The bicycle is a wonderful machine that facilitates such a diverse array of activities. I was a late convert to cycling, not pedalling with any regularity until I started using a bicycle for commuting to work shortly before starting university.

During my second year of university, I completed an internship in Nepal and borrowed a bicycle from a generous friend to cycle 32 kilometres from Kathmandu to Nagarkot. The views of the Himalayas that I had hoped to see were obscured by haze. However, the experience of cycling there, spending two nights in a homestay, and then returning was a turning point in how I saw cycling.

I would like to briefly share some stories about using bicycles for commuting, fitness, long distance travel, and income generation. In doing so, I hope to communicate how easy it is to get into any of these.

Commuting

My first job, in the months leading up to starting university, was working as a Marketing Assistant for Eden. I would commute there by bicycle; an eight kilometre round trip.

Having started with a bicycle borrowed from my parents, partway through I switched to a three-speed, 30-year-old Dawes Diploma that I’d bought for £45, in preparation for university.

Unfortunately I misjudged the strength of the front brake and went over the handlebars in the carpark outside work. I staggered into the office with blood streaming from my nose and gravel stuck in my chin. My dear colleagues offered sympathy and wipes, I checked that my teeth were intact, cleaned up, and got on with the day.

In the run-up to starting university, I willed the healing process to go quickly. While my nose and chin healed well, the last scab to fall off – just a couple of days before I moved – resembled a toothbrush moustache. I’m grateful that the timing worked out and I didn’t pick up any unfortunate nicknames during Fresher’s Week.

Fitness

After returning from Nepal, I completed my first “A to A” cycle: a 17-mile (27-kilometre) loop south of York towards Selby. I remember the thrill of pedalling for the sake of pedalling, and the feeling of satisfaction that arose from navigating smoothly and making it home before dark. The ride took one hour and fifteen minutes.

This ride opened my eyes to the possibility of touring rather than fitness, so five years elapsed before I started cycling for fitness in Goma with my housemate Tom, on a bicycle picked up in town for USD 135. Tom and I soon joined Goma Cycling Club, enjoying the thigh-burning two-hour club rides held each Sunday morning …and also the sense of community in the club that came through in our club debriefs and post-ride chapati and maziwa (natural yoghurt, though the word literally means milk) breakfasts.

Long distance travel

During university I started to follow Tom Allen’s cycle touring blog. His philosophy of not overcomplicating cycle touring convinced me to give it a try in the Yorkshire Dales on the same three-speed Dawes (now affectionately known as ‘Betty’) that I used for getting around York.

I bought a set of panniers for £10.51 off eBay, squeezed my tent and sleeping bag into them, and spent three summery days cycling 150 miles (241 kilometres) from York to the Dales, and back. This trip confirmed that cycle touring is simpler and more accessible than it first appears.

If you can ride for a day, find sufficient food, and organise shelter for the night, then crossing continents is just a case of repeating the trick over and over until you arrive. Photographic evidence here (though you will need to scroll back to April 2016).

Income generation

From October 2016 to March 2017, I was working sporadically and searching for a full time job. I needed temporary work, and found it working as a cycle courier with Deliveroo.

Cycling through the British winter wasn’t all sunshine and roses. Braving sleet and crosswinds to deliver a hamburger and a side of chips gave rise to existential questions.

But the work represented a timely stopgap solution, and more than that, led to meeting colleagues whose kindness and humour I really appreciated. Being part of this community of working cyclists created cherished friendships and memories.

Conclusion

Perhaps you cycle for transport, but haven’t considered cycling for fitness or touring. Why not try going for an “A to A” cycle, or choose a spot for a picnic, pack some food, and pedal there and back?

Perhaps you’re looking for work and have a bicycle that you don’t use. Could taking on some shifts as a cycle courier work for you?

Perhaps you want to get fitter but can’t find time amid work and family commitments. Could cycle commuting be an option?

Perhaps you don’t even have a bicycle? Borrowing or buying second-hand are good places to start.

The options are so diverse and the barriers to starting are so low. I look forward to hearing the stories of your commutes, tours, forays into cycling for fitness, or starting to work as a cyclist.

I wish you safe roads and tailwinds.

Running appears to be inherently hard.

It conjures up images of painful sports classes in school. Sweat. Knee pain. Shortness of breath. Faster people who seem to glide past, making it all look easy.

But outward appearances be deceiving.

Really, running does not need to be hard. In fact, one could argue that the slower you go, the better.

Going slowly means:

• you’re more likely to do it (regularly)
• your chances of injury are lower
• you can hold a conversation with a friend, or appreciate listening to music or a podcast
• the exercise will become easier over time, rather than being a painful road to fatigue and injury

So, step out and try it! Run slowly.

If your body isn’t used to it, then mix walking and running at whatever ratio you’re comfortable with.

No pain, all gain.

1. Find an anchor

Attach your exercise routine to an existing habit or activity. This is known as anchoring.

Examples:
1) if you commute to and from work each day, consider cycling or running your commute.
2) do 10 push ups when you brush your teeth in the morning, and 10 squats when you brush them in the evening.

Even if you forget every other tip in this piece, remember anchoring.

2. Put in the prep

This is about making it easier to exercise than to avoid exercising. If you plan to run the next morning, lay your clothes out on the floor the night before …or even sleep in your running clothes.

If you plan to go cycling, ensure that your bicycle is clean and well maintained, so that there’s no barrier between wanting to go cycling and pedalling down the road.

3. Establish accountability or community

While exercise can often be personal, making it visible to others can help.

Join a club, so that you’re motivated to show up and see your club mates. For more competitive clubs, showing up regularly may be key to demonstrating your commitment.

In a similar vein, find a friend (or friends) and plan to exercise together. This can be even more motivating than joining a club, because they might exercise solo – or not at all – if you don’t show up.

Join Strava, so that others can see what you’re doing, and encourage you.

4. Start small and/or slow

When developing a regular exercise routine, forget about heroic workouts and aim for something you can easily achieve daily.

Doing 20 push ups a day for several months is preferable to doing 100 push ups a day for three days, then none.

Jogging five kilometres five days a week for six months could be absolutely transformative, even if you’re only moving at a gentle, conversational pace. By contrast, running far or fast can quickly lead to injury and irregularity.

5. Have fun

In the words of Mary Poppins, “a spoon full of sugar makes the medicine go down.” Which is to say: choose an activity that you genuinely find enjoyable.

Too many people seem to consider exercise to be a bitter medicine. While it’s true that there can be self-imposed discomfort and that exercise benefits one’s health, I would recommend ensuring that the taste of the “sugar” overwhelms the taste of the “medicine.”

If you are running, do not turn every session into a sufferfest. Go slowly, look at the views or what’s going on around you, feel the sun or rain on your skin, and smile.

This way, you will look forward to getting out the door rather than dreading it, and you won’t be counting down the seconds until you can stop.

Bonus: in the early stages of developing a regular exercise routine, you will be more injury prone. This is a good reason to take it easy and build slowly.

At the start, your improvement in performance could be rapid. This is great for motivation, but you should anticipate reaching a plateau. When you reach that point, it could be time to implement more specific training and to set performance-related goals. Equally, there’s nothing wrong with just maintaining your newfound fitness.

Exercise always needs to be considered alongside diet, whether you’re hoping to lose weight or simply get stronger. If you’re in the first camp, carefully examine what you are eating (quality and quantity) and implement incremental improvements rather than making drastic changes. If in the latter camp, I would advise reading about what nutrition will be key to recovering well.

And finally: remember that what you do five days a week for months or years is far more important than doing something heroic every now and then.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines an “athlete” as “a person who has undertaken training or exercises to become proficient in physical activities such as competitive sports (athletics).”

Bill Bowerman, co-founder of Nike, took a wider view, saying that “if you have a body, you are an athlete.” While the more cynical among us would reflect that Bill’s definition means Nike can sell to anyone, his soundbite stuck, and appears on Nike’s “About” page to this day.

Bill and the dictionary are both wrong.

The word athlete is derived from Greek words, meaning “one who competes for a prize.”

We can’t all become “proficient in physical activities” …and who defines the level of proficiency anyway?

On the other side, simply inhabiting our bodies is not enough.

What each of us can do is compete for a prize, attaining the “why?” that motivates us to engage in physical activity in the first place.

Last February, the sports tracking application Strava presented results of a study examining why people run. The reasons, or “prizes” if you will, ranged from looking for community to improving mental health, from seeking to feel strong and energetic to wanting a snack at the end.

To note: most of the prizes aren’t exclusive. Your only competitor is yourself.

So, to conclude, you are not an athlete simply because you have a body. But you can very easily become an athlete, if you find motivation to be physically active.

I wish you the best, as you compete for your prize.