Exercise isn’t always easy to fit into your day, but cycling could well be the answer to improving your health and having fun while doing it.
Suffolk County Council has partnered with Love to Ride UK to introduce the Cycle September scheme, allowing veteran cyclists as well beginners to get on their bikes, earn points and prizes and improve their mental and physical health.
Colin Grogan, sport, health and inclusion manager at Suffolk County Council, shares how the scheme can benefit you.
1) Helps you get your daily exercise
Engaging in a healthy amount of physical activity can be challenging, especially when you have a desk job. Taking part in cycling programmes such as Cycle September is a great way to stay active and make your exercise time enjoyable. Friends and family can compete with each other to earn points to win prizes and climb the leader boards.
2) It benefits your community
During lockdown, it became difficult to engage in communal exercise, but heading out with a friend became one of the few pleasures still enjoyed. Love to Ride helps local communities by collecting data, measuring the distance covered and recording the cycling frequency of individuals and groups.
Colin commented: “By taking part in Cycle September, people can contribute to the improvement of their community. The data that is collected can then be used to inform positive infrastructure decisions, which will directly support cyclists and the local area.”
3) Cycling can improve mental and physical health
In addition to improving fitness and contributing to weight loss, cycling helps to build muscle and is a low-impact activity that reduces your chances of incurring an injury.
Colin said: “Those who take part in the Love to Ride programme and implement daily cycling, notice improvements to their physical and mental health. Daily cycling can also help improve cardiovascular health and reduce the risk of developing long-term health conditions in the future.”
“Cyclist commuters take half the sick leave of their non-biking co-workers. It also dramatically reduces their chances of heart disease, cancer and premature death.”
4) It’s good for the planet
Now that Covid restrictions are starting to lift, reducing our carbon footprint as much as possible has become an even greater priority. Love to Ride has several incentives in place to ensure that people are aware of the positive environmental impact of cycling to work.
Colin explains: “Groups and individuals are encouraged to record their results and see how much CO2 they have saved by taking part in the scheme. You can also access collective mileage, level of group participation and much more on your Love to Ride profile.
“Comparing scores to others on the leader boards, both in the UK and internationally, fosters a real sense of working towards a common goal.”
Register before 11:59pm on August 31, 2021, to be entered into the prize draw for the chance to win one of three £100 local bike shop gift cards.
For more information and to register with Love to Ride's Cycle September scheme, visit lovetoride.net/suffolk. Businesses interested in learning how Love to Ride can benefit you and your employees can contact local project manager Gayle Amorowson. Email gayle@lovetoride.org to arrange an informal discussion.
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