Leg muscle strengthening with the Aqua Bike!

In the previous articles we have mentioned many times the beneficial properties of water and the advantages of exercising in water with hydro-gym equipment. In this month's article, we will cover the Aqua Bike cycling movement and analyze which leg muscles are worked out and how they are involved…

The movement of the foot during pedaling is circular. The foot rotates around a fixed axis, starting from the highest point, and traces a complete circular motion. The other leg performs the same movement but with a difference of 180 degrees. To better understand the circular movement of the foot, we will divide the circle of movement into 4 points: 0(360) – 90 -180 – 270 degrees, as shown in the figure.

From measurements that have been made, it has been identified that the following muscles are involved during cycling:

• From 0 – 90 degrees the main muscles of the movement are the gluteus maximus (GM) and the biceps femoris (BF) whose involvement continues up to 270 degrees. The latissimus dorsi (VL) and the rectus femoris have an active participation in the movement.
• From 90 – 180 degrees the main muscle is the rectus femoris (RF) with active participation of the gastrocnemius (GA) and the tibius.
• From 180-270 degrees At the beginning of the recovery we mentioned that the biceps femoris (BF) is actively involved. The lower leg also participates in the movement.
• Finally from 270 – 360 degrees to bring the leg back to the highest point, the main muscle is the tibialis anterior (TA) and while the latissimus dorsi begins its activity towards the end of the cycle to continue as we mentioned above up to 90 degrees.

The aforementioned muscles are exercised during cycling. But what is the difference that exercising in water with the Aqua Bike offers?

In addition to the basic properties of water, where they help the body and organism cope better and more effectively with exercise, there is an important difference, which is found in the resistance that water constantly brings to our feet where they exercise.

Without going into detail, we will simply refer to the result: the resistance brought by the water is three-dimensional and continuous... the result is that the muscles mentioned above are trained mainly, but in water cycling the rest of the muscles that are not mentioned as main... they also participate continuously on the go!

From the above data it can be understood that cycling in the water activates all the muscle groups of the legs, is a very effective training method, while offering the athlete a complete and comprehensive exercise for the lower limbs!

Finally, we should emphasize that in the special exercise programs with the Aqua bike, we have the possibility to exercise the muscles of the trunk and arms, taking advantage of the resistance of the water. This is how we achieve the activation of more muscle groups, resulting in a greater increase in the rate of calorie consumption!
… a test will surprise you!
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