The planet is full of different people, cultures and societies, each with their own characteristics defined by their environment and history. There are very sedentary societies and others in which physical activity is established in their day to day. The Netherlands would form part of this second group and the latest Ipsos ‘Global Study’ corroborates this.
This study shows how the Dutch are the most active nation of all those analyzed, performing 12.8 hours of exercise per week, more than double the world average of 6.1.
The key behind these wonderful numbers? The great use of the bicycle made by residents in the Netherlands. Pedaling is something totally ingrained in Dutch culture and the fact of making trips, which in other places would be done by car, by bicycle causes the figures of physical exercise to be so high.
Having a fit society is not the only positive point of the cycling culture in the Netherlands, the energy savings are also very noticeable. In fact, if the whole world used the bicycle like the Dutch, the world would save 686 million tons of CO2 per year. There is still a long way to go, but if we do it by bicycle, much better.
