SoCalBicycles.com - Bicycling and Your Health

Bicycling and your health

Bicycling makes use of the largest muscles in the body, so it is good for people who are trying to lose weight and body fat. Exercising at low intensity is better for people who want to lose weight as the body doesn't have the chance to burn fat at high work rates. Endurance cycling is an aerobic exercise, and therefore it can improve cardiovascular health. The physical exercise gained from cycling is generally linked with increased health and well-being. According to the World Health Organization, physical inactivity is second only to tobacco smoking as a health risk in developed countries, and this is associated with many tens of billions of dollars of healthcare costs. The WHO's report suggests that increasing physical activity is a public health 'best buy', and that cycling is a 'highly suitable activity' for this purpose. The charity Sustrans reports that investment in cycling provision can give a 20:1 return from health and other benefits. It has been estimated that, on average, approximately 20 life-years are gained from the health benefits of road bicycling for every life-year lost through injury.

Better physical health, including reduced risk of heart disease, the number one cause of death in the U.S., is one benefit of bicycle commuting. The National Institute for Health has increased the suggested amount of exercise from half an hour to an hour a day. Bicycle commuting can provide a practical method for meeting the recommended amount of daily exercise for people that work jobs that aren't physically demanding or labor-intensive. Studies have shown that integrating moderate cardiovascular exercise into daily routines is highly beneficial to health, protecting against coronary heart disease, some cancers and reducing incidence of obesity. At least one study has shown that transportational cycling confers additional benefit even among those who are otherwise fit. Commuting by bicycle is often a good way to improve a person's health during a period of time that is often spent sitting in traffic. In some countries health insurers actively support bicycle commuting. Measures that promote physical health, including aerobic exercise, have been shown to reduce the symptoms of depression. Bicycle commuters in general enjoy greater productivity, and (particularly for the deskbound) a nice balance for the day, particularly in combination with stopping and stretching.

Just think... No more costly fuel fill-ups, no more oil changes, no more painful smog checks, no more tire rotations, no more expensive yearly registration fees, no more high-cost insurance premiums, and no more car payments. All this and much more, just because you decided to purchase and ride a bicycle!

Ride a Bicycle: save gasoline - reduce stress - great exercise - reduce pollution - save money - low-cost entertainment - and it's fun

"The bicycle is the most efficient machine ever created: Converting calories into gas, a bicycle gets the equivalent of three thousand miles per gallon." - Bill Strickland

"Bicycling is a big part of the future. It has to be. There's something wrong with a society that drives a car to workout in a gym." - Bill Nye, the Science Guy

"Think of bicycles as rideable art that can just about save the world." - Grant Peterson

"Nothing compares with the simple pleasure of a bike ride." - President John F. Kennedy

"When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking." - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

"A bicycle ride is a flight from sadness." - James E. Starrs

SoCalBicycles - Riverside, California - (951) 300-8035 - Email: info@SoCalBikes.com