When Calvin Jenkins switched from driving to work every day to taking public transportation in January, he was hoping to save money, time and gas. He actually ended up losing-a few pounds, that is.
"I stopped working out," said Jenkins, 30, a sales supervisor who lives in West Town and works downtown. "But I lost weight."
His story is not unusual. People who drive to work every day are packing on slightly more weight than their colleagues who use trains, buses and bicycles to get to the office, even if they exercise in their spare time, according to a new study.
"Even if you are efficiently active during leisure time, if you use a car for commuting daily, then that has an impact on weight gain," said lead author Takemi Sugiyama of the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Melbourne, Australia.
Among people in the study who got at least two and half hours of weekly exercise, car commuters gained an average of 4 pounds over four years-about half a pound more than people who got to work another way, or who worked from home.
Of 822 study participants, only those who got enough weekly exercise and never drove to work managed to stave off any weight gain over the course of the study.
But not everyone is convinced.
Aaron Larson, 24, of Humboldt Park, raises an eyebrow to the study's claims. Larson's exercise is limited to biking to and from work during the summer. He takes the bus during colder months. "I think riding a bike keeps me in shape," the software professional said. "I don't know about the bus though."
Demetra Jackson, 34, of the Southwest Side, also is skeptical. "When you're on public transportation you weigh more," she said. "But you get more exercise because you walk more." Jackson said she doesn't work out the way she used to, but she plans to start up again. She does not believe any commute to and from work is enough to keep the pounds off. "You can go to a gym and get exercise. Walk around in your home," she said. "It all depends on what you want out of life."
Regardless of their transportation mode, participants who didn't get enough weekly exercise gained weight, and the amount they gained was not tied to their mode of getting to work, according to results published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
"Simply achieving the amount of moderate physical activity otherwise recommended won't provide enough compensation to overcome the effect of commuting for a long period of time," said Lawrence Frank of the School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.
There probably are other factors at work that were not considered in the study, noted Frank, who was not involved in the research.
"People who have longer commutes tend to purchase a lot of their food and run a lot of errands on their way to and from work," which influences weight gain, he said.
Previous studies that focused on total time spent in cars per day also have found a link to becoming overweight or obese.
A 2004 study of adults in Atlanta found that each additional hour of time spent in a car each day was associated with a 6 percent increase in the chances of obesity.
Bizzy Cowles of Logan Square isn't surprised that using public transportation can help with weight control. "I do a ton of walking up and down steps, so I guess that makes sense," Cowles, 23, said. "I seem to maintain the same weight. I've been the same weight for about four or five years now."
RedEye intern Zara Husaini contributed.
Want more? Discuss this article and others on RedEye's Facebook page.