A review of Cycling's Impact on Adolescent Brain Development and Activity at the 2022 Outride Summit

This is The 10th year Outride (formerly The Specialized Foundation) has launched a school pilot program to study how cycling affects the brain activity of young children and how this ultimately affects attention, focus and academic performance. Since then, Outride and its partners have made amazing progress, with more than 50,000 students participating in Outride's school and community programs each year.

The results of this work were shared at the 2022 Outride Summit, which brings together a range of leaders and incredible talent from a variety of industries and underscores what Outride has always believed: that the benefits of cycling to light up the brains of young and young children are far-reaching; Cycling helps to improve the social skills of young children and can help overcome mental health crises they may face now and in the future.

Mike Sinyard, co-founder of Outride, shared why he launched the project in 2012 and how continued advances in research and technology demonstrate the incredible benefits of cycling for the physical and mental health of kids and teens, inspiring him to continue supporting Outride to help promote cycling for kids and teens, So that more people can see the benefits and benefit from it. The key message: this is not about one particular type of cycling. It's about the great power that all bikes have to light up the brains of teenagers and children -- no matter what bike they ride.

Allan Reiss, MD, Stanford University, shared the results of a study that used mobile brain imaging to capture what's happening in the brains of children and adolescents as they ride their bikes.

Dr. Reiss summarized the current research on the brain benefits of cycling and other physical activities in children and adolescents, noting that sports like cycling are unique in combining "spatial orientation, navigation, body awareness, memory, motor control, balance and coordination, and executive function, which are important for improving and maintaining brain health in children and adolescents." Dr Reiss said both cycling and other physical activities help "improve your ability to make new [brain] cells and improve the ability to make connections between those cells"

Ryan McKinney, MD, a middle school physical education teacher, describes research conducted at his school that found that "kids who go out for a bike ride before math and reading class learn more, perform better, and focus better." . Sean Wilson of Loma Linda University found that students who participated in a school cycling program called "Cycling for Focus" generally experienced an increase in psychosocial well-being, with the results particularly affecting female students.

Olympian Christopher Blevins, who spoke at the summit as a delegate, said: "Cycling has been my foundation since I was very young and I consider it the greatest gift of my life." The panelists at the summit shared their cycling journey and why they chose Outride to inspire and increase cycling opportunities for the next generation through their actions.

Here's a summary of the key findings that emerged throughout the summit:

1. Cycling and other sports are incredibly good for your mind as well as your body. Even short trips can help the brains of young children develop.

2. School cycling programs not only benefit students' health, but also contribute to academic success and increase the ability to continue to be active socially outside of school.

3. Community cycling organizations with a focus on children and adolescents are an important part of creating a larger community cycling ecosystem. These organizations help foster a sense of belonging, self-esteem and confidence in young children.

4. Female role models and coaches are crucial to young girls' success and make them feel seen. In focusing on increasing girls' participation in cycling, especially from low-income and marginalized communities, being an active listener, showing trust in them and being responsive to their needs is critical to girls' later psychological growth.

5. Building trust and support for young people should be the core of promoting young people's cycling. What needs to be paid attention to is not only the bicycle itself, of course, the safety of the equipment is a necessary condition, but also the need for parents to establish trust and support for their children, which is crucial to the establishment of the character of young children.

Since its inception ten years ago, the Outride Summit program has created a space for researchers and practitioners to share relevant data, research, and the results of some of the incredible projects underway around the country and the world.

Through the summit, we see that bicycles not only develop the brains of young children, but also provide the power to change their character and growth trajectory. With these studies, Outride Summit aims to promote cycling for youth and children around the world so that future generations can benefit.