Cycling helps friends fight Covid-19 blues

Ravindra Waydande

and Amol

Bhurewar

from Kalyan cycle every day to rid them of the negativity caused by Covid pandemic; cycling keeps them fit besides helping them lose weight

Two friends from Kalyan chose cycling to fight Covid blues and succeeded, inspiring several others to follow suit. When the pandemic struck early last year, Ravindra S Waydande, 34, and Amol A Bhurewar, 35, were not only fighting the negativity caused by the deadly virus, but had also put on a lot of weight. Unable to cope with the anxiety and other consequences of Covid-19 pandemic, they decided to explore ways to relieve their tension. In June 2020, they started cycling. Soon, it became a habit and a daily routine.

In a span of one year, they have travelled 6,000 km, completed 14 cycle rides of more than 100km each, and 40 rides of 50 km each. Their longest

Mumbai Darshan

night ride of 150km happened on the Republic Day (January 26) this year. As a result of changes in their lifestyle not only do they feel fitter but also have lost weight significantly.

In June 2020,

Waydande

weighed around 98 kg and Bhurewar was around 85 kg. Now, Waydande is 88 kg and Bhurewar weighs 78 kg.

They come from different professional backgrounds. Bhurewar is a chartered accountant in Mumbai and Waydande works as librarian in Sasmira’s Institute of Management Studies and Research in Mumbai.

“Due to the lockdown, we were working from home and the negativity caused by Covid-19 made us nervous and stressful. So, we decided to go on a bicycle ride to enjoy nature. We are nature lovers and thought that we could conquer nervousness and bring physical fitness through pedalling,” said Waydande.

“Initially for 15 days, we faced muscle pain but our determination, coupled with motivation from senior cyclists of our “Crazy Riders” cycling group have brought considerable improvement in our cycling. We believe intensive training is not necessary to make a difference, just increasing daily physical activity is sufficient to get started. Riding a bike is healthy, fun and a low-impact form of exercise for all ages, “ he said.

“We start our ride mostly at 5.30 am with all safety measures such as helmets, hand gloves, reflective strips, and proper shoes. The lockdown allowed for a safe riding experience since there was less traffic on the roads. Traffic is always a major concern forcyclists and that’s why people like me fear undisciplined driving,” said Waydande.

“We had a memorable experience with the night view of Mumbai. We have done bike rides to various places such as Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple (Nashik), Matheran, Vajreshwari temple,

Siddhivinayak temple

, Titwala,

Pisa Dam

,

Barvi Dam

,

Usgaon Dam

and many more. I lost seven kg, was cured of back pain and my cholesterol level went down. Cycling is good for your heart, legs and accelerates weight loss. It improves your metabolism and most importantly it is economical - you do not need
petrol or diesel. Moreover, cycling is eco-friendly,” said Bhurewar.

One good thing about cycling, Bhurewar said, is that every ride is different and more challenging than the previous ride. “Every day, every route, and the climatic conditions are different, and these are the impacting factors. But you have to keep paddling in every circumstance. We must accept that cycling has changed our entire thinking process. Keep pedalling and keep moving.Cycling allows you to view the world from different lens.”

“Seeing the changes in us, more than two dozen people have joined the cycling group,” said Waydande, adding that people are opting for cycling only for only physical fitness but also to get rid of negative thoughts and stress.


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