Today we thought it would be really nice to share a story about one of our patients. This story is about a program called "Undriving" and her experience with making the effort to reduce the amount of time she spends driving her car. Here is her experience:
Anne Phyfe Palmer is from New Orleans, LA, and currently lives in Madison Valley up near Capitol Hill in Seattle with her husband and children. She teaches yoga as her occupation and has two young daughters. Anne Phyfe has been bicycling since she was in high school, but stopped when she started having children a few years ago. She stated that it was a lot of work and time to carry another body from "point A to point B", but when her family had to move out of their home for a short period of time to do some remodeling, she started riding her bicycle again because of an easier biking commute.
When she noticed her body becoming stronger, she began attempting to bike the hill to her home, and now she says she is almost a 100% cyclist. Anne Phyfe got her Undriver's License and her endorsements on the card are to walk, bike, telecommute and "skip the trip". She has committed to doing no less than 50%, but is happy to share that she is been doing about 100%!
When she talks about her experience with Undriver's she shares that what she likes about this program is that it is realistic. She does her best not to get in the car but when she needs it, she uses it. She recognizes that you don't have to take the car out completely. Another thing that she likes is that her family can do it together. They have purchased a Burley bike trailer, which is able to hold their things while they bicycle, such as purses, groceries, shopping bags, beach towels, and picnic lunches. They also have a "tag-a-long" for her youngest daughter Coco, that attaches to Anne Phyfe's bike. Coco says she really enjoys helping her mom bike up their hill!
Anne Phyfe commented that, during the summer, it felt so good to cycle and that feeling kept her going through the winter, even though it was more challenging. Along with cycling, she practices and even teaches yoga. Killing two birds with one stone she says about her cardiovascular exercise that "I get it done during my commute!" To her and her family, cycling has become a "part of the flow, part of our lives".
The BP oil spill back in 2010 really shook Anne Phyfe up. She says she was heartbroken over it and felt compelled to do something. For her, that meant continuing to use her bike as her main form of transportation, and trying to find ways to use her car less and less. She believes that as a society, we have created the demand for gas, oil and petroleum products. It is clear, she is determined to do her part to help our environment.
When Anne Phyfe talks about why she stopped cycling a few years back, she said she realized one of the reasons was time and making the time to get places. One of the other reasons was having her children, and having to move another body from one place to another. And that hill! But one way they got through those challenges was by planning ahead. They had to purchase the right equipment, put their bike locker in a place where it is accessible, make the time, and by changing the way they live their lives.
For more information and to hear and read about other's stories in their participation of the "Undriver" program, please visit their website. And to see Anne Phyfe's full story, you can see the video here. Also, Anne Phyfe let us know that in the July/August issue of Momentum Magazine, she will be featured in an article called "Bike Smart". Although the article has yet to be published, we eagerly look forward to reading it. You can check out Momentum's website here and search under "Bike Smart" to find her story when it comes out!
We are happy that our patients are able to do what they can to keep our environment healthy and their bodies healthy. Reducing the amount of time we spend in our cars and finding alternative ways to travel is a great way to help the environment, it's good on your pocketbook, and it's great for the body! Whether it's bicycling, walking, jogging, or even carpooling to work, every little bit helps.
To your health,
Richard Stickney
