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May is National Bike Month!

By Jennifer Green April 29, 2016
Spring is in full gear (and so are allergies, yay! Not!) and what better way to enjoy this glorious weather than to gather the family, jump on your bikes, and hit the trails!

May is National Bike Month and if you're not fully convinced that biking is for you, take a look at some of its benefits:

  • It's a great excuse for getting outside and taking of advantage of a beautiful day. It burns more calories than an easy walk, but it's low impact, so it won't pound your joints like running.
  • The whole family can do it- you can even bring your baby! Just hitch up a baby trailer to your bike and baby can enjoy a relaxing ride on the Heritage Trail! 
  • It may be low impact, but you can make it as high intensity as you want. If you want to amp up the calorie burning on your ride, try adding sprints on the flats and push hard up the hills. 
  • Consider biking to work, if possible. People who bike to work generally report lower levels of stress than workers who use other forms of transportation.
  • You can explore more because you can go farther. Even if you run regularly, you're probably not covering 20 plus miles each time. Biking can take you to places you've never been, so you can see and learn more about the communities around you. Even if you stick to your own neighborhood, seeing it from a bike will give you a new perspective, and you might even notice things you never saw before!
  • Cycling is exercise, and exercise brings a whole host of benefits, including stress and anxiety reduction, mood elevation, positive effects on blood pressure, and it can even boost your immune system.

Want to know more about biking in Pittsburgh? Check out Bike PGH and their online bike map, or Pittsburgh Magazine's rundown of the 20 great hike and bike trials in Western PA.