How Cycling Helps You to Sleep Better and Get Healthier

If you find it hard to sleep, cycling could be just the thing you need. In fact, one of the many benefits of cycling is that it helps you to sleep better. And getting enough sleep is crucial for every aspect of good health, notably brain health and heart health. In this post we explain how cycling improves sleep, which leads directly to improved health.

Cycling Makes Most People Feel Great

Most cyclists love their sport, even when they end up looking like the guy shown in the image at the end of the ride! Most cyclists love their sport, even when they end up looking like this guy at the end of the ride!

Why would people love something that exhausts them that much? Well, science shows many ways in which cycling makes people feel great. It enhances sleep, energy levels, brain health, heart health, and overall fitness.

The Crucial Importance of Sleep for Good Health

Sleep deficiency can lead to, or at least contribute to, many chronic health problems. These include diabetes, stroke, obesity, heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and depression. Sleep deficiency is also associated with increased risk of injury.

Also, the American Psychological Association points out that getting enough sleep is an important foundation for happiness.

Exercise naturally improves brain serotonin circuits. This is the same effect that is achieved with some long-term sleep aids.

Also, exercise can help to slow the weight gain that usually comes with ageing. Weight gain can lead to sleep apnea, which makes it much harder to sleep well.The good news is that we can easily improve the situation with cycling.

The Role of Vitamin D in Improving Sleep

Some think that improved sleep after cycling is caused by the vitamin D absorption from the sunlight that cyclists soak up while riding. The sunlight helps to keep our body clock on a regular rhythm, while also lowering levels of cortisol in the body. Together, these support deeper, more regenerative sleep.

The vitamin D in sunlight also promotes the production of the same vitamin in the body, and this is proven to improve mood