Can You Remember How To Ride A Bike? Rediscovering Childhood Joys

Have you ever wondered why you can remember how to ride a bike so effortlessly? Riding a bike is a prime example of a skill that relies on what neurologists call “procedural memory,” which is often colloquially referred to as “muscle memory.” Procedural memory is a type of long-term memory that operates unconsciously. It allows individuals to recall and perform tasks without conscious thought or direct awareness. This phenomenon enables us to effortlessly navigate the complexities of bike riding, even if we haven’t been on a bike for a long time (as of April 24, 2023).

Is remembering how to ride a bike considered a part of semantic memory? In the realm of memory, there are distinct categories, and one of them is procedural memory, which deals with the memory of “knowing how” to perform tasks. For instance, if you can ride a bike, you may find it challenging to put into words the precise steps and details involved in the process. This suggests that semantic memory might not be the most suitable category to categorize your ability to ride a bike. Instead, procedural memory appears to be the more fitting category for this type of memory. Semantic memory, on the other hand, relates to the general knowledge and facts that we accumulate over time.