Ditch Your Car, Accelerate Your Happiness

Earlier this year, I decided to end a long and volatile relationship with my increasingly unreliable set of wheels. The time had come to give the car-less life a spin.

I found myself in the position of being reliant on alternative means of transport. Immediately.

I’m fortunate to have a bus line running straight from my home to work, but a month-long bus strike in early 2018 prevented that from being viable for a while. This led me to seek alternative solutions that aren’t called Uber or Taxify, which are rather pricey at the best of times and especially so when demand spikes.

To counter the high cost of daily taxi rides, I adjusted my routine and made time to walk to and from work.

I’m a fairly health-conscious individual, but walking wasn’t something I ever regarded as an effective form of exercise, least of all an effective way of getting around. I was surprised to notice significant positive changes to my physical and mental wellbeing, while I managed to debunk my misguided belief that walking to work takes longer than the usual car ride in morning traffic.

These changes were reinforced during a trip to Europe, where I explored on foot at every opportunity. Compared with the cities I’m used to, European cities are built to accommodate pedestrians and the effect this had on me was profound. Walking most places had such positive effects on my body and psyche — I had more energy than I’d enjoyed in years.

During one month abroad, I was staggered to learn that I had clocked a total of over 300km. I hit an average of 10km a day on foot; more than four times the average distance I’d cover on foot while using a car back home.

“Walking wasn’t something I ever regarded as an effective form of exercise, least of all an effective way of getting around.”

This discovery resulted in an epiphany. I realised that years of passive conditioning had made me accustomed to prolonged periods of sitting, which isn’t the natural way. While my body received the recommended short bursts of exercise a few times a week, it was getting very little of what it was naturally engineered to do — walk.

At face value, 300km seems like a crazy distance to cover on foot over the course of a month. Yet I did it easily, without being marathon fit or feeling overly drained in the physical sense. And for good reason.

Prior to working desk jobs and driving around in cars, humans were hunter gatherers for many millennia. We evolved to walk great distances in search of food. Yet, in just a few hundred years, we’ve built a world and established routines that are at odds with our deep-set biological conditioning.

Back in Cape Town, I’ve made it my mission to undo that conditioning in my own routine. I’m not exaggerating when I say that the effects are changing my life.

Waking up earlier to get to work on time means getting to bed earlier to get enough rest. The shift to an earlier bedtime allows for a better quality of sleep. And that little bit of extra time in the morning allows more time for my body to reboot mentally and physically before starting the day.

“In just a few hundred years, we’ve built a world and established routines that are at odds with our deep-set biological conditioning.”

The walks themselves become daily meditations. I take pleasure in noticing the details in my surroundings; things I’d have never have spotted from the confines of a car. I listen to my favourite podcasts or get lost in my own thoughts. By the time I arrive at the office, I feel relaxed. Energised. Alert. Totally ready for the day.

A few weeks into my new routine, I also noticed that my body began to feel naturally fitter and stronger.

It comes as no surprise that, despite my prior state of ignorance, scientists and medical practitioners have researched and written about the benefits of walking for decades.

Here are a few physical benefits of walking just 30 minutes a day:

• The release of endorphins, dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin in the brain — acting as a natural mood booster.
• An increase in convergent and divergent brain activity — boosting your ability to think creatively.
• An increase in heart rate and metabolism which burns fat, improves circulation and builds muscle.
• An increase in blood circulation which transports more oxygen to the brain, improving cognitive functioning.
• Up to seven years added to your life as a result of daily exercise.
• A decrease in stress, as cortisol flushes from your system during physical activity.

In addition to the above biological benefits, there’s the obvious financial perk; the significant amount of monthly income you save on transport, whether on petrol or taxi and bus fares. It frees up money for investment elsewhere.

Nowadays, walking has become as much a part of my daily life as eating, sleeping and breathing — crucial functions the body has to perform in order to survive. I try to do as much of it as I can, considering the use of a bus, car or train as the absolute last resort.

While I realise that the car-less life isn’t always the most practical, I’ve managed to make it work until now, with the relatively simple process of securing a rental as an option when I absolutely need it.

The most valuable thing that I got out of selling my car wasn’t the money I received for it. It was the joy and freedom that came from the simple act of walking consistently. Amongst other things, I’ve gained a fresh perspective on the accessibility of the world around me. I’m better than I was before, and I’m not looking back.