Sports Med 2008; 38 (9): 751-758

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 751 1. Walking or Cycling? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 752 2. Historic Trends in Active Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 753 3. Potential to Modify Walking and Cycling Behaviour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754 4. Impact of Active Commuting on Health Outcomes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755 4.1 Theoretical Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 755 4.2 Empirical Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 756 5. Areas Needing Further Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 756 6. Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 756 This brief review examines whether active commuting is an effective method Abstract of controlling the current obesity epidemic and enhancing the cardiovascular health of the population. Of the many potential methods of active commuting, walking and cycling are the usual choices. Children and adolescents prefer cycling, but for adults issues of safety, cycle storage and company dress codes make walking the preferred option, particularly in North American cities, where urban design and weather conditions often do not favour cycling. Active transportation is more frequent in some European countries with dedicated cycle and pedestrian paths, but in most developed societies, active transportation has declined in recent years. Attempts to increase walking behaviour in the sedentary population have had only limited success to date. A weekly gross energy expenditure of at least 4 MJ is recommended to reduce all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. This can be achieved by walking 1.9 km in 22 minutes twice per day, 5 days per week, or by cycling at 16 km/h for 11 minutes twice per day, 5 days per week. When engaged in level walking, the intensity of effort may be adequate for cardiovascular benefit in older adults, but in fit young workers, it is necessary to either increase the pace or choose a hilly route in order to induce cardio-respiratory benefit; in contrast, cycling is likely to provide an adequate cardiovascular stimulus even for young