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Staying active is a key component of good health for seniors approaching, reaching, and surpassing 60. Suppose you are heading toward the 60-year mark, and you realize you've become more sedentary than you'd like or than is healthy. In that case, you might find yourself looking for solutions to get moving without stressing your joints or over-exerting yourself while you regain peak fitness.
Bicycling is a fun, safe and joint-friendly solution for people of all ages and seniors in particular. But you might not want to buy a high-end road bike, built for speed and intense rides. You also might have ruled out the mountain and recumbent bikes.
More and more people of all ages consider the classic beach cruiser style bike to enjoy the perfect balance of function and comfort. Let's look more closely at the reasons for getting into bike riding, especially with these specialty bikes and all that they can do for you.
Why Bicycle Into Your 60s and Beyond?
Anyone can ride a bicycle, even if you've never ridden one before. And if it's been a long time since you've owned or ridden a bicycle, it'll all come flooding back as soon as you sit on the saddle and put a foot on the pedal.
Bicycle ridership has increased over the past three decades, particularly among seniors. According to an AARP survey, more bicyclists 55 and older hit the road and trails more often than any other adult group. Upwards of 42% of older Americans are consistently riding more than 25 days a year.
In April 2022, Donna Christiano Campisano from Forbes reported on the bicycle boom occurring over the past few years, noting a 16% increase in the U.S. from 2019 to 2020. The continuing increased interest in cycling isn't exclusive to the United States, as Canada, countries in Europe, Australia, and Japan report a similar trend.
While the pandemic enhanced the bicycling boom, it had started earlier than that, especially with the availability of an ever-widening expanse of bike-style options, including electric bikes, also known as e-bikes.
Once everyone hits their physical peak at around the 35-year mark—and it happens to the most health-conscious and physically fit people—it's crucial to start thinking about long-term health to secure and protect factors like health, well-being, longevity and quality of life.
While some people can keep pounding the pavement—jogging or running—well into their 70s, 80s and sometimes beyond, most people start to feel the aches and pains associated with aging joints and erosion of precious, shock-absorbing cartilage.
Why run and put unnecessary stress on your body that leaves you feeling achy for several days after a session? You'll find multiple alternatives, such as biking, fast-paced walking, swimming, and strength training can give you the same or similar benefits to running and jogging. Your joints will thank you.
Let's look at some health benefits people who cycle discover over those who don't commit to regular cardiovascular exercise:
- Slows loss of muscle mass
- Boosts cardiovascular health
- Preserves strength
- Helps maintain consistent body fat levels
- Stabilizes testosterone levels in men
- Improves cholesterol levels
- Promotes enhanced immunity with riders making as many T-cells as younger individuals4
- Improves brain function and memory
- Provides enjoyable, low-impact and low-stress exercise
- Offers seniors a chance to find a fitness-oriented community to stay socially engaged
- Promotes maintaining a healthy weight
- Reduces risk of cancer
- Keeps mitochondria healthy for a longer lifespan
- Helps minimize loss of bone density
- Preserves balance
With all these benefits, it's easy to see why aging populations start to take health more seriously, adding in any safe exercise possible to stave off disease, illness and general health degeneration.
What to Consider When Starting a Cycling Regimen at Age 60
The most important thing for aging cyclists to consider when getting into biking is to find the right bicycle to ensure safety and prevent injury. Everyone's agility decreases as we get older, so focusing on bicycles that support that natural physical change is crucial to enjoying years of health-inducing and pleasurable bike riding.
While some bicycle manufacturers produce bicycles specifically designed for seniors, women or people with physical limitations, beach cruisers hit all those marks as a matter of course and for all riders.
But let's look at two different types of bikes and why they might miss the mark for your riding enjoyment, compared to beach cruisers:
- Adult tricycles, or trikes, are three-wheeled bikes that are useful for people brand new to bicycling, lacking confidence in balance and skills. However, you might quickly feel like you've outgrown an adult trike since they present some limitations, such as not being able to pick up much speed or off the paved road or path.
- Recumbent bicycles are designed for cyclists with some specialized physical needs and preferences, such as those who need back or neck support or who need to reduce pressure on their needs. The design places you in a semi-reclined position, low to the ground and with the pedals stretched in front of you instead of beneath you. While the position feels stable on a recumbent bike, you will be less visible to other cyclists, runners, or automobiles, so you need to consider adding a safety flag and using extreme caution.
What Are Beach Cruiser Bikes?
Anyone considering a beach cruiser is in good company since the market is expected to rise at a considerable rate, from 2021 through 2026. With so many trusted companies designing and producing high-quality beach cruisers, the popularity isn't surprising.
As the name might suggest, they are intended for more leisurely rides along the beach boardwalk or throughout your town and neighborhood, no matter where you live. And they live up to the name since you'll feel like you're cruising along on mostly flat and even terrain while getting great exercise. Best of all, you can customize beach cruisers from most top brands.
Featuring larger tires, tall handlebars and wide seats, they are the perfect bicycle for seniors who want to hang onto health and fitness while enjoying optimal comfort and having a wonderful time while biking with friends or running errands.
The Top 5 Beach Cruiser Bikes for Seniors 60 and Over
Once you're ready to start shopping for your beach cruiser bike, you'll find a lot of options. We want to offer you some recommendations to help you start your cycling journey with confidence.
Here are the top five beach cruiser bikes you'll love riding.
3. June 7 LS
The June 7 LS from Tuesday Cycles is a stylish beach cruiser that works well on mixed surfaces. The whole June series features custom Tuesday framing, engineered to stand up to beach elements and beyond. The June 7 LS comes with a 7-speed twist shifter to give you speedy, intuitive shifting and minimal effort to tackle various elevations on any ride. All Tuesday bikes come with two size options that cover a broad range of cyclists' heights and leg lengths without sacrificing leisurely riding and comfort. Tuesday believes in comfort for its beach cruisers and has equipped each one with hand-molded handlebar grips and a wide cruiser saddle for hours of riding ease.
4. Jamis Earth Cruiser 3
Jamis Bikes touts its Earth Cruisers as lightweight, easy riders. One standout feature of this bike that many people shy away from is the coaster brake system. You might remember the coaster brake from your childhood bikes where you needed to pedal backwards to initiate the brake system. While it isn't unheard of today, it isn't the most common brake system. However, with a little practice, you can get used to it.
The main focus of the Earth Cruiser 3 is how lightweight it is, featuring a Classic Cantilever design and aluminum tubing. A few additional attention-grabbing features are the cruise-control comfort handlebar and the memory foam padded saddle.
5. Roll Low-Entry
The Roll Low-Entry from Specialized is touted as a hybrid cruiser bike for exploring with smooth and easy handling capabilities. The bike features a relaxed, upright riding position that makes it easy to balance at stops. The wide saddle ensures a comfortable ride and post-ride. One highlight of this cruiser is its extra-low step-thru frame, making it more accessible for various body types and mobility and ability levels. You can add on accessories to make it more commuter-friendly for times you want to visit friends or go on long bike rides together on the bicycle path.
Are You Ready to Start Your Bicycling Regimen?
Hopefully, these bike options will help you make the best choice for this crucial health and financial investment in your future. It's a big commitment and decision to buy a bicycle, so you should take your time and make sure you get a bike you'll love and ride for several miles and years to come.
Our team can walk you through the process, from custom fitting and sizing to the additional explanation of the assembly process. Ultimately, we offer our customers a 365-day test ride, meaning you have a year to try out your selected bike to see how much you love it.
We're excited for you to start this new adventure at this time in your life! If you have any questions, contact our team, and we'll be happy to chat about your needs and preferences.
