PROPOSED CIVIC SCHEME
Dromana - Victoria - Australia
In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.
Dalai Lama
SOCIAL BENEFITS
Encouraging kids & adults to be active has long known to have positive benefits both physically and emotionally. Providing a safe and stimulating cycling environment will help inspire users' personal and social development.
STUDY: KEY FINDINGS
Together with RTSG Neuroscientists, Specialized launched a groundbreaking study that analyzed the effects riding had on school children dealing with ADHD symptoms. The results were, in short, awesome. Kids in the study showed improved attention, more “normal” neuroelectric brain activity post-ride, better overall mood, and reduced BMI and waist size. Many of these positive aspects were noticeable even after just one ride and the program demonstrated an 87% retention rate with kids.
“The findings also indicated there may be factors more unique to cycling that make it especially effective when it comes to the brain benefits of exercise. Factors like maintaining balance, being outdoors, riding in groups and the rhythmic motion of pedaling we theorize may have contributed to our findings being so profound”
-Dr. Lindsay Thornton, Lead researcher and Sports Psychologist
Specialized founder and CEO Mike Sinyard has long dealt with the effects of ADHD in his own life. The inability to stay focused and being easily distracted was something he had grown to just accept as “normal”. Yet, he noticed that those symptoms seemed to dissipate after returning from a ride. Mike also saw the positive benefits riding had on his son Anthony, who also suffered from ADHD. When the Bicycling Magazine article “Riding Is My Ritalin” came across his desk, he decided it was time to explore whether or not there really was science behind riding’s impact on the brain.
“As someone who is personally affected by and as a parent of a child diagnosed with ADHD, I hope this research provides new hope for the more than six million children and their families managing attention deficit disorders and that it serves as a catalyst for prioritizing physical education in our schools.”
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