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There are many forms of exercise to trim down the calories and one of the widely growing practices is cycling. But as with other sports that would require a specific equipment to use, maintenance is a key element that would require some costs.

With bikes, one has to be conscious of its parts like tires and not all are blessed with the financial capacity to keep up the maintenance. Thankfully there are people like Jaime Rangel who embarks on special causes like offering free bike repairs which is part of the preamble of the Cumbia Ride that kicked off last year.

The 26-year-old cyclist grew up with the sad experience of not being able to maintain a proper bike since he couldn’t afford it. And now he hopes to address that childhood setback by giving back and helping the folks of today, particularly the kids.

So why is Rangel doing this? Aside from being a cycling enthusiast, Rangel is also plagued by a dreaded diseases called Type 2 Diabetes. He was only 14 when he was diagnosed with the illness which is tied up with obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.

Had he not addressed the issue, Rangel would have ended up with possible blindness, heart disease, kidney failure and other threatening life conditions. To help control the illness, doctors advised Rangel that he needed to exercise and diet.

At that point, Rangel was unaware on how to go about it being financially strapped. That was until a friend gifted him with a BMX bike where he eventually grew into it.

"I was a big dude riding a really small bike, so I didn't know how to balance my weight," Rangel says. "But I just kept going. I didn't want to stop, and I just kept doing it so I could get better."

The longer he tried and spent time on his bike, the better as he got used to it. But in the process, he was also addressing his Type 2 Diabetes problem. Within a year, he was able to reverse the problem, seeig his sugar levels revert to normal while also having fun in the process.

"Biking changed my life. I lost a lot of weight," says Rangel, who now weighs about 220 pounds from a staggering 260.

The change eventually rubbed off on his family, enticing his clan to take up biking. And now he hopes that his life story also rubs off on folks dealing with Type 2 Diabetes.

Though exercise and weight loss may not be a 100% cure to Type 2 diabetes, it does offer 'tremendous hope' per Dr. Saleh Adi, a pediatrician studying diabetes at the University of California, San Francisco.