Eco fitness

Posted by admin on September 20, 2009

When working out, if you need fitness equipment, props and the sort consider using eco friendly versions.

Benefits of Bamboo

Fast-growing bamboo is a type of grass which is stronger than most woods.

* Bamboo requires no pesticides, herbicides or fertilizers in its cultivation
* It starts to re-grow immediately after it is harvested and it regenerates without need for replanting
* Bamboo is a robust and plentiful resource that removes a vast amount of CO2 from the atmosphere while releasing an abundance of oxygen
* Bamboo has the ability to grow in a variety of climates, from jungles to high on mountainsides
* Some varieties of bamboo can grow up to 1 ft a day in mature stands
* As a natural and renewable resource, bamboo offers an opportunity to turn away from the destruction of native forests towards managed commercial plantations that can be selectively harvested annually without the destruction of the grove or stand as is the case with forests
* Bamboo minimizes CO2 gases and generates up to 35% more oxygen than an equivalent stand of trees
* Bamboo has the tensile strength of steel allowing for virtually limitless uses
* New bamboo stalks naturally regenerate from the old root system which helps control erosion and maintains topsoil on deforested hillsides
* The bamboo industry employs many people, requires minimal investment and, for the most part, utilizes simple technology and equipment

Benefits of Hemp

* Hemp fiber is the longest, strongest, most durable, most elastic and most absorbent natural fiber
* A normal stand of 200 to 300 plants per square meter shades out weeds, leaving the fields weed-free at harvest and covered in leaves that improve the soil in a self-mulching eco-system
* A hemp field produces a very large bulk of plant material in a short period of time (stalks can reach 15 ft tall in 70-90 growing days). Yield can reach between 3 and 7 tons of dry hemp fiber stalk per acre
* HEMP IS THE NUMBER ONE biomass producer on planet earth. 10 tons per acre in approximately four months. It is a woody plant containing 77% cellulose. Wood produces 60% cellulose
* On a sustainable basis, hemp produces more pulp per acre than timber and can be used for every quality of paper. Creating hemp pulp reduces the need for acids and its creamy color lends itself to environmentally-friendly bleaching thereby reducing use of harsh chlorine compounds.
* Hemp softens with each washing without fiber degradation.
* All products made solely from hemp fiber are biodegradable, compostable and recyclable. As such, they are easy on landfills
* Hemp planting reduces deforestation and improves the soil upon which it is grown

Why hemp is better than cotton

* Globally, conventional cotton uses 25% of all insecticides and 10% of all pesticides. The hemp plant is highly resistant to most insect and disease, largely eliminating the need for most (or all) pesticides and herbicides.
* It is estimated that less that 10% of the chemicals applied to cotton are accomplishing their tasks, the rest are absorbed into the plant, air, soil, water and eventually, our bodies
* Hemp fiber is a better insulator than cotton fiber
* Compared to cotton, hemp is stronger, more durable, won’t mildew, is anti-microbial, shrinks less, is UV-protectant and uses less water
* Cotton crops in the USA occupy 1% of the country’s farmland but use 50% of all pesticides
Benefits of Natural Rubber

* Natural rubber is a renewable resource which is sustainably harvested from rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis).
* Rubber trees remove harmful CO2 from our atmosphere while releasing essential oxygen within a natural eco-system.
* Natural rubber can safely biodegrade.
* Natural rubber requires the use of about 1/10 of the fossil fuel required to produce synthetic rubbers
* Natural rubber is produced by an environmentally friendly industry and assists in diminishing the environmental damage caused by the widespread use of fossil fuel energy sources