This past weekend, the weather was perfect to enjoy the outdoors and I decided to make the most of it by exploring the city on a bike. I don’t own a bike and wasn’t ready to buy one, so I looked around and found a local bike shop that rents bikes by the hour or day. The price of renting was about about $8 an hour or $24 for the day - within my budget and a great way to spend a Saturday!
My friend and I rented a couple of mountain bikes and covered a lot of distance. We rode along the river and over by the airport to watch the planes take off. We even brought sandwiches, some fruit and water and had a small picnic. By the end, my legs were a bit sore from all the exercise. But it sure felt good.
When I got home, I did a little research on cycling and found the health benefits are outstanding. Did you know that cycling at a regular pace burns approximately 300 calories per hour? It also can reduce the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes. And even more amazing, a 15-minute bike ride to and from work five times a week burns off as much as 11 pounds of fat in a year.1 Just knowing this makes me want to go out and buy a bike.
I definitely recommend biking as a fun activity that you could try out sometime. It doesn’t require insurance or gasoline and it benefits your health and the environment. You’ll feel good about yourself, be kind to the environment, have fun and be able to burn some calories while having a blast.
Have any memorable biking adventures? Reply to this blog and tell us about it.
Justin
(1) http://www.leedscyclists.org.uk/health.htm