I agree. I don’t understand the concept of doing something borderline-suicidal to be healthy. Makes about as much sense as skiing out of bounds.
Cycling is the only thing I've found that is effective at controlling my weight. Nothing else works. I'd rather be a relatively thin and fit guy with a slightly elevated risk of dying on the road, than the tub of goo I was before, with a slightly elevated risk of dying of some fat related thing. And after you've done something hour after hour, day after day, month after month, year after year, and survived just fine; it's hard to see it as borderline suicidal.