can drop. 2017/07/cyclist-in-bed.jpg">

5. For improving your social life

Being part of a club, a group, or a cycling crew allows you to be in contact with people who share your same hobby. Associating a group of people with a pleasant activity, far from a work environment where professional relationships prevail, increases quality of life because it helps to strengthen bonds. Having a regular group of cycling companions is also the best way to exchange opinions about routes, training, or cycling accessories.

6. For helping you discover unique places

Not all sports can say that they are practiced outdoors and in natural environments like those you can experience from the saddle of a bicycle. If you have been cycling for years, your two-wheeled friend has surely taken you more than once to charming places that you later invited family and friends to discover.

Both road and mountain bikes allow you to be more adventurous and curious and even access little-known spots.