Cooking & Lifestyle Blog

Cycling is a very simple activity that is widely enjoyed – even Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was seen on a bike in London recently, cannot resist the urge to jump on a bike and ride around. Cycling presents many opportunities and benefits to a lot of people. Some examples include the satisfying need for an adrenaline rush; the use of a good exercise tool to maintain personal health and exercise; a convenient transportation device to certain proximal destinations and exploring nearby scenic areas.

Cycling is one of the best ways to develop and maintain excellent health and fitness. Plus, as the weather improves, excuses to put it off are running out. It's worth considering – could you cycle to work? Could you get somewhere nearby without relying on public transport? Regardless of your motives, there are tonnes of reasons to start cycling. One of the main benefits is staying fit. Just 30 minutes of easy cycling is enough to help maintain a basic state of good health, whilst higher levels of fitness and stamina can be achieved through cycling as part of a training programme or sport.

Chains will wear and ‘stretch’ over time, especially if not lubricated regularly. This can wear down the chainrings and cogsets leading to chain slippage, poor performance and possible accidents. In the next of our series on Cycling Expert Advice, Made Easy, we look at how to replace a worn chain.

There's no point cycling somewhere if you can't stop once you've arrived. In these cold winter months it is important to remain vigilant when maintaining your brakes. Follow our expert advice to ensure your brakes are kept in top condition and can be swapped out should you need to change them. 

Whether it's cycling to work or you're out on a bike ride for fun, you've no doubt experienced that feeling of your bike suddenly feeling very bumpy and looked down to see that one of your tyres is flat. You've got a puncture! If you've yet to experience this then you're very lucky, and to be honest it's probably just a matter of time before you do!

Over the next few weeks, Expert Advice, Made Easy is going to take a look at some common problems with your bike and show you how you can deal with them with easy to follow step-by-step instructions. Remember, the more you look after your bike and perform small maintenance on it (before and after you use it), the better condition it will stay in, the less punctures you will get, and the less you will end up taking it to the bike repair shop. That will save you time and money!

The East of England was taken over by the Tour de France in July as crowds gathered in their thousands (millions if you count those watching on TV) to see the cyclists compete. Cycling has become increasingly popular since the London 2012 Olympics which saw Chris Hoy, Jason Kenny and Philip Hindes win gold and set new world records on the track. Lizzie Armitstead also won a silver medal for her road race event with a great time. Not forgetting the men's road events as well, with Chris Froome getting bronze and Bradley Wiggins nabbing gold. A fantastic time for British cycling!