Cycling
is a physical activity
Firstly, we must consider that for personal health
purposes, cycling is a close to ideal form of physical activity.
It is:-
- Aerobic Cycling uses major muscle groups (i.e. the legs!),
raising heart rate to an extent that benefits health.
- Low
weight bearing Many people
cannot do certain sports because of the pressure it puts on their joints
(running is a good example). Because the cycle takes the weight of the body,
much less pressure is exerted on the joints whilst cycling. This makes
cycling a good form of exercise for those with certain joint problems
- Low
skill Many people are put off doing certain sports because
of the high level of skill that seems to be required (a good example is
aerobic dance). Most of us know how to cycle, once you have learned you
don’t forget. All you need is a cycle and a bit of confidence.
All these things combined make cycling about the best
form of exercise that there is. And don’t just take our word for it (you would
expect us to say that cycling is good for you.) The British Medical Association
(amongst many others) says that the health benefits from cycling far outweigh
any risks.
Having said all that, the usual health warning applies: if
you haven’t been active for some time, consult with your doctor before you
enter the world of serious cycling.
How
active are we?
As a nation, we are not physically active enough to benefit
our health. The Allied Dunbar National Fitness Survey was the first ever
large-scale British survey that measured how fit the country is. The findings of
this survey have been backed up by many other similar surveys since:
- 7 out of 10 women and 6 out of 10 men are not active enough to benefit our
health.
- Most
of us think we are fit enough and active enough to be healthy.
In reality, 70% of us are not fit and certainly not active enough to
be healthy.
So why is being lazy
so bad?
Not doing any exercise or physical activity dramatically
increases our chance of having a number of diseases in later life:
-
Coronary Heart Disease,
-
High Blood Pressure,
-
Obesity, and
-
Cancer of the colon.
Those diseases are the biggest killers in the UK – and
they are all avoidable by adopting a healthy lifestyle!
Being physically inactive carries an equal risk (in terms
of developing heart disease) as smoking 20 cigarettes per day or raised
cholesterol.
Physical activity and exercise is so good because it
raises the heart rate and helps clean the arteries of any build up. Also being
active over a long period can reduce blood pressure and help with weight loss
(how many overweight cyclists do you know?).
Some Key Facts
-
Steady cycling burns approximately 300 calories per hour. A half
hour daily cycle trip will burn 11 pounds of fat in a year. Because the activity
is daily, the weight is likely to stay off and weight loss will be even more
effective if combined with dietary change.
-
Studies have shown that brisk walking (and cycling) of the type
involved in the work journey will convey a 3-7% increase in cardiovascular
fitness, a 5% drop in cholesterol and a 3% drop in bodyweight. Research
demonstrated these benefits were gained in a 15-week study period.
-
A major study of 10,000
civil servants suggested that those who cycled 20 miles over the period of a
week were half as likely to suffer heart disease as their non-cycling
colleagues. This finding was independent of other factors such as
smoking, obesity, high blood cholesterol and blood pressure.
TEN THOUSAND CIVIL
SERVANTS CAN’T BE WRONG!
Studies are increasingly beginning to show that exercising
regularly will help to reduce and control stress, anxiety and depression -
something that most of us suffer from time to time.
-
Those who are active
tend to be less depressed, less anxious and
are better able to control sub-clinical levels of stress.
-
This benefit is linked to participation physical activity and not
necessarily changes in fitness. Though the exact mechanism of this has not been
worked out, it is thought to be closely linked to the chemical ‘endorphin’
which is present in higher concentrations in those who are active.
So even if you are not interested in whether you might get
heart disease in 15 years time, the evidence is overwhelming that exercise of
any kind is good in the short term (e.g. to help reduce stress) and in the long
term.
Cycling is one of the best forms of exercise.
How
much exercise should we be doing?
Experts estimate that to benefit health, we should do five
thirty-minute sessions of physical activity per week .
The sessions should be of moderate intensity, moderate
being a level which leaves you feeling warm and slightly out of breath.
The thirty minutes can be made up of two separate bouts of
fifteen minutes.
Approximately half
of all journeys to work are under 2 miles in length.
It will take the average unfit person approximately 20
minutes to cycle (and 70 to walk) a distance of 2 miles.
So the message is simple: A short daily cycle journey (e.g. to work) will meet the
recommended daily ‘dose’ of exercise.
I
own a bike, but it’s not easy for me to cycle to work
Eight out of ten of people own a bike and surveys indicate
that many more would cycle or walk if their employer made suitable facilities
available.
If you are one of those people, you should lobby your
employer to provide more suitable facilities and incentives to cycle to work.
Further reading: Cycling towards Health and Safety - BMA Report
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