The Low-Car Diet can help you lose weight

A fascinating new study which examined the effects on health, weight, finances and the environment of the Low-Car Diet shows that it really works! (Yes, Low Car not Low Carb). Zipcar who paid for the research and who provide rental cars in North America on demand for as little as an hour said that the results show that getting rid of your own car and therefore living on The Low-Car Diet can help you lose weight, save money and get fit as well as driving considerably less which is good for the environment.

For the study 300 volunteers in twelve American cities agreed to a live without their cars for a one month time period. In this time they were to rely on public transport, walking, cycling and when they needed a car they could call up Zipcar. The results showed that the Low-Car Diet meant that people walked 85 percent more, cycled 100% more, went on public transport 65% more and most importantly 40% of the participants had actually lost weight when the month was up. Sixty percent also reported that they had saved money by following this Low-Car Diet.

There are obviously a number of factors to consider if you give up driving your own car because the convenience of driving is the reason why most people get cars, but you should be aware of the fact that by making lots of little journeys in a car you are reducing the amount of exercise that you could get by instead leaving the car at home and going for a walk.

Many people complain that they don’t have time for exercise and that they are not the sort of people who would exercise anyway and they don’t enjoy it. However it is easy to build into your lifestyle simple habits which mean that throughout the day you burn off a lot of excess calories. You could for example make a point to walk to the shops or to work or go for a walk in the park on your way home which doesn’t mean that you have to get into your gym kit everyday. You should always make a point of not taking the car for simple errands and only using it for long journeys.

The Zip car concept is possibly the car ownership scheme of the future whereby you book a car for a journey and you merely pay by the hour which means that the number of cars on the road will be greatly reduced and people will only use cars for essential journeys. The Zip car concept could contribute to lowering levels of obesity in America too!