this post was submitted on 21 Dec 2024
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micromobility - Ebikes, scooters, longboards: Whatever floats your goat, this is micromobility

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Ebikes, bicycles, scooters, skateboards, longboards, eboards, motorcycles, skates, unicycles: Whatever floats your goat, this is all things micromobility!

"Transportation using lightweight vehicles such as bicycles or scooters, especially electric ones that may be borrowed as part of a self-service rental program in which people rent vehicles for short-term use within a town or city.

micromobility is seen as a potential solution to moving people more efficiently around cities"

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If you’re looking for an affordable and accessible way to live longer, skip the pricey wellness retreats and quirky biohacks—just bike to work.

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[–] [email protected] 59 points 1 month ago (5 children)

Isn't this essentially "exercise is good for you"?

[–] Nouveau_Burnswick 21 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Exercise combined with no driving stressors and being outside.

[–] krashmo 38 points 1 month ago (3 children)

I don't think many people who regularly bike in an urban environment would agree that "no driving stressors" is an applicable description of the activity.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Come visit the Netherlands :)

Pretty chill with mostly protected bike paths and separate cycles at traffic lights.

I also found Paris quite chill due to the decent drivers more than the improving but still lacking infra.

[–] krashmo 4 points 1 month ago

I actually have biked around both Amsterdam and The Hague. They were both quite a bit better than other places I've been but you could still find some dodgy areas. You're right though, a flat country at sea level that prioritizes bike infrastructure is a pretty nice place to commute by bike lol

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[–] br3d 10 points 1 month ago (1 children)

The nuance is that exercise that's baked into people's everyday routines gets done, and so extends healthy life. Exercise that requires extra time and effort gets done a lot less. This is why everyday physical activity through moving around is so important

[–] FireRetardant 3 points 1 month ago

This is part of why I like working a trades job. On a big install i can easily walk down and back up the customer's basement stairs 25 times. I get to use my muscles on wrenches and hammers. It isnt as good or consistent as exercise at a gym and I should be doing yoga more often to help with driving related posture, repetitive movements from work, and overall muscle maintenance, but I'm at least more active than a desk job.

[–] blackbelt352 9 points 1 month ago

Exercise is good for you and being able to afford to live somewhere biking to work is a viable means of transportation.

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[–] [email protected] 32 points 1 month ago (2 children)

"Groundbreaking study finds that cardio is good for you"

[–] [email protected] 12 points 1 month ago (1 children)

YOU wont BELIEVE this ONE WEIRD TRICK that cardiologists HATE!

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I don't believe in cardio. It's a conspiracy created by Big Exercise.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago (1 children)

I think you mean curvy exercise

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[–] [email protected] 31 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Unless you get run over by a car because your city doesn't have bike lanes. Then you live shorter.

[–] FireRetardant 8 points 1 month ago

Cries in Ontario where scary bike lanes are illegal.

[–] elephantium 24 points 1 month ago (4 children)

To follow this advice, I'd end up getting my bike out of the garage, riding around the block ... then going back inside to turn on my work laptop. I love working from home.

That being said, a 15 minute morning bike ride before work would still be a good idea.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (3 children)

When I work from home, I bike with my dog for 20-30 minutes in the morning. On office days, I only bike 5 minutes to the train station…

I used to have a wonderful 11km bike commute along the river, my favorite of all time.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago (3 children)

You can still use the bike for shopping and the like. It's still good to get out on WFH days.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Go get breakfast then come back and start working? I did that when I was remote and it wasn't a 1:1 replacement for a good ride but it was still pretty good.

[–] elephantium 3 points 1 month ago

Breakfast is in my kitchen. A quick ride while I wait for the coffee to brew wouldn't be a bad thing, though

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[–] blackbelt352 22 points 1 month ago (2 children)

This feels like Hanks Razor would apply. Proximity to work, dedicated bike infrastructure and availability and quality of bikes are all pretty good stand ins for socioeconomic factors having a strong impact on the outcome.

[–] FireRetardant 4 points 1 month ago

A lot of the costs can even out a bit more if you can manage to live car free. No car payments, insurance, repairs or gas is all extra money that can go to a decent bicycle and a higher cost for rent/mortgage. You can also advocate for biking improvements in your local area.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Plus. Let’s say I have a chronic disease or am generally in weak health. I’m going to have a lower life expectancy, and I’m not going to be able to bike to work.

Correlation ≠ Causation

[–] Custodian1623 21 points 1 month ago (5 children)

I would have a signficantly shorter lifespan when I get run down by a ford

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Apparently bike commuters still come out ahead, judging by the wording.

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[–] wabafee 4 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Excuses, bring AR while cycling. /s

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

You joke, but I bet a visibly armed cyclist get messed with a lot less. I usually just opt for a camera though, being visibly armed can get you targeted by people who either want a gun or already have one and are about to do something terrible.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (1 children)

You clearly just need a more heavily armoured bike. You should start running down the fords!

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

Reactive armor: If they're going to take you out, they're gonna go too!

[pretend I posted that picture of a cargo bike hauling propane here]

[–] ralakus 3 points 1 month ago

What happens when you get ran over by a Toyota instead?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Think of it as a conditional probability time stream on an actuary table:

• Every day that you don't get killed by a Ford f-450, your lifespan increases by a few minutes

• This is like putting pennies into the penny jar

• Eventually the penny jar gets full and then you are killed by a Ford f-450, thus spilling all of the contents (and your contents), onto the road.

• Thus, the energetic principle of conservation of entropy is preserved, with positive entropy.

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

new study confirms

No it doesn't. Their conclusion is "This study strengthens the evidence that active commuting has population-level health benefits and can contribute to reduced morbidity and mortality."

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (7 children)

sounds like confirmation to me, an apt popular science headline. maybe you think “confirms” means “proves”?

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[–] [email protected] 8 points 1 month ago (7 children)

The crosses and bicycles painted white in memorial on the side of the road near me would tell a different story.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago (6 children)

If I biked to work, it would take me 3-4 hours one way...

[–] HowManyNimons 7 points 1 month ago (1 children)

If I biked to work it would take less than three seconds and leave tyre marks on my carpet.

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[–] billwashere 4 points 1 month ago

If I biked to work I’d be hit by three rednecks in giant trucks. And it would also take me 3-4 hours.

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[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

many comments saying “duh cardio good” ignore the corollary to this: a society that prevents bike commuting due to dangerous or inaccessible car-centric infrastructure is performing social violence and causing prevetable death

edit: similar considerations apply to the obesity epidemic.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Makes me wonder to what degree the longer life offsets the carbon savings from bike commuting.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago

I figure that would vary wildly depending on how the individual lives.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 1 month ago

Ha not in my town.

[–] Rooty 5 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

My life expectancy would dive off a cliff if I tried to commute by bike. Not because of the bike itself, but rather because of the metal boxes of death whizzing next to me.

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[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago (2 children)

It seems that they didn't take nutrition into account at all. How much of this study is just "people who exercise just eat better"?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 month ago

I cycle to work everyday off year I am mostly cheese and beer

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Not clear on that, but even if you had a poor diet and exercised regularly, you'd still be better off than if you had a poor diet and were totally sedentary.

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[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 month ago (2 children)

If you live within biking range, you obviously have other economic advantages.

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