Take a minute and ask yourself as to why you are taking your car to and fro work. Is it because your work is thousands of leagues away, over the hills and mountains, or simply because it’s way easier to effortlessly turn the wheel of your vehicle while sitting in isolation? If you’re done contemplating and finally rid of all your commute-oriented self-delusions, you’re probably going to conclude that the latter is the case. “Yes, I am aware of all the upsides to biking, come on.” – you might say, but bear with this article and you might learn a thing or two, while slowly growing increasingly aware of all the benefits the bike carries with itself.
Exercise
Let’s start off with that which is the most obvious – pure cardio exercise. It would be an understatement to say that obesity is world’s growing problem, especially in the western he
misphere. People have seemingly forgotten their natural ways in more than a couple areas of life and physical activity is by far the most popular among those. Our metabolisms have yet to evolutionally adapt to the physically slow-paced ways of today, and as such, our bodies still do need muscle and heartrate engagement. Although this is debatable, cycling is widely regarded as the best form of cardio exercise. By engaging your muscles and speeding up the blood flow, this type of workout helps your body shed fat cells, thus turning you towards your healthier, more primal self. Furthermore, it is somewhat a misconception that cardio exercise does nothing but burn fat (even though generally, this is a goal most desired). Cycling, for example, builds strength and muscle tone while still remaining one of the easiest ways to exercise.
Other Health Benefits
On a previous note, let’s explore the points at which cycling excels over other forms of cardio exercise. While efficiency level comparison is still a matter of debate in terms of jogging and cycling, one thing is for certain – the latter causes much less stress (if any at all) on your ankles, legs, feet and, most importantly, knees. It is hardly a secret that many a frequent jogger starts experiencing chronic knee and joint issues at some point in life. In turn, cycling is so tender on the human body, that experts even suggest it as an activity to engage in while recovering from a sport injury.
As if the list of health benefits with regards to this activity wasn’t enough, cycling improves heart health in addition. 20 miles of cycling a week can reduce the chance of a heart attack by 50%.
Yet another thing a modern day Homo sapiens doesn’t really excel at is stamina. While our ancestors were able to successfully chase their prey for hours on end, an average modern man or woman starts huffing and puffing after a couple of flights of stairs, should the elevator (god forbid) be out of order. Well, right there is yet another health benefit of the bicycle. If it turns out you start enjoying your bike rides, you won’t even notice the progress you’ve made, until you find yourself outrunning all your peers, in a hurry to catch a bus.
Environmental Health Benefits
We live on a highly polluted planet and we all know it. Yet somehow, we always choose to turn a blind eye on this growing issue, simply because a single contribution can’t even begin to impact the negative sides of the current stage of technological progress. This is yet another reason a lot of us choose to leave our bicycles collect dust, while we spend wads of cash on feeding our gas-guzzling giants. Cycling to work is not only cheap (in fact, maintenance and cycling gear are pretty much the only expenses involved) and healthy in itself, but provides even more health benefits by lowering the pollution levels, in addition.
So think before you start mumbling curse words next time a cyclist storms through a traffic jam you will undoubtedly find yourself in again, on your way to or from work. Instead, think about becoming one of these persons, at the very least a couple of days a week – the environment isn’t going to fix itself. Not only are they enabling themselves to get from point A to point B infinitely quicker, but are paying compliments to the environment as well as their own health.
All things considered, riding a bike brings a vast amount of benefits, health-related, or otherwise. If you want to stay strong, healthy, physically stabile, become more environmentally or simply provide yourself with a vent, you can rest assured that cycling is a perfect thing for you. No need to prolong it any further – dust off your bike and start feeling healthy; and keep in mind – it’s not Earth that’s in trouble, it’s the creatures who live on it.
