Cycling with e-bikes: stay fit despite thunderstorms and falls!

Cycling with e-bikes: stay fit despite thunderstorms and falls!

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that people strive for moderate physical activity at least 2.5 hours a week. This movement is crucial for promoting the circulation, heart health and the general mood. In a remarkable self-experiment, an author has decided to cover the way to work with an e-bike in order to meet these recommendations and to move more. But the way to more activity is anything but easy. Rheinpfalz reports of the internal and external resistances with which the author was faced with.

After thorough research and various test drives, the author decided to use an e-bike for his travels. But a misfortune occurred on the first day: he fell due to mud and rapid driving, which was heavily polluted. In order to avoid the embarrassing Situation the next day, he chose a more modest way of just five kilometers to the train station, in order to still dignify in the editorial team. An older gentleman on the train dared to make the comment that the author should drive as a young person without an engine. Despite such comments, the author remained determined to cycle the 18 kilometers home after work.

obstacles on the way to health

However, there have already been further challenges at this point. At an intersection, the front wheel of his e-bike was hit by a car. Fortunately, the author was not injured, but the bike was damaged and had to be brought to the workshop for repair. After the repair, he put on his helmet again and started his way home. However, this led him to an unexpected heavy rain, which meant that both his shoes and his clothes were soaked. The author wondered why the path to a healthier life has so many obstacles.

The discussion about cycling and in particular about driving e-bikes (pedelecs) shows that the positive health effects should not be underestimated. A study by the Hannover Medical School has shown that cycling, including the use of e-bikes, promotes health and fitness. This comprehensive study, which was carried out from 2017 to 2020, analyzed 1,250 pedelec drivers and 629 drivers of conventional bicycles. The results show that pedelec users are physically more active and do without the car more often.

Due to the motor support of the pedelecs, people with physical restrictions or low fitness in particular can significantly increase their mobility and activity. The health benefits are not to be neglected: According to the study, the risk of heart attack, cancer and diabetes drops significantly with increasing activity. As a result, pedelec drivers achieve an average of two thirds of the target of 150 minutes of moderate activity per week recommended by the WHO.

Nevertheless, the risk of accidents also increases. Statistics show that the number of accidents has increased among e-bike drivers, often due to the self-overestimation of younger drivers, while older drivers have difficulty handling and speed of the pedelecs. Security measures such as practicing in safe environments and wearing a helmet are therefore essential. Transport organizations and driving safety centers now offer special courses to train seniors and inexperienced cyclists.

In the coming weeks, the series "Rad (t) beats for Neustadt" is planning to illuminate other topics about cycling and the challenges that are accompanied by trying to live healthier and move more.