Does cycling help you run faster? {Running Guide}

Cycling is an excellent way to help you run faster. Cycling and running are both part of the cardio-vascular system when you are training. They both will allow you to train the same system that converts the food that you eat into energy in the form of movement in your muscles. Not only that, but the same muscles that are worked while running (the gluteus maximus, gluteus medias, quadriceps, hamstrings, and calves) along with all of the tendons (the IT band, the achilles tendon, and the calcaneal tendon) will be trained when you are cycling.  You aren’t the only one to ask us does cycling help you run faster, and we will go into more detail below on how cycling helps running.

In this post we will discuss how cycling helps running. We will specifically talk about how it makes you faster through both training your cardiovascular system, and helping with dealing with lactic acid. We will also discuss why cycling will help you decrease the instance of injury for runners when used as a cross train. Finally we will discuss how many hours of cycling equals running.

Invest in your knowledge:

These articles may be useful to you based off of what you’re reading now.

• Does cycling help Running Endurance [Distance Runner’s Guide]
• How does Cycling Fitness Transfer to Endurance Running?
• How to Relieve Leg pain after Cycling?
• How many miles cycling equals how many miles running?
• Should I cycle for Distance or Time?

Does Cycling help you run faster?

Cycling will help you run faster. It will help you run faster whether you are training the lactic system in the upper zones of your body or the cardiovascular system in the lower tier zones of your body. If you would like to increase your distance running, then getting on a bike is a great choice. If you would like to increase your sprint speed, then an exercise bike riding at higher intervals is a great option.

How to get faster:

To get faster while running, you are beginning to need to train in higher interval speeds. This will activate your lactic acid response in your body and you will need to learn how to minimize the pain from lactic acid. When you are able to train and understand body’s response to lactic acid on your bike, your bodies response to lactic acid will do the same off the bike, as well. Focus on intervals and follow the guides linked within this section and you will be happy with your results from training on the bike.

Can I increase my running speed by cycling?

Yes, you can increase your running speed by cycling. If you train using intervals as a cross training technique, or if you take one season off to train as a cyclist, your running will improve. If you have not run in years and are a pure cyclist, your running ability may vary. The reason being is that after taking so much time off, much of the bodily toughness that is developed from running is lost in favor of a far more efficient cardio-vascular and anaerobic output system. Of course, this transition can be made, and has been made successfully many times, though it will take time for the body to fully readjust to the impact from running.

How many hours of cycling equals running?

The typical ratio is 1 hour of running equals 3 hours of cycling. However, it is in the runners best benefit to understand that there are variables that make it a bit difficult to convert this completely, like wind speed, clip in shoes, hill climb, and average moving speed. The best advice is if riding for endurance, to pick a certain amount of time and ride to exhaustion. If training anaerobic system, it is best to pick a certain amount of intervals to do the repeats and ride until exhaustion.

Is 1 hour of cycling enough?

Typically, yes depending on your goals. If your goals are to do 3 1 hour repeats in one week and do this continuously, then yes this is more than enough. If you are riding for one hour a week, then you may need to find more time to get on the saddle. What is most important with riding, whether it be to lose weight, to get faster, to increase your endurance, or to begin touring, is to be consistent. Consistently riding over a certain period of weeks, months, years (ideal) is what will truly move the needle with achieving your goals. If you were to ride for 30 minutes, for 4 times a week for a year, you would see significant change from where you were before.

Conclusion

Does cycling help you run faster? Yes, cycling will help you run faster. Cycling is versatile and you are able to train either the aerobic system through endurance riding or the anaerobic system through repeats to allow you to reach the goals that you are looking to achieve. You work the same muscles, tendons and ligaments. The one piece of advice is to make sure to cross-train to become faster. Riding is excellent because when added into a regimen 2 times a week, it allows the body to heal from the impact of running from the other days within the week.