Um…why? And please don’t say because it adds weight–that difference is trivial.
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Joseba Beloki has entered the chat. 
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Kenyans & Ethiopian marathoners don’t seem to have problem with it.
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Quite funny to see how fearful cyclists are of running.
Yes, there’s an adjustment period where you feel sore, but after that its a fantastic way of improving your body.
Anecdotally for me, my whole posterior chain is stronger and my seated power on the bike has improved, plus I don’t get backache anymore.
I run three times a week. One fast (track session), one middling, one longer. Pretty simple and very time efficient.
It’s great in winter: no bike cleaning, no windchill and an hour is plenty for most sessions.
I ride twice a week: one fast, one long and do weights most days too. (I love a double day)
Finally after a decade of searching, I’ve found that being a jack of all trades is fast and more fun than being a specialist.
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after buying kettlebells and working on engaging glutes while riding
Elite runners have had the same bone density problems as cyclists. The real culprit is energy deficits and constantly trying to achieve low percentages of body fat in order to be lighter.
If you think about it, there’s no reason that cyclists should have high rates of osteopenia compared to the general population. Riding a bike may not be load bearing but it doesn’t make you lose bone density either.
I’m looking for goals and an approach to next year and I’m increasingly looking at something like this. In my case, I’m thinking:
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Summer: 3x ride (1 x long, 1 x middling, 1 x intervals), 2x run (1x mid-long, 1x short & fast) + 2 weights sessions
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Winter: 3 x run (1 x long, 1 x middling, 1 x intervals), 3x weights, 2 x ride (1x long, 1x intervals)
Anyway, enough OT - apologies.
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You so sure about that?
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The general population are considerably less likely to fall off a bicycle though
Indont think any are trying to win bike races…
Anyway. I’m certainly not advocating trying to eliminate bone density to win bike races for normal people. But given the lengths people go to to improve watt/kg at the grand tour level…I have a hard time believing putting weight back into bones after eliminating muscle would be the best choice.
Yes, I’m pretty sure the research in this area is evolving towards negative energy balance and red-s being the cause of these problems.
Explain why runners and elites from different sports have the same exact problems? They should have strong bones from all that pounding, right?
This study linked in the article doesn’t prove that it is the bicycle that causes this. No study proves that it is the bicycle or pedaling. All it really shows is a relationship.
The TrainingPeaks article presents the conventional wisdom from a few years ago. More experts in the field are coming to the conclusion that the problem is the training (chronic negative energy balance) and REDS (trying to reach very low percentages of body fat through starving yourself.
But if you think cycling is inherently bad for your bones then maybe you want to change sports?
Which has nothing to do with whether cycling causes the condition.
(Although I disagree with Wendy about the appropriateness/accuracy of attempting to correct changes in [Ca2+] for changes in plasma volume.)
Random person: How’s your husband’s bone density?
My wife: Great, but he’s hospitalised himself three times so far this week!
Wendy’s take-home message/conclusion of the talk she gave at IPE last fall was that she didn’t know what form of exercise to prescribe to best increase BMD.
Another point to consider: BMD is about 75% genetically determined.
An old friend (and one of the world’s experts - if not THE world’s expert - on the effects of exercise on bone in humans).
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I remember that episode. I came away feeling pessimistic! 
Cycling definitely makes bones weaker but I thought Kohrt would have more to say about what types of exercise would definitely make bones stronger. In the end it sounds like they’re still trying to figure that part out.
Very entertaining discussion, though. Like all of our biology, even things that seem like they should be simple are wonderfully complex.
Do you think the force required to move mass is more or less on two wheels?
But a considerable amount to do with whether it is worth trying to prevent the condition.
Uno -X have their riders do a run once per week. I recall they mentioned bone density, being more robust and healthy
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Head of Performance (or something like that) is a guest on the latest Latern Rouge Cycling Podcast. Off season running comes up!
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