Category: Wellbeing
How To Avoid Feeling SAD This Winter
categories: Wellbeing
The last few weeks have seen a number of storms work their way through England! Gale force winds and unpredictable weather can make cycling in winter an irregular form of exercise. This recent post will give you some ideas on how to maintain your fitness over winter in preparation for those summer cycling smiles but how do you keep the winter blues away when you can’t exercise outdoors as much as you’d like to? Here’s some top options to keep your mind fit over winter. (more…)
Winter miles for summer smiles: cycling fitness over the winter months
Winter miles for summer smiles – that’s what the pros say…
Not only is it blowing a gale out there today, the windchill makes it feel really cold and sometimes, cycling in winter in the UK, is less than appealing. Have no fear, exercising indoors during the winter months can still offer some good options to ensure you don’t lose your cycling fitness over the winter period, guaranteeing summer smiles. (more…)
Seven healthy reasons to get on your bike and pedal
Seven healthy reasons why cycling is good for you
It doesn’t matter what kind of bike you have sitting in your shed or your garage, dig it out! It doesn’t matter how long it is since you last rode it, dust it off! Give it a wipe down, check the brakes, the saddle, check the tyres for air and squirt a bit of oil on the chain. Don some padded shorts (you can put them under a pair of your favourite joggers if you’d prefer to keep them hidden) and you’re good to go. Here’s my top seven healthy reasons to get on your bike and pedal this year! Wait until you check out reason number seven… (more…)
Raynaud’s Disease in Spring!
I’ve had a rubbish winter of cycling. My fingers and toes have been wincing at the temperatures. Actually, wincing is massive understatement; I have Raynaud’s Disease and it’s been really bad this year – so bad that I’ve not been able to cycle at all since October and consequently I’ve lost loads of fitness from the hard work I did last summer and I’ve been like a bear with a sore head recently because of it.
Yesterday, the temperature in Notts hit a lovely warm-feeling 11 degrees; the sun was shining and I’d been to a really positive meeting about my cycling club and Go-Ride. I came back buzzing and my hubby had an afternoon off work so we thought we’d venture out together and enjoy the Spring like weather. I layered up in preparation. (more…)
Powered up for Autumn cycling
Brrrr, it’s been a cold week in Nottingham this week. Give me summer over winter any day of the week. Warm sunshine, blue skies and green trees…just lovely. But this is the UK and Autumn has arrived, so, if I want to carrying on cycling all year round I either need to toughen up or wrap up. (more…)
Launch of St John Ambulance First Aid for Cyclists app
You may remember that not too long ago I was out cycling with a couple of others when my friend had quite a tumble from her bike on a corner. After flying through the air, she landed on her back and knocked herself unconscious. That sent myself and the other person I was with in to bit of a panic. After all, it’s not every day you’re confronted with an unconscious friend whose eyes are rolling and who’s not responding. It was a hairy moment I can tell you. I wish we’d had the new St John Ambulance First Aid for Cyclists app intended especially for cyclists. (more…)
Aviva Stress Less Challenge: week three
categories: Wellbeing
I’ve been taking part in the Aviva Stress Less Challenge in conjunction with the Mumsnet blogger network and their research panel. I’ve been trying out the tips recommended especially for me by the Aviva experts over the last two weeks. You can read about my experiences with getting started with the challenge and the information that Aviva needed from me. And then how I got on with the first set of tips from their lovely experts.
I wasn’t too well during the first week – I was recovering from a three week long chest infection and was shattered, so whilst I gave the tips a try, some days I was just too tired to follow through with the diet tips of ensuring my meals were split in 60:30:10 ratios. This week, however, I’ve been feeling much better and the tips have gone well. (more…)
Aviva stress less challenge – week two
categories: Wellbeing
I’ve been taking part in Aviva’s Stress Less challenge in conjunction with Mumsnet and I’ve been trying out the tips they recommended for me over the last seven days. In all honesty, I’ve found myself a little bit stressed with the pressure of ensuring I’ve tried them all out and given them a good go.
I tried to do a video blog of how I got on but for some reason I’m having difficulties editing it on this new laptop of mine, so I’ll need to work on that and try and get that sorted for next week.
So, how did I get on? Sadly, not nearly as well as I’d hoped, to be honest. (more…)
Aviva stress less challenge
categories: Wellbeing
So, I recently discussed my experiences with anxiety and stress and disclosed one or two things that in all honesty, I don’t normally talk about publicly. It was all for Mental Health Awareness Week 2014 and if it helps just one person with their experiences, well, that’s great! Thanks to all who left such kind words – it was very much appreciated. We all suffer with a bit of stress right? OK, so perhaps some of us have more than others, or perhaps some of us are better at dealing with it than others. But, when it comes to coping mechanisms for difficult times we all have our own individual ways of trying to stress less. (more…)