Why You Should Consider Commuting by Bike

There are a lot of good reasons to ride a bike. There are also a lot of good reasons to drive. But I think everybody already knows the good reasons for driving, so I'm going to give you lots of good reasons to start biking more.

Commuting by bike is a particularly good way to ride a bike more. You have to go to work everyday anyway, so riding a bike instead of driving a car isn't that ridiculous of an idea. It's still being productive, in that you're getting from one place to another. Work can also be the most stressful time of the day, so a nice bike ride home can be a great stress reliever. Commuting is also a convenient time because you can figure out one bike route that works for you and stick with it every time you ride. Finding bike routes can be difficult if you bike all around town. But if you're always going between two places, it's very manageable.

If you know me, then it's obvious that one of my top reasons for biking so much is that I don't have a car. However, if I had a car, I would still commute by bike regularly. The main reasons I'd keep it up are because it's good exercise, it's refreshing, and it's cheap. And yes I'm saving the environment in the same way that an ocean can be filled one drop at a time. Well la-dee-fricken-da!

Cycling isn't a particularly exhausting exercise, but it raises your heart rate and burns calories. How many calories? About 11.2 calories per minute according to healthstatus.com. If you weigh 170lbs and ride between 12 and 14mph, then your calorie graph would look like this:

So if the distance between your house and work was 6 miles, then you'd burn about 600 calories per day, assuming you rode down and back at 13mph the whole way. That's pretty good. If you're like me and have trouble scheduling time to work out, then riding a bike to work is a good way to force yourself to get some exercise into your day. And we all know what that means...you get to eat more food!

Riding your bike to work can also save you some money. Fuel costs are much lower since you probably won't be burning gasoline while riding a bike. Your food costs might go up slightly, but not by much. If you get 27mpg and gas is $3.50/gallon, then your fuel cost looks like this:

So if you did a 12 mile commute 3 days a week, that would save you enough for an extra Chipotle burrito with guacamole and a drink every week! Just think about how much happier you would be if you could afford to add another burrito to your week. You would also save a bit on wear and tear, but I am way too lazy to figure that out for you.

I wouldn't be so bold as to say that bike commuting is bundles of fun, but it's definitely at least a handful of fun. It's a very refreshing way to start the day and a relaxing way to end the work day. You'll feel good after the ride and will have had some good time to just let your mind relax.

Commuting by bike is a great thing to do and I think you should consider trying it out. There are obvious limitations like 50 mile commutes and evening commitments that can make it difficult. But if your commute is short enough, you should consider riding a few times a week on your days where you have a some extra time.

Plus, I get really giddy when I see people riding bikes, so you'd at least put a smile on my face.