Greetings!
One thing I will never get tired of sharing is the deep benefits of managing cycling, especially as I come across practical experiences of them—benefits we may have never thought of.
Last Sunday, while in church, I finally had the opportunity to ask a man in his mid-50s why he's often seen riding a bicycle everywhere and leaving his car behind most of the time. Last year, I didn’t see this man in town or at church as regularly as before, and I thought maybe he had traveled out of town or even out of the country because he appears to be rich. Little did I know that he had been sick for almost half a year, which kept him out of sight.
So, seeing him suddenly reappear earlier this year and riding a bicycle around made me think that perhaps he had fallen on hard times, and cycling was his way of saving money on fuel, especially since fuel prices skyrocketed earlier this year. But, to my surprise, I learned that he had been diagnosed with diabetes, which he survived after a severe episode. He was advised to maintain a good exercise routine, and cycling was highly recommended to him. I couldn't believe my ears that day.
"So, riding a bicycle cures diabetes?" I asked him, and he laughed.
"Not that it cures diabetes, it reduces the progression of the disease, or to put it more clearly, it helps me manage the condition better, so I experience fewer or no symptoms." He responded
I was astonished on the spot because I had been thinking nonsense, believing he had stopped using his cars because he had become poor. After that church service, I went home and decided to research what he had said about exercising and cycling reducing the mortality rate in diabetic patients, and I was surprised by what I found.
In this site, it's stated that regular cycling can lower mortality rates for people with diabetes by up to 24% and the more it's done, the more it reduces.
I'm not sure many people know about this. I once had a boss who was a diabetic patient. Though he’s late now, he never walked long distances or engaged in any form of exercise. I wish I knew about this.
Using cycling as the perfect exercise sounds too good. It doesn’t demand much, especially considering that it can be used as a means of transportation and, in the process, serves as exercise—essentially using one stone to kill two birds.
For people who don’t have time to hit the gym or the finances to register in one, cycling can fill that gap. One of the great things about cycling is that it’s easy and doesn’t require much strength. In fact, it’s just a matter of the initial major pedaling, and then it keeps going with little input, effectively working on the body system with minimal effort.
Moreover, for people who feel shy about running or walking in the morning dressed in sportswear, cycling could be a savior. Cycling doesn’t attract much attention as people may assume the cyclist is simply going somewhere, maybe to work or another destination—especially in countries or areas where cycling is not common.
If you know any diabetic patients, recommend cycling to them.
Thanks for reading.
Photos were designed on Canva expect from the screenshot from this site