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Mental health is a buzzword these days. In 2019, the famous bike company Harley-Davidson sponsored a study at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). The study aimed to understand how riding a bike helps our minds. The findings were exciting! Riding a bike reduced stress and made people more aware of their surroundings. Meghan Stark, a famous YouTuber, made a video where she compared these findings to a theory called "power posing" by Amy Cuddy, a social psychologist.
Amy Cuddy worked at Harvard University. She wanted to understand how different body positions or postures could affect people's minds and behaviour. She found out that if people stood in a confident, open posture (like a superhero pose), their body made more testosterone (a hormone linked with confidence), less cortisol (a stress hormone), and they felt more rewarded. The opposite happened if they stood in a closed or hunched posture.
Meghan Stark extended this theory to biking, a claim that needs more discussion.
To be honest, I agree with Meghan Stark's basic idea. When I get on a bike, I feel both relaxed and strong. But, there are many ways to sit on a bike, and they can't all be categorised as confident or shy. For example, people riding cruiser bikes or touring bikes tend to sit with their limbs fully stretched out - a confident posture. On the other hand, sportbike riders tuck themselves into their bikes - a posture that Amy Cuddy might call 'closed.' But is this really a 'closed' posture if it helps the riders win races?
Applying psychology to physical activities like biking can be tricky. While the UCLA study looked at how riders felt, Amy Cuddy's research was more about how people felt in social situations, not while riding bikes.
Amy Cuddy became famous when her talk on "power posing" became popular in 2012. But some scientists later questioned her findings.
In the end, "power posing" is all about feeling confident. In biking, you need skill and comfort to feel confident, not just a 'powerful' posture. Meghan Stark said that once a rider has skill and comfort, biking becomes "the perfect way to feel centred.
Whether you're riding through the bustling streets of Delhi, on the picturesque highways of Rajasthan, or through the challenging terrains of Ladakh or in the tech city Bengaluru , biking gives you an opportunity to break free from your routine, connect with the world around you, and experience the sheer joy of the ride. And all of these experiences contribute to better mental health.
So if you are a city cruiser, a speed junkie, or an off-roading enthusiast, Sparify ensures you have the best gear that not only complements your ride but also facilitates the confident and comfortable riding posture essential for a memorable ride. Their commitment to enhancing the Indian rider's experience illustrates the vital link between motorcycling, power posing, and mental well-being.
https://sparify.co/