Pandemic Pets: Not all heroes wear capes, others have paws

Self Care

Cycling:

Victor Serrano I Creatives

An Ever Growing Craze This Pandemic

Can you still remember the day of your first ever biking experience? Do you feel the nostalgic idyllic days of your childhood? How the world seems much simpler and enjoyable than when you first stepped into the life of responsibilities? Many of us can relate to the notion that somewhere in one point of our lives, we lost the chance to feel the enjoyable feeling of cycling thanks to the weight of responsibilities pulling our attention constantly on our unending busy schedules. But all of that changed when the pandemic struck our country, with it breaking almost any aspect of our daily lives that we’re accustomed to. Though this pandemic added many difficulties in our daily lives, it also brought many realizations and changes that helped us shift our attention to what truly matters in our lives.

With that said, many of us rediscovered or discovered the joy of cycling this pandemic. Many people, mostly due to necessity, started cycling once again. When the pandemic first struck in 2020, almost all modes of public transportation were non-existent. Staples such as jeepneys, tricycles, buses, trains, and UV expresses were banned from operating to mitigate and control the spread of COVID-19. This forced many people to walk long distances to their workplace, until one day they realized they didn’t need to. This is where the trend of cycling started again and is still going strong up to this day.

The benefits and importance of cycling were realized by most people today because of the virus. Closed and crowded spaces which is apparent to most forms of public transp ort were hotbeds for virus transmissions. So, people started resorting to cycling even when public transportation is slowly making a comeback. The most primary reason why cycling is much preferred nowadays is because it is much safer, good for the health, and mitigates the spread of COVID-19. Cycling eliminates the chances of COVID-19 transmissions since it is done mostly in wide open spaces such as roads, where avoiding close contact to people can easily be done. Not only that, but cycling is also much cheaper and faster compared to commuting through public transportation. Most also can control their commute time in cycling since you can choose when to leave, breeze through traffic congested roads and set your own pace. Because of these reasons, LGUs started developing biking structures aimed to protect and give cyclists the safety they need in roads, albeit still somewhat lacking.

Fitness, exercise enthusiasts and your average citizen alike also found cycling as the new sport to go. For fitness and exercise enthusiasts, cycling is a sport that you can do at a safe distance. Ever since the pandemic hit, many indoor and outdoor fitness facilities have been closed. Even though they’re slowly making a comeback thanks to the easing of covid restrictions, people are still wary of going to these facilities, namely indoor gyms, because of the threat of covid transmission. For some, cycling became a new relaxation hobby, an escape from the stressful responsibilities of home.

Cycling doesn’t seem like it will go away anytime soon, and that’s fine. People get to exercise more, not to mention that cycling as a primary mode of transportation that helps the environment too. Many rekindled their long-lost interest in cycling, while some found it for the first time. This pandemic also proved that we could build more greener cities by developing infrastructures that cater to the well-being of the people. This positive trend is something that should be seen as a progress and should be encouraged and supported by everyone.