Biking Can Improve Your Life

Biking Can Improve Your Life

Exercise is the most important part of a happy life. Americans are some of the fattest people in the world. We are also overly dependent

on prescription drugs. These factors stretch from the very young to the elderly. Biking is a great way to introduce activity into sedentary lifestyles. With proper knowledge they will see that biking improves their life.

"Over the last decade children, in the United States have been gaining weight. Obesity is rapidly becoming an epidemic in our youngster's lives."(Spataro, 1999) With the added weight comes greater risk of diabetes, heart diseases and many other ailments. Our children must be taught how proper exercise can give them a better future. Biking is a great way to start the learning process, to introduce an active lifestyle to our children. One way to start the introduction is in the early years. They can gain a love for the sport starting very young. Parents can install child seats or pull a trailer to include them in daily workout routines. When children learn to ride a bike themselves they can accompany parents on shorter rides. Riding to a local park is wonderful motivation for a child to go a few extra miles. It is a great way for parents and children to spend quality time together. As children mature into young adults biking becomes a form of freedom and independence.

Obesity of course is not just a problem for today's youth. Obesity is a large problem among adults also. Deaths related to obesity have reached 300,000 annually. Plus health care for obesity related disorders have topped 100 billion dollars a year. Cycling is a great way to start a weight loss program. Because of its low impact it has no adverse affects on joints which can be a problem for obese adults. It also offers variable resistance which is great for those with no cardio base. Riding a bike 3 days a week, for 30 minutes a day will have a major effect on weight loss and cardio condition. As weight decreases and cardio health increases the training program can become more intense. With time the rider will see an increase in self esteem and joy for life. They will also extend their life span by many years. The investment will go beyond the physical, they will save money on