Will Biking to Work Slow Leg Gains?

A reader recently sent me this excellent question that I think a lot of us can relate to.

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Hey Brad,

Question for you. Over the years, I’ve tried biking to work. It serves a practical function (as my family only has one vehicle), but also provides exercise, of course. And I enjoyed it.

However, I fell away from it because I felt I couldn’t balance it with leg strength training. But this seems kind of silly at times when I think about it. I’m avoiding using my legs in real life so that I can work my legs harder in a gym setting! LOL

You ever been up against this? Having to lessen gym work to make room for real-life work? If so, how did you balance it?

Thanks,

Ben

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Hi Ben,

I love this question because it is something that I can wholeheartedly relate to. I remember growing up a skinny kid, painstakingly trying to gain every ounce of muscle I could. I hitched my wagon to the “hardgainer” movement, which told me to conserve every minute of activity toward muscle building. In other words, I thought any and all excess activity in my day-to-day life was wasting my best efforts to pack on muscle.

This was ever so apt for leg training. I had trouble developing my legs, so I wouldn’t run or do anything to jeopardize any leg gains.

Did it work? Did I grow huge legs? Was I just crazy?

Since hindsight is 20/20, I can easily look back and roll my eyes. In short, no, I did not build massive tree trunk legs. In fact, as I’ve gotten older, I’ve incorporated more walking (for cardio), walking lunges, and other dynamic lower body work.

The result? Stronger, more athletic, and resilient legs. Before, when I was conserving my energy and training heavily, it only resulted in frustration, not to mention achy joints, stalled gains, and having to go back to the drawing board.

Our bodies, especially our legs, are incredibly resilient. We can tolerate an enormous amount of stress. We work, adapt, and then change. A bike ride to work will not be detrimental to your lower body destiny.

In the end, you will have built strong, resilient, athletic legs that are not only shapely and aesthetic, but also functional and useful.

Do you feel you need to lower your leg training volume? Maybe. That’s something you’ll have to mess around with.

So go for it! Jump on that bike and then train your legs for more muscle and strength. Don’t forget that your heart will thank you for it.

Oh, and above all, the fact that you enjoy it says a lot.

Happy lifting (and biking)!

Have you ever had this issue in your training? Comment below.