Like every global activity, such as industry and tourism, sports of today are starting to take their toll on the environment. This has led to the rise of so-called eco friendly sports that both amateurs and professional athletes practice conscientious of the environmental impact.
Basically, eco friendly sports tend to decrease the amount of resources needed for that sport, like water consumption, petrol usage, power consumption etc. Most of eco friendly sports are outdoor ones but here is a more exhaustive list of sport activities every amateur can put into practice without having to worry whether they are harming the environment.
Fuelless pedaling
The biggest issue with any racing sport is the fuel that is abundantly used to propel race cars. What you really need is a racing sport in which you are propelled forward using your own strength.
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Cycling is one of the most ideal eco friendly sports, so get a bike and hit the road. The best thing about riding a bike is that you get to set the tempo and the location where you ride it. It can be an easy ride through the city or a more challenging mountainous path.
Cycling is a win-win situation as not only do your legs get a good exercise but you save fuel and help preserve the environment. This is the main reason why more and more people are opting for bikes as a means of commuting.
Travel less
When it comes to team sports, the number of leagues and sports today is whopping. Even children as young as 7 years old are members of a softball club which means that there are a lot of leagues.
Some are municipal, some regional and some are national which means that a lot of traveling is involved. Using a coach or getting on a plane means that a lot of energy is wasted because travel polluted the environment.
If you are in charge of a junior team in any port or you are a concerned parent, then it would be wise to promote more local leagues, so that the players can even walk to the venue. This is not a new thing in professional sport, as clubs are keen on decreasing the total travel cost.
Green running
Going back to individual sports, running is one of the top eco friendly sports you can take up as an amateur. Not only is running green but if you jog through the local park you will literally be returning to nature. In terms of finances, the only investment to be made is in good-quality running gear.
When it comes to needed equipment, sites like Gear We Are offer great options that can help prevent possible injuries, like a twisted ankle. Like with cycling, you are the one who decides where you are going to run, so it can be a meadow or a riverside quay.
Power saving sports
In order to compete in any sport, you need a lot of power, both literally and figuratively speaking. If you are in charge of your body power, why shouldn’t you be in charge of utility bills as well?
Regardless of their size, sporting venues use up a lot of electricity, especially to light the field of play during night time. Since old incandescent light bulbs take time to heat up, this is a waste of both money and energy. However, if you decide to replace these light bulbs with modern LED ones, you will save both energy and money.
Recycling on all scales
If you have run or seen a marathon on TV, then you might wonder where all those water bottles that athletes use up go. In most cases, they are directed to cycling plants where they are turned into plastic bottles once more.
Since sports attract large crowds, they generate a lot of waste, so most clubs have signed contracts with cleaning and recycling services to reuse leftover after a match.
This doesn’t have to apply to large professional franchises like AFC or MLB teams but it can be practiced on an individual level. Instead of buying a bottle of water every time you go jogging in the park or hit the gym, you can buy a reusable water bottle made from recycled material and always carry it with yourself.
Wipe off sweat responsibly
Apart from wasting water and energy, sports require a lot of wiping because of athletes that sweat a lot. That is why a cotton towel should become every gym-goer’s and sportsman’s best friend.
The alternative, wet wipes and paper towels should be done away with by both clubs and individual. Saving the planet involves a lot of self-control and in sports, nowhere is this more important than when it comes to wiping off sweat.
As you have realized by now, nearly every sport can become eco-friendly. The awareness that you need to save energy, water, and materials is the first step to going green. Furthermore, team sports are not the biggest polluters, as every irresponsible cyclist, jogger, and swimmer are trashing (pun intended) the ecosystem as well.
You might be an amateur but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do your best to practice sports in a green manner.
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