A lens on the lifestyle of the bicycle. Save money, get fit, avoid gridlock, enjoy outdoors - the benefits are endless. You don't have to be slim, to like sport, to be a geek, or to hug trees; you just have to make the wheels go around. Oh, and it's fun. This is a guide to getting the most from your bicycle, or it's a guide to getting a bike.
Bicycling is non-polluting, non-congesting, non-road damaging, non-threatening, health promoting, and environmentally sustainable
Bicycling is non-polluting, non-congesting, non-road damaging, non-threatening, health promoting, and environmentally sustainable
Facts, not Myths
- The benefits of cycling outweigh the risk of injury. You are a thousand times less likely to have a serious accident on a bicycle than you are to die from heart disease caused by lack of exercise
- Cyclists and pedestrians actually absorb lower levels of pollutants from traffic fumes than car drivers
- Nearly three-quarters of journeys people make are of five miles or less, and these could be cycled by most people
- Cycling is as effective as drugs in reducing high blood pressure
- Cycling is an exercise open to all. Trikes and adapted bicycles are available for people with severe physical handicaps, and blind 'stokers' can cycle with sighted 'captains' on tandems.
Holiday of a Lifetime
Cycle Touring
That sounds wonderful; I wish I could do that. Well you can. If you've never cycled before - or since you were a kid - it will take you very little effort or time to get into a kind of fitness that would have you able to cycle 30 miles. It's not like training to run a marathon; it really is very attainable for the average unfit person.
And if you can cycle 30 miles in a day you can cycle 300 or so in ten days. If you have two weeks annual vacation, you can:
1. Fly to Amsterdam
2. Spend ten days cycling to Paris
3. Enjoy three different countries (The Netherlands, Belgium, and France)
4. And still have time for a weekend in one of the world's great cities - as a treat to yourself for completing the cycle.
5. Fly home from Paris
or
5. Treat yourself some more with a train trip back to your return flight home from Amsterdam.
And that's only one option of a very do-able holiday.
And if you can cycle 30 miles in a day you can cycle 300 or so in ten days. If you have two weeks annual vacation, you can:
1. Fly to Amsterdam
2. Spend ten days cycling to Paris
3. Enjoy three different countries (The Netherlands, Belgium, and France)
4. And still have time for a weekend in one of the world's great cities - as a treat to yourself for completing the cycle.
5. Fly home from Paris
or
5. Treat yourself some more with a train trip back to your return flight home from Amsterdam.
And that's only one option of a very do-able holiday.
- Adventure Cycling
- The greatest resource available for cyclists in North America who want to tour by bicycle. Inspiring people to cycle for 30 years, Adventure Cycling is responsible for The Cyclists' Yellow Pages, and for mapping a National Bicycle Route Network.
- Mr Pumpy
- If you're ready to try more varied cultures and conditions, Mr Felix has toured more miles than most by bike in Southeast Asia, and offers recommendations and advice. With details on his experience in each country, shot through with humour, Mr Pumpy is an excellent read kept current by Felix's blog from Asia.
Some Health Benefits
- A 15-minute bike ride to and from work five times a week burns off the equivalent of 11 pounds of fat in a year
- New cyclists covering short distances can reduce their risk of death by as much as 22 per cent
- Moderate exercise has been found to reduce levels of depression, raise self-esteem, and relieve symptoms of PMS
- Research indicates exercise reduces the risk of developing colon cancer and can also protect against diabetes
- Physically active older people have much reduced rates of hip fracture
Health in Detail
Heart, Weight, Posture, Digestion, Mind, Skin, Bones all benefit from using a bicycle
To be successful long-term, exercise needs to be "moderate, habitual, and not seasonal." The only activities that fully meet this definition are gardening, walking, and cycling.
- BUPA
- Those of all body shapes and all but the most extreme body weights can ride a bike. No special clothes are needed, and there is no need to find extra time to exercise. The facts and figures from the people who provide healthcare.
- BikeBiz
- There's scientific evidence to back up the claim that cycling is a great way to get fit. BikeBiz reviews three of the main sources.
- Leeds Cycling Action Group
- Bicycling is aerobic, low weight bearing, and requires little skill - doesn't it sound perfect for you?
- London Cycling Campaign
- After just a few weeks of regular cycling, regardless of age, gender or initial physical fitness, the cyclist will be fitter and enjoy a greater sense of well-being. From a government White Paper.
But it's Snowing
- Ice Bike
- So?
Transportation, competition, and recreation, go on for all four seasons. A bicycle always starts, no matter how cold it is, and getting studded tires is not a problem. And tell me, when was the last time you saw a bicycle stuck in the snow?
Is 'women' a separate category in bicycling?
- Women Cyclists
- An outcome of the 2003 Yoplait Women's Cycling Summit - the Women Cyclists Web site was established by David LaPorte (director of the Nature Valley Grand Prix) and Giana Roberge (professional cyclist and former coach of the Saturn women's cycling team) as they sensed a need for a nationwide women's 'call to arms'
- What makes women different to men ?
- Dr Auriel Forrester and Pirkko Korkia - Department of Sport and Exercise Science, University of Luton, talk about women and cycling; Biomechanical Differences, Physical Size, Body Fat Distribution and Percentage, Menstruation, Puberty and the Menopause, Dietary Requirements, Training and Recovery, Psychology and Behaviour, and The Gender Gap
- Promoting Immodesty?
- The advent of the bicycle in the 1880's stimulated great controversy about women's proper role in society. Questions of "how they should ride, when they should ride, who they should ride with" were considered by commentators, and "wheeling's" many critics were certain that bicycle riding threatened women's health, morals, and reputation.
by Eolaí
Full-time Artist and Web Professional. An experienced bicycle tourer and commuter, who has cycled solo across 2 continents. Maintains event listings a... (more)
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