geo8rge

Commuting by Bike or Foot Provides Heart Help for Men in Study
https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=aj8sY5nKT1Vw

jdmitch

We needed a study?

jewelthief

Of course we do! In the future they will be able to say that "75 year long study says the best way to maintain heart health is to eat less and exercise more."

Kevrob

That article mentioned a "5 mile commute."

Now, is that one way, meaning a 10-mile round trip, or does it refer to a 5m RT?

Newspaper reporters/editors are some of the most innumerate people out there.

Kevin

Andy_K 

This just in: exercise is good for you.

mangosalsa

Study done here at UNC, the abstract is here:https://archinte.ama-assn.org/cgi/con...ct/169/13/1216

wristwister

Good God, I sure hope none of MY tax dollars went into this rediculous study!

Hey, maybe I can get a government grant to do a study on the relation between sun exposure and sunburn!

Andy_K 

There was one thing I thought was interesting: "Cardiovascular benefits found for women in the study weren’t statistically significant, she said."

RiverCityCyclis

I had read in a blog once that "Statistics show that cyclists, even those who only travel short distances can reduce the risk of death by 22 per cent." due to the exercise benefits. I'm unsure of their source or study but I would believe it to be true.

tjspiel

Even more interesting:

"Gordon-Larsen said the heart benefits may not have been seen in women because they didn’t walk or bike at a high enough intensity or fewer actively commuted, so the study wasn’t able to achieve significant results."

I do see fewer women commuting. I'd say the ratio is about 1 in 4. The statement above also implies the benefits may not be realized if you take it too easy. Wonder how true that is.

Doohickie

That's exactly how it works for me. For all my good intentions, I never, ever, ever worked regular exercise into my schedule, until I started commuting.

yoder

Types of studies like this don't actually prove causal relationships between the variables, only correlations, so the woman thing isn't that strange. It may be that women don't ride as hard, but it may be that the biking isn't the significant thing that leads to those men having cardiovascular benefits. We already know that exercise is helpful, but the question of whether this exercise is significantly beyond what the normal population does or is instead simply a substitute for some other exercise or generally not significant in its own right when done at the average commuting levels is not clear.

BTW, there were more women than men considered "active commuters" from the sample, so it isn't a sample size issue for the women.

There's a huge confounding variable in this study and those like it in that people who actively commute are obviously already more likely to be more fit before they start such activity (since to the unfit person, it is a more difficult/strange task to actively commute). If women are more likely to actively commute as a form of corrective exercise than men, that could explain these results in that women who actively commute are more likely than men to be in worse shape than the normal population in the first place.

bhop

no duh..

bkrownd

Riding a bike to work can't be any more than 5% of my total exersize, even with the hills on my way. That would be really pushing it. Walking to work might get up to 5%, perhaps. People have to be incredibly lazy if this is making a difference.

Andy_K 

How old are you?

Before I started biking to work, I was doing things like going to the bathroom on the second floor at work instead of the first floor where I work, because that was a significant increase in the amount of exercise I got in a day. Yes, I'm incredibly lazy. I also have a job that puts me at a desk 8+ hours a day. Then I go home and watch TV.

But what has really surprised me is that since I've started biking to work, I've also found the motivation to go to the gym during my lunch break. My wife freaked out the first year, thinking that since I had become an exercise/fitness junky I was going to drift away from her, since she intended to continue being a couch potato.

Andy_K 

This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine. Cycling can not reduce the risk of death. Neither can any medicine, life style change, surgery, etc. The risk of death is 1:1. I don't know why it bothers me so much. I feel the use of phrases like "reduces the risk of death" are symptoms of a serious collective psychosis in our culture.

See also: amortality

bkrownd

Uh, 40. My activity level has been quite constant throughout my adult life, though the methods have changed from sports to long (hours) walks to wilderness exploration and conservation work.

mihlbach

It is well understood that death is inevitable. It just means that it increases life expectancy, which it does. You are probably increasing your "risk of death" worrying about this.

Andy_K 

Could be. Mostly I just like to complain about it.

GearsForFears

When I heard the heart effects of bicycling reduce your risk of death, I stopped wearing a helmet. I don't want to live forever.

lil brown bat

Really. Dog bites man, film at 11.

chumbolly

I think the interesting part of the article is this: "The average commute for the bikers and walkers was 5 miles, compared with 14 miles for nonactive male commuters and 10 miles for women in that category."

What I take from this is that for commutes over a certain distance, people just don't consider walking or biking, which is perfectly reasonable. Further, I think it is pretty much a given that the suburban, low-density model of development in this country has gradually increased the distances that people live from their jobs, on average. So, for many people, walking or biking to work is no longer a realistic option. As a result, casual physical activity is decreasing across our society.

I would argue that this is one of the biggest contributors (of several) that has caused the explosion of obesity in this country. My personal experience is that it is pretty easy to not get fat--I don't go to the gym or diet, but I eat and drink what I want in moderation and, most importantly, I find ways to maintain my casual physical activity. The most activity I get is, of course, commuting by bike, but I also avoid escalators, take occasional walks during lunch, and play hard with my kids. I don't do anything that I would consider athletics, but I'm fitter than almost all my friends. I also pay a premium to live in a dense, walkable city so that I don't have to rely on a car to get to work.

What this study says to me is that we really need to re-think how we build cities in this country, because the suburbs are literally shortening our lifespans by making us overweight. Try this as an experiment: book a flight from Atlanta to Copenhagen. Take note of the people in the Atlanta airport. Do the same when you land in Copenhagen. The difference is profound and depressing. You'll also notice more bike racks while you're in Copenhagen.

Andy_K 

Wow! Biking actually makes your commute shorter? I thought it just felt shorter.