On the occasion of World Bike Day, which took place on Thursday June 3, Jean-Luc Bosson, public health doctor at the Grenoble University Hospital and researcher at the University of Grenoble, explains why the electrically assisted bicycle ( VAE) is an effective way to put the less athletic back in the saddle.
Why Doctor – What are the benefits of cycling?
Jean-Luc Bosson – Physical activity in general improves all health parameters, physiological, cardiorespiratory, muscular, and the management of diseases, the fight against sedentary lifestyle, obesity, cancers…
Regarding cycling, this activity does not completely put pressure on its followers, in particular by requiring less joints than other practices, and therefore it is great for overweight people in particular. The benefit/risk ratio is infinitely favorable. It is above all a question of fighting against a sedentary lifestyle, the source of all ills. The goal is to transform his daily lifestyle, in leisure, work. The bicycle has a very interesting place because it can, and this is particularly true for the electric bicycle, replace the car.
Moreover, recent research has revealed that regardless of the level of physical activity, if you do a little more, you gain in survival. This is the ultimate criterion in health. On a daily basis, the benefit felt is obviously to recondition oneself. The bike is extraordinarily progressive and allows for this reconditioning. We can start with easy outings and by doing them regularly we will gain on the cardiac and respiratory level. You have to enjoy it for this activity to be practiced on a daily basis. It is its progressiveness that attracts people.
Does the practice of the electrically assisted bicycle (VAE) offer the same benefits as the traditional bicycle?
It’s not even a debate. It has assistance so the effort is less but the goal of the game is not to make excessive efforts, it is to bring people back to practice on a daily basis, as part of the fight against a sedentary lifestyle. The eBike falls somewhere between unassisted cycling and brisk walking. It is obviously a physical activity.
There is a recent study in Germany which demonstrated the full effectiveness of pedelecs. The researchers lent bicycles for 15 days to employees to get to work. At another time, they had the same experience but with VAE. This comparative study showed that for 1 kilometer, there is 30 to 40% less power deployed with electric bikes. But, in everyday life, people use the bike with assistance 4 times more. In the end, this allowed them to fall within the recommendations for daily physical practice of the WHO.
How do you get your patients to take up the electric bike?
With our team, we work on the rehabilitation of very deconditioned patients. We have set up a health education module based on physical activity. The VAE allows an even greater progressiveness than the traditional bicycle and for us it is essential because we work with patients suffering from fibromyalgia which is a chronic disease which keeps people away from physical activity. We manage to take groups of people on bike rides, which also allows them to get out of isolation. The goal is pleasure. There is no failure. Everyone reaches the end of the program. Thanks to the VAE, it is possible to increase the assistance and therefore to adapt to the aptitudes of each one. This helps to avoid dropouts. Competition is completely abolished. It’s the settings of the bike that do most of the power. This brings discussion groups, inflates self-esteem and little by little, over several weeks, we lead them to empower themselves. It is a transition phase for people who are in very poor physical condition.
We are doing a study on breast cancer patients who have been very tired from the disease and years of treatment. For them too, the electric bike is a useful way to get back in the saddle. Half of them ended up buying one after the experience! They even created an association to help other patients. This shows adherence to this practice. This is the typical example of what has been made possible by the electric bicycle. The goal is to combine the pleasures, removing the competition.
Is the deployment of electric bikes in the city a good thing?
If that causes people to ditch the bike for the eBike, that’s not the idea. But that is not what we see. In town, the goal is to go as quickly as possible, so it’s an essential offer to get people who would never have taken the bike to take it. It’s a great thing. That’s why everyone is at it. The advantage of the VAE is also that when you arrive at work, you don’t sweat. If you are on a traditional bike, you arrive in a state that can be questionable. Nothing is done in companies to encourage people to come by bike. There are usually no showers available. The electric bike allows you to arrive clean.
There are also neuroscientific studies that show that the brain also loves cycling. This practice improves memory and helps to fight against stress. This creates an airlock that ventilates the brain and allows you to cut after a day’s work.
