Hop onto cycles to get fit, Narain Karthikeyan urges Indians
India’s first Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan has called on Indian citizens to start cycling, advocating the use of cycles as a viable and pollution-free option to stay fit as opposed to running, which can cause wear and tear on the body.
Created - 6 years ago
NEW DELHI: India’s first Formula One driver Narain Karthikeyan has called on Indian citizens to start cycling, advocating the use of cycles as a viable and pollution-free option to stay fit as opposed to running, which can cause wear and tear on the body.
ALSO READ: Spiced-up Abu Dhabi Tour is wide open “Everybody is migrating towards vehicles which emit less fuel and are also constantly looking for different techniques to stay fit themselves. But more can be done. Consider urban areas in India for example, people spend so much time in their office that they don’t have enough time to exercise. All you need is 30 minutes of your day to exercise. A cycle will address both the issue of going greener as a society and the general fitness of an individual,” wrote the 41-year-old in his column for TOI.
ALSO READ: Sports Minister congratulates Indian para-cycling contingent
“Take other countries, for example, like the Netherlands and so on, cycling is a national hobby. You, therefore, see that the general population is not just active, but also fitter. But recent trends suggest that cycling has certainly come of age in the last few years in India. I can see a number of international manufacturers now in India. We now have world class products in cycling that have hit our Indian markets, compared to what it was six years ago.”
Karthikeyan, who owns two cycles and actively gets out of his house to ride, wholly advocated the sport as a good way to stay fit.
“As we grow older, running is not ideal to stay fit. That’s because running can sometimes impact your knees. I would certainly recommend cycling to one and all,” he wrote. “Also if you consider the Indian traffic, the cycle could well be the best way to reach your destination. As the brand ambassador of an eco-friendly petrol company, I support all efforts of a green environment; therefore it becomes logical for me to back the Saksham Cyclothon Mumbai.
“I think there is a small project in the National Capital Region (NCR) territory which I have heard about where there is a cycling track. That’s a good start in my view. I am sure a great deal is being done to promote infrastructure to encourage more such facilities for people at large,” he added. “Once we get more of such facilities, what you will get is a culture of fitness. We could have lots of hubs where people at large will get together with an aim to exercise and get fit. So it could be Sundays to start off with, but it could well extend to every day of the week eventually.”
ALSO READ: Spiced-up Abu Dhabi Tour is wide open “Everybody is migrating towards vehicles which emit less fuel and are also constantly looking for different techniques to stay fit themselves. But more can be done. Consider urban areas in India for example, people spend so much time in their office that they don’t have enough time to exercise. All you need is 30 minutes of your day to exercise. A cycle will address both the issue of going greener as a society and the general fitness of an individual,” wrote the 41-year-old in his column for TOI.
ALSO READ: Sports Minister congratulates Indian para-cycling contingent
“Take other countries, for example, like the Netherlands and so on, cycling is a national hobby. You, therefore, see that the general population is not just active, but also fitter. But recent trends suggest that cycling has certainly come of age in the last few years in India. I can see a number of international manufacturers now in India. We now have world class products in cycling that have hit our Indian markets, compared to what it was six years ago.”
Karthikeyan, who owns two cycles and actively gets out of his house to ride, wholly advocated the sport as a good way to stay fit.
“As we grow older, running is not ideal to stay fit. That’s because running can sometimes impact your knees. I would certainly recommend cycling to one and all,” he wrote. “Also if you consider the Indian traffic, the cycle could well be the best way to reach your destination. As the brand ambassador of an eco-friendly petrol company, I support all efforts of a green environment; therefore it becomes logical for me to back the Saksham Cyclothon Mumbai.
“I think there is a small project in the National Capital Region (NCR) territory which I have heard about where there is a cycling track. That’s a good start in my view. I am sure a great deal is being done to promote infrastructure to encourage more such facilities for people at large,” he added. “Once we get more of such facilities, what you will get is a culture of fitness. We could have lots of hubs where people at large will get together with an aim to exercise and get fit. So it could be Sundays to start off with, but it could well extend to every day of the week eventually.”
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