Does Cycling Burn Belly Fat?

It's easy to overlook a bit of excess belly fat, but if your midsection has reached the point at which you become overly self-conscious, adopting a vigorous fitness regimen can help you melt the fat away. Cycling is an effective exercise for burning calories, and thus losing fat, and dedication to the type of workout can result in positive health changes before long.

  1. Targeting Fat Loss

    • Contrary to the theory of spot reduction, it's impossible to target just your belly fat through exercise. Bodybuilding.com notes that the prevalence of exercise machines that make dubious claims about targeting fat in a specific area makes spot reduction a common fitness myth. The American Council on Exercise reports that burning excess calories results in fat loss throughout your body. Thus, while cycling can help you burn belly fat, the activity will also burn fat in other parts of your body.

    Belly Fat

    • Belly fat might not look appealing, but MayoClinic.com warns that it's more than just a visual issue. This type of fat isn't just on the surface; belly fat is made of two types of fat. Subcutaneous fat, which lies close to the surface of your belly, isn't as hazardous as visceral fat, which is packed around your organs. Excess visceral fat can increase your blood pressure and lead to such health issues as stroke, cardiovascular disease and some types of cancer.

    Burning Fat

    • Burning fat requires you to burn more calories than you consume, which is possible if you exercise frequently and are vigilant about consuming a healthy diet. You must create a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories to burn 1 pound of fat. Doing so isn't possible in a single workout, but by exercising daily, you can meet MayoClinic.com's suggested weight-loss goal of 1 to 2 pounds per week. Avoid foods that are high in fat and sugar, and keep your daily calorie intake to the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion's guidelines. The center suggests 1,800 to 2,400 calories daily for women and 2,400 to 3,000 calories daily for men, on average.

    Cycling Calories Burned

    • Whether you ride your bike outside or visit the gym to use the stationary bike, expect to burn calories at a high rate to help you reach your fat-loss goals. The faster pace you can maintain, the more calories you'll burn. Harvard Medical School reports that a 155-pound person will burn 372 calories in 30 minutes of cycling at 14 to 15.9 mph and 446 calories in 30 minutes of cycling at 16 to 19 mph. At the gym, the same person will burn 391 calories in a half-hour stationary bike workout at a vigorous pace.