Many fitness enthusiasts are torn between swimming and cycling, two excellent forms of exercise. Both exercises have unique benefits that suit different goals, lifestyles, and preferences.
Whether you’re looking to improve your cardiovascular health, build endurance, or simply enjoy a low-impact workout, understanding the differences and advantages of swimming and cycling can help you make an informed decision.
So, let’s dive in (or hop on) to explore what makes each exercise unique and how they compare.
Both swimming and cycling are excellent choices for improving your fitness and overall well-being, offering unique advantages and engaging the body in distinct ways. Let’s dive into a detailed comparison:
Both swimming and cycling are exceptional forms of cardiovascular exercise, offering numerous heart and lung health benefits. Regularly engaging in either activity strengthens the heart muscle, improves blood circulation, and boosts lung capacity.
Swimming:
Water resistance adds an extra challenge, requiring your body to work harder to move and breathe. This dual engagement of muscles and respiratory systems helps improve VO2 max—a measure of oxygen your body can use during exercise. Swimming also encourages steady, rhythmic breathing, which can enhance overall cardiovascular efficiency.
Cycling:
Whether outdoors or indoors, cycling is an excellent aerobic workout that steadily increases heart rate and enhances oxygen delivery to the muscles. Hill climbs, or high-intensity intervals on a bike, provide cardiovascular benefits similar to swimming, while the prolonged nature of cycling makes it ideal for building stamina and endurance.
Both exercises contribute significantly to reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. The choice between swimming and cycling ultimately depends on personal preference and access, as both are effective for achieving and maintaining optimal cardiovascular health.
Both swimming and cycling effectively elevate your heart rate, improving cardiovascular fitness. However, the way each activity influences heart rate differs due to the unique nature of the exercises.
Swimming:
Swimming’s cooling effect often makes the activity feel less intense than it truly is. The water helps regulate body temperature, reducing the discomfort of overheating, which can mask the effort the cardiovascular system puts in.
Interestingly, heart rate tends to be slightly lower during swimming for the same perceived exertion compared to land-based activities like cycling. This makes swimming particularly appealing to individuals who struggle to maintain a consistent body temperature during exercise.
Despite the lower heart rate, swimming still provides a robust cardiovascular workout, especially with continuous or interval-based swimming.
Cycling:
Cycling, particularly during high-intensity efforts such as hill climbs or sprints, can push your heart rate closer to its maximum. The steady nature of pedalling allows for controlled increases in intensity, making it easier to sustain a higher heart rate for longer periods.
Outdoor cycling on varied terrain and indoor cycling classes often provide opportunities to challenge cardiovascular endurance with bursts of high-intensity intervals.
In summary, while both swimming and cycling elevate heart rate and provide excellent cardiovascular benefits, swimming may feel less strenuous due to the cooling effect of water.
This is where swimming and cycling show the most noticeable differences, as each activity targets muscle groups differently.
Swimming: A Full-Body Workout
Swimming is a complete workout that engages nearly every major muscle group. Each stroke requires the arms, shoulders, back, core, and legs to work harmoniously, providing balanced muscle engagement. The water’s resistance adds a constant challenge, making swimming a great way to tone and strengthen muscles without straining the joints.
The pulling motion required in strokes like freestyle, backstroke, or butterfly works the arms, shoulders, and upper back, helping to build strength and improve muscle tone. Over time, swimming can enhance upper body endurance and definition, especially for those who incorporate varied strokes into their routine.
Core Engagement (Swimming):
Cycling: Lower Body Powerhouse
Cycling, on the other hand, is predominantly a lower-body workout. The pedalling motion directly targets the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves, making it an excellent option for developing leg strength and endurance. Consistent cycling can significantly improve lower body muscle tone and power.
Each pedal stroke strengthens the legs and glutes, especially during uphill climbs or high-resistance settings. Cycling also improves the muscles’ ability to generate force, which benefits overall fitness and activities like running or hiking.
While not as significant as swimming, cycling requires core activation to maintain balance and posture, particularly during outdoor rides or high-intensity efforts.
Swimming and cycling are excellent exercises for burning calories and supporting weight loss. Their effectiveness depends on factors like intensity, duration, metabolism, and body weight.
Swimming:
Swimming engages the entire body, which makes it particularly effective for calorie burning. The water’s resistance forces muscles to work harder with every stroke, whether freestyle, breaststroke, or butterfly.
and stroke type. Its full-body engagement also helps tone multiple muscle groups, contributing to a leaner, more defined physique.
Cycling:
Cycling can burn a similar range of calories, with moderate sessions averaging 300–600 calories per hour. High-intensity cycling, such as uphill climbs or interval training, can increase calorie expenditure significantly.
Additionally, cycling is easier to sustain for longer periods due to its repetitive motion and lower perceived exertion, making it an excellent option for extended workouts.
Which Burns More Calories?
Swimming often surpasses cycling in calorie burn for the same duration and intensity, thanks to its full-body nature and the added resistance of water. However, cycling’s convenience and ability to fit into daily routines (e.g., commuting) make it easier for many people to incorporate into their lifestyle, leading to more consistent calorie burn over time.
Swimming:
Swimming is renowned for being low-impact. The buoyancy of water supports your body weight, significantly reducing the stress on joints.
This makes it an excellent option for individuals dealing with arthritis, joint pain, or recovering from injuries. Whether freestyle, backstroke, or aqua aerobics, swimming provides a safe and effective way to stay active without putting unnecessary strain on your body.
Cycling:
Cycling is also a low-impact exercise. However, certain factors can increase the risk of injuries. Improper bike fit, poor posture, or overuse can lead to discomfort or strain, particularly in the knees, lower back, and wrists.
Ensuring the bike is adjusted correctly to your body and proper technique are essential for preventing these issues. With the right setup and precautions, cycling remains a safe and effective option for most people.
Swimming:
Although accessible, it typically requires access to a pool, open water, or a designated swimming area. While the basic equipment—like swimwear, goggles, and a swimming cap—is relatively inexpensive, pool memberships or entry fees can add recurring costs.
Additionally, accessibility can be a challenge in areas without convenient swimming facilities.
Cycling:
It offers greater location flexibility, allowing you to exercise outdoors on roads, trails, or in parks and indoors using stationary bikes or trainers.
However, the initial investment can be higher, as you’ll need a bicycle, a helmet for safety, and optional accessories like cycling shoes, padded shorts, and lights. Despite the upfront costs, cycling’s flexibility in location and potential use as transportation make it more convenient for regular use in most settings.
Swimming:
Swimming offers a unique sense of calm due to the rhythmic, repetitive movements and the weightlessness experienced in the water. These factors create a meditative state, helping to reduce stress, anxiety, and even symptoms of depression.
The controlled breathing required during swimming promotes mindfulness, grounding the swimmer in the present moment. Additionally, water’s soothing effect can contribute to an overall sense of relaxation and well-being.
Cycling:
Cycling, especially outdoors, provides a sense of freedom and adventure that can uplift your mood. The opportunity to explore new routes and connect with nature enhances feelings of accomplishment and reduces stress.
For those who enjoy socialising, group cycling rides offer a chance to build camaraderie and boost morale. Even indoor cycling can elevate mood by releasing endorphins, the “feel-good” hormones, during physical activity.
Both activities positively impact mental and emotional health, but the choice depends on personal preferences.
Swimming:
Swimming requires mastering techniques like breathing control, different strokes (freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke), and proper body alignment.
It can take time and professional guidance to become efficient, especially for beginners or those uncomfortable in water. However, once learned, it becomes a lifelong skill.
Cycling:
Cycling has a gentler learning curve, as most people learn to ride a bike during childhood. Balancing and pedalling are straightforward for beginners, while advanced cycling (like road or mountain biking) may require additional skills like handling terrain or navigating traffic safely.
The Verdict
Both swimming and cycling offer incredible benefits for physical and mental health.
Cycling provides excellent lower-body strength and the joy of outdoor exploration while swimming offers a full-body, low-impact workout that’s gentle on the joints and promotes a sense of calm.
While cycling certainly has its merits, swimming’s unique combination of full-body engagement, minimal impact, and therapeutic qualities gives it a slight edge. It’s a truly accessible exercise for almost everyone, regardless of age or fitness level, and provides a well-rounded approach to fitness and well-being.
Swimming is hard to beat if you’re looking for a workout that strengthens your entire body, minimises injury risk, and provides a mental escape!
When deciding between swimming and cycling, the “better” choice ultimately depends on your fitness goals, lifestyle, and personal preferences.
Swimming offers a full-body workout, builds upper and lower body strength, and is a joint-friendly activity ideal for all ages. On the other hand, cycling shines as a lower-body powerhouse, perfect for building leg strength, endurance, and cardiovascular health. It offers the flexibility of both outdoor and indoor options.
Swimming may be the perfect exercise for anyone looking for an exercise that combines effective calorie burning, muscle engagement, and stress relief.
At Swimwerks, we specialise in helping individuals of all skill levels embrace the benefits of swimming. From personalised adult swimming lessons, all female group lessons, and so much more, we make swimming accessible, enjoyable, and rewarding.
Whether you’re a beginner or looking to refine your technique, Swimwerks supports you. Contact us for tips, guidance, and resources to make swimming an integral part of your fitness journey.
Swimming typically burns more calories per hour due to its full-body nature. However, cycling can burn significant calories during long or intense rides.
Absolutely! Combining both activities offers the best of both worlds—full-body engagement from swimming and lower-body strength from cycling.
Yes, cycling can strain the knees over time, especially if you use improper form or excessive resistance. Swimming, on the other hand, is virtually impact-free.
Yes. Swimming enhances cardiovascular fitness and lung capacity, benefiting your cycling endurance.
Cycling may be easier for beginners due to its accessibility and shorter learning curve. Swimming requires mastering strokes and breathing techniques.
Both are great for mental well-being. Swimming is often more calming due to the soothing effect of water, while cycling provides freedom of movement and fresh air.
