Biking

Biking / Cycling

For those that may not know or are familiar with the term ‘biking’ or ‘cycling’. Allow us to explain what it is and the benefits that come alongside it. (Link to bicycles below!)

Biking, also called bicycling or cycling, is the use of bicycles for transport, recreation, sport or exercise. People that engage in cycling are referred to as “cyclists”, “bicyclists”, or “bikers”.

Cycling is widely regarded as an effective and efficient mode of transportation optimal for short to moderate distances.
Bicycles provide numerous possible benefits in comparison with motor vehicles.
Including the sustained physical exercise involved in cycling. Easier parking, increased maneuverability, and access to roads, bike paths and rural trails.

Cycling also offers a reduced consumption of fossil fuels, less air or noise pollution, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, and greatly reduced traffic congestion. These have a lower financial cost for users as well as for society at large (negligible damage to roads, less road area required).

By fitting bicycle racks on the front of buses, transit agencies can significantly increase the areas they can serve.

Health Benefits

Physical Health

Another great fact about biking/cycling is that, it is fantastic for your health and general wellbeing.
The health benefits of cycling outweigh the risks, when cycling is compared to a sedentary lifestyle.

A Dutch study found that cycling can extend lifespans by up to 14 months, but the risks equated to a reduced lifespan of 40 days or less.

Mortality rate reduction was found to be directly correlated to the average time spent cycling, totaling to approximately 6500 deaths prevented by cycling.
Cycling in the Netherlands is often safer than in other parts of the world, so the risk-benefit ratio will be different in other regions.

Benefits of cycling or walking have been shown to exceed risks by ratios of 9:1 to 96:1 when compared with no exercise at all, including a wide variety of physical and mental outcomes.

Bicycles are often used by people seeking to improve their fitness and cardiovascular health.

Recent studies on the use of cycling for commutes have shown that it reduces the risk of cardiovascular outcomes by 11%, with slightly more risk reduction in women than in men.

In addition, cycling is especially helpful for those with arthritis of the lower limbs who are unable to pursue sports that cause impact to the knees and other joints. Cycling can be used for the practical purpose of transportation, there can be less need for self-discipline to exercise.

Mental Health

The effects of cycling on overall mental health has often been studied. A European study surveying participants from seven cities about self-perceived health based on primary modes of transportation reported favorable results in the bicycle use population.

Bicycle use group reported predominantly good self-perceived health, less perceived stress, better mental health, better vitality, and less loneliness.
The study attributed these results to possible economic benefits and senses of both independence and identity as a member of a cyclist community.

An English study recruiting non-cyclist older adults aged 50 to 83 to participate. As either conventional pedal bike cyclists, electrically assisted e-bike cyclists.

Non-cyclist control group in outdoor trails measured cognitive function, through executive function, spatial reasoning, and memory tests and well-being through questionnaires.

The study did not find significant differences in spatial reasoning or memory tests.
It did find that both cyclists groups had improved executive function and well-being. Both with greater improvement in the e-bike group.

This suggested that non-physical factors of cycling such as independence, engagement with the outdoor environment.
Mobility play a greater role in improving mental health.

Bicycle Safety

Cycling suffers from a perception that it is unsafe. This perception is not always backed by hard numbers, because of under reporting of accidents and lack of bicycle use data which make it hard to assess the risk and monitor changes in risks.

In the UK, fatality rates per mile or kilometer are slightly less than those for walking.

In the US, bicycling fatality rates are less than 2/3 of those walking the same distance.
However, in the UK for example the fatality and serious injury rates ‘per hour of travel’, are just over double for cycling than those for walking.

Thus if a person is, for example, about to undertake a ten kilometer journey to a given destination it may on average be safer to undertake this journey by bicycle than on foot.

If a person is intending for example, to undertake an hour’s exercise. It may be more dangerous, to take that exercise by cycling rather than by walking.

Despite the risk factors associated with bicycling, cyclists have a lower overall mortality rate when compared to other groups. A Danish study in 2000 found that even after adjustment for other risk factors, including leisure time physical activity.

Those who did not cycle to work experienced a 39% higher mortality rate than those who did.

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