Does biking make your legs bigger?
Cycle exercise training and muscle mass: A preliminary investigation of 17 lower limb muscles in older men
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Biking for 12 weeks made some leg muscles bigger in older men, but not all — only the front and inner thigh muscles grew, while calf and other thigh muscles stayed the same or got smaller.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
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Evidence Score
A snapshot of a population at a single point in time. Can identify correlations and prevalence, but cannot determine the direction of cause and effect.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
Biking for 12 weeks made some leg muscles bigger in older men, but not all — only the front and inner thigh muscles grew, while calf and other thigh muscles stayed the same or got smaller.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 538 / 44
Evidence Score
A snapshot of a population at a single point in time. Can identify correlations and prevalence, but cannot determine the direction of cause and effect.
Publication
Authors
Naruse M, Vincenty CS, Konopka AR, Trappe SW, Harber MP, Trappe TA
Related Content
Claims (5)
Engaging in cardiovascular exercise along with resistance training can lead to an increase in muscle mass in humans.
In older men, doing aerobic cycling for 12 weeks does not lead to measurable changes in the size of key lower leg muscles, including the calf and shin muscles.
In older men who cycle for 12 weeks, some muscles increase in size while others do not, and the amount of change differs widely between people. This suggests that aerobic exercise affects different muscles in different ways.
After 12 weeks of cycling exercise, older men experienced increases in the size of two upper leg muscles but no change in seven other lower leg muscles, showing that the exercise affected some muscles more than others.
In older men, doing 12 weeks of aerobic cycling may lead to slightly smaller muscles in certain parts of the upper leg, such as the back of the thigh and inner thigh, compared to others, which could indicate uneven muscle development.