The type of cycling you do can also have a big impact on how long it takes to feel the benefit aswell. I find that off-road biking calms me down a lot quicker because I've got other things to think about, whereas cycling on the road might take longer due to the lack of mental involvement it takes.
How Many Miles Does It Take For Stress Relief?
- Thread starter Uawadall
- Start date
If I haven't done at least 45 miles, it worries me that I'm not getting in enough riding. Then again, I'm training for a March 200K so I tend to like to ride 45 to 75 miles if I can. Oh, I'm retired, so I can pretty much ride whenever I want, weather permitting.
I'm.assuming you mean that you are road cycling when you quote those figures?
And what other preperations have you done for March to make sure your up to it? It's not long away now so I'm guessing that if your not nearly ready now then you never will be!
It depends on my mood, but these kind of rides tend to fall at one end of the spectrum or the other i.e long and slow, or fast and intense. Long slow distance (LSD) types are good for your parasympathetic nervous system, whereas fast and aggressive are good for the sympathetic system, the fight or flight response. I like LSD in the evening as it acts to relax me, slows things down so to speak.
Usually when I start training for centuries, the next big ride is in May,, but this one came up as a surprise, especially since it's this early.
I kicked it in gear and rode 90 miles today. I know the additional 38 miles (128 miles) is doable and within the 13.5 hour time limit. I'm just not going to be doing it that fast. Now, if I can stay with a decent group for awhile, I should be able to make up some good time. I rode today's ride solo and was buffeted by some pretty strong winds. I chose a hilly ride because the 200K is going to be on a real hilly route as well. Yeah, I'm ready. It's just not going to be a record breaking pace, but I just want to concentrate on finishing and have that under my belt. I don't reckon I will do a 300K because that mileage is out of the picture right now, not to mention that I don't want to have to ride at night. Knowing the local randonneur club, the ride will probably be close to 200 miles vs what it should be at 186 miles.
Bike riding definitely relieves stress. It's one of the reasons why I love cycling so much. My stress and anxiety seems to dissipate only after I'm 5 minutes on the road. I try to ride at least 3 times a week, even when I have a tight work schedule to deal with.
Any form of exercise is a good form of stress relief, but I do think that cycling is one of the best.
Not only does it keep your body active, it also keeps your mind active aswell and that's the most important part of relieving stress for me, giving your mind something else to think about.
Usually within 3-4 miles of the ride and I will become submerged into the biking aspect and relive stress big time. It helps a lot!
It varies. That middle ground when you're done with warming up and the time you're feeling tired, that's the sweet spot where your stress just goes all away. It's an amazing feeling.
I can truly relive stress only when I ride outside the city. After 10 miles of slow riding I can feel my nerves chilling out. That's a wonderful feeling.
This. I'm just happy when I have the chance to get out there...which lately hasn't been very often.
This. It's never about the actual length of time of riding for me. I feel it almost as soon as I get on. I get into a zone as soon as I get up to speed. The faster the better when it comes to relieving stress.
For me I get the same thing as I do when I run, a slight euphoric high; however, it takes a bit to get there. When I'm biking since I'm not exerting the same energy as running I usually do about 20 laps around the local track near my old high school and that equates to about five miles which is nothing cause I just plug in my headphones and kind of zone out.
When I'm done I feel like I'm walking on the clouds, but don't over-exert yourself or you'll be in more pain than anything else. Find your threshold first. You say you go uphill which could be even better since its more energy being burned, so just keep experimenting with different things until you find something that works for you.
When I'm done I feel like I'm walking on the clouds, but don't over-exert yourself or you'll be in more pain than anything else. Find your threshold first. You say you go uphill which could be even better since its more energy being burned, so just keep experimenting with different things until you find something that works for you.
I feel relieved from stress after a 5 mile ride. Didn't take too long to get de- stressed, around 5 or 10 minutes. As long as I do not make a sudden sprint and keep a moderate velocity, and then breath long enough to fill up my lungs.
The question in the topic title is kind of silly, because there is no answer. It will be different for everybody. You simply can't spit out a single or even a range of numbers that will be a correct answer to the question.
Fortunately, I do more than read just the topic title and I actually look at the post and the comments and understand that we are being asked what works for each of us individually (Sorry, after seeing a ton of off topic necropsoting one liners from @JSWin I'm grouchy). Even at that I have a difficult time answering the question on a personal level because it still varies greatly. Some days with my health I'm literally lucky if I can get even a quarter of a mile out, and other days I can ride 5 miles or more before I feel any stress relief. Yet, on other days it seems to increase my stress level. I'm to much of a basket case for this one.
Fortunately, I do more than read just the topic title and I actually look at the post and the comments and understand that we are being asked what works for each of us individually (Sorry, after seeing a ton of off topic necropsoting one liners from @JSWin I'm grouchy). Even at that I have a difficult time answering the question on a personal level because it still varies greatly. Some days with my health I'm literally lucky if I can get even a quarter of a mile out, and other days I can ride 5 miles or more before I feel any stress relief. Yet, on other days it seems to increase my stress level. I'm to much of a basket case for this one.
Gee, you have a stamina that's admirable. You made me realize that exhaustion is the factor that takes away my stress. When I get tired, the fatigue would pull down my energy and I tend to be lethargic. Maybe that condition makes me forget my cares and concerns that I get relaxed. And the best follow through is a good massage late in the day or at night.
Kind of a hard to answer question. I think it really depends on the person. Personally the more I do, the less stressed out I get. So the more I cycle, typically the better I feel, up to a certain point. Of course I'm human so I can't just endlessly cycle, but I do like to work up and sweat and exercise my leg muscles quite a bit. So typically anywhere from 2.5 to 3 miles before I really start to feeling relaxed and refreshed and into the groove.
A good 15 minutes is enough for me, just enjoying the air and the surroundings and not thinking about the things that are causing stress.
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