Bicycle riding, walking, and weight gain in premenopausal women

Abstract

Background: To our knowledge, research has not been conducted on bicycle riding and weight control in comparison with walking. Our objective was to assess the association between bicycle riding and weight control in premenopausal women. Methods: This was a 16-year follow-up study of 18 414 women in the Nurses' Health Study II. Weight change between 1989 and 2005 was the primary outcome, and the odds of gaining more than 5% of baseline body weight by 2005 was the secondary outcome. Results: At baseline, only 39% of participants walked briskly, while only 1.2% bicycled for more than 30 min/d. For a 30-min/d increase in activity between 1989 and 2005, weight gain was significantly less for brisk walking (-1.81 kg; 95% confidence interval [CI], -2.05 to -1.56 kg), bicycling (-1.59 kg; 95% CI, -2.09 to -1.08 kg), and other activities (-1.45 kg; 95% CI, -1.66 to -1.24 kg) but not for slow walking (+0.06 kg; 95% CI, -0.22 to 0.35 kg). Women who reported no bicycling in 1989 and increased to as little as 5 min/d in 2005 gained less weight (-0.74 kg; 95% CI, -1.41 to -0.07 kg; P value for trend,