How to Cycle Safely on the Road

I am a nervous cyclist. I don't feel assertive, I'm not confident with what I'm doing, and I don't feel all that safe. After Bec's guest post last week on why we should cycle to work, I quickly looked up the courses that Bec's suggested, run by Transport for London (find them here), and discovered that if you live or work in certain borough's in London, the courses are free! You can even borrow a bike for a lesson if you don't own one.

My 2 hour lesson was with Craig, who met me outside work and promised to show me how to navigate the roads more safely on my commute home.

For the first part of the lesson, I followed behind Craig, watching what he was doing, his positioning and movements. We then pulled over to one side and he talked me through some key points;

1. Make eye contact with drivers, other cyclists and pedestrians. This lets them know you are there and ensures that they take you into consideration. It also helps you to decide if they've seen you and informs them that you are about to do something, like make a turn.

If you feel that the driver behind you is too close, turn your head around and make eye contact, this will help alert the driver that you feel uncomfortable and hopefully make them slow down and leave a little more room between you.

2. Make sure you communicate with other road users. Signalling your intentions gives them the opportunity to change their behaviour. Clear signalling when you're turning, or changing lanes, helps to slow down the traffic behind you, facilitating your move. When you cycle past a side road- keep pedaling rather than slowing down so that a driver pulling out knows that you're staying straight rather than turning or letting them out!

We cycled through Hyde Park and practiced signalling and looking behind (without the whole bike turning around). I was very wobbly to start with, but think with some more practice I'll get better! I also feel far more confident signalling to turn left than right- looks like I'll be cycling in circles for a while!

3. Make sure you are properly positioned in the road.

• Stay away from parked cars- always assume that someone will open their door without looking so keep enough distance away that it wouldn't hit you. Even if this means coming out of the cycle lane.
• Stay out of gaps in-between parked cars by cycling in a straight line- don't feel compelled to get out of the way for drivers behind you. By moving into the gaps you can confuse drivers and you make yourself much less visible. 
• Take your lane at junctions-  just like driving, whichever lane you need to be in to negotiate a junction, make sure you're in the centre of that lane. By staying in the centre, no driver can sit next to you, they have to stay behind you and you can safely move through the junction without drivers turning into you.
• Don't filter alongside vehicles with a long wheel base, such as lorries, as their front and rear wheels take vastly different lines when turning, and cyclists next to them are in danger of being taken out- if in doubt, stay behind them.

Craig told me to ensure that I felt safe at all times, that sometimes the cycle lane isn't the safest place to cycle on the road, and that the advanced cyclist stop line is often where female cyclists get in trouble with drivers turning into them- so stay in your lane there, and go on the orange light if it's safe to do so. He reminded me that if I felt uncomfortable, I could always get off and push my bike around roundabouts or crazy junctions- yes I will always push it around Hammersmith Roundabout.

It's also worth having a look at the Government rules for Cyclists here.

Don't forget to ensure you're wearing a helmet, high vis and lights on your bike if you're cycling after dark. I'll be doing a post on what to wear when cycling next week!!

Thanks Craig (check out his cool vintage bike website!)  for the awesome lesson, I'm booking another one in with him soon once I've practiced these tips so will share anything else he teaches me! Have you got any cycling tips to share? Please let me know!

Swedercise: Sweat and Smile

Sweating and Smiling, what's not to like?

A couple of weeks ago, Adidas hosted a 'Spring into Summer' event at Westfield London, where you could try out new fitness classes for free. They had set up a huge fitness area on the ground floor where you could try out treadmills, Powerplates, rowing machines and a boxing ring.

The studio itself was a contained space with wooden floors, large mirrors and the new adidas range displayed. Their new campaign #mygirls, is similar to Nike's, encouraging women to get out with their friends and exercise. Check out their website for some serious fitspiration.

The class I tried was Swedercise, a concept originating in Sweden and brought over to the UK By Friskis and Svettis, a not for profit organisation, aiming to make exercise accessible and affordable for everyone, as well as fun!

Class started with a warm up in a circle- infact most of the class is done whilst in a circle facing inward. The aim of this is to get you to smile at one another, rather than focusing on yourself. This is fun, but a little awkward, if like me you struggle to get the moves right. You move round to the left, right and into the centre- often with your arms in the air (remember to shave your armpits!)

Most of the cardio moves are pretty simple, so if you are co-ordinated you will have no problem. Sadly I am not blessed with the ability to dance, and can safely say that for some of the 'bum shaking' moves, I was the worst in the class. Ok, for almost all of the moves, I was worst in the class.

Each cardio section is performed to some amazing pop classics, such as Cotton Eye Joe, which definitely produced some smirks. Combined with the whoops of joy coming from our teacher and some of the other participants (I'm afraid to say I'm too British to whoop), the class was definitely a happy one.There was one girl doing her own thing in the corner for most of the class and this seemed to be totally acceptable!

The cardio is broken up with a couple of minutes of strength moves, and it's here that beginners may struggle. Plank was held for a full minute- with no instruction on how to modify it. Infact, there were limited instructions throughout the class, mostly you are expected to watch the instructor and copy.

This class would be great if you love Zumba, are looking for something different and not too serious! However, if you're easily embarrassed, mal co-ordinated or looking for something a bit more structured, you might want to give it a miss.

You can try a Swedercise class in London for free- have a look at the website for classes and locations. 

Check out my review of a Swedercise class on Handbag.com

Apologies for the poor quality photos- they were taken on my new camera but I must have done something wrong when uploading as they've gone all blurry! Any advice will be gladly taken!

Have you tried a new fitness class recently? Any that you would recommend? 

We Own the Night 10K Race Recap

'We are running this in under 56.30. That's the goal, OK?'

This was the pact that Leah and I made about the Nike Womens We Own The Night 10K. I've been training hard over the last couple of months, attending the Monday night run clubs, and bootcamps in Hyde Park on a Wednesday, so I knew that it was possible if I set my mind to it and things went well on race night.

On my way to Victoria Park, in East London, Leah text me to say that spectators weren't allowed in to the race village, so they had congregated outside the entrance to give out her 'Team Naturally Run' goodie bags, and meet up with the rest of our runners. I can understand why Nike didn't want the village to be overcrowded, but not letting anyone in meant that a lot of the runners stayed outside the village until just before the start, and meant that the food stands inside didn't get a lot of the business that they would have done from hungry HABs (husbands and boyfriends) and friends- not many runners want to eat cupcakes or hamburgers just before a race!

Rather than race numbers, we were all given bright orange t-shirts and race chips. Although this saves on the faff of race bibs and safety pins, it does mean no official photos :(

On entering the race village, we picked up our light up wrist bands, with colours denoting our goals for the race;

Blue- Lead from the front
Orange- Set a PB
Pink- Finish the race

I picked up an orange band (and another orange band for my bag drop) as I was hoping to beat my She Runs Windsor PB of 56.54.

The race village was great, with plenty of loos, a quick bag drop, a Nike tent showcasing their latest gear and an Elle magazine tent giving out post-race necessities such as deodorant, dry shampoo and tissues. Sadly by the time we got into the race village there was a large queue to get into the Elle tent so I gave this a miss in favour of a loo trip! 

After a brief interview on stage with Paula Radcliffe, a few of the Nike master trainers led us in a warm up. The warm up was far more comprehensive than many other pre-race warm ups than I've done in the past.

Warming up with some of the other Team Naturally Run girls. At this point I started to get the nerves, imagining injuries and niggles. I also knew that I hadn't fueled properly throughout the day; I'd tried to drink plenty of water and Nuun hydration tabs, but I find it difficult to know what to eat before an evening race. I'd had soup and bread for lunch, and chocolate covered rice cakes and a banana a couple of hours before the race. I felt hungry at the start and not fully hydrated, and knew that my body would be running on close to empty before the end of the 10K. Fueling correctly is something I really need to work on in the future, particularly for evening races.

We were called to the race start according to our wrist band colours, it was at this point that we discovered that the majority of runners had opted for an orange band- and with a PB meaning a different time for everyone, we found ourselves stuck in a very crowded start behind the 65min pacers. So much for trying to start in front of the 55min pacer!

I knew that getting past all of these people, and finding space to run was going to be tough. We set off, slowly, trying to break through any gaps, and running on the side of the course along the grass when it was possible.

The course was two laps of Victoria Park, with the path split into two lanes. This made the course very narrow and meant there was a lot of jostling, particularly for the first 5K. The speedy runners came past us on the course at one point, and it was awesome seeing some of our faster friends fly by.

The course was flat, a definite positive after She Runs Windsor, although it included some sharp bends, and a few turnaround points which didn't ease the overcrowding, and caused a few pile ups. There were water stations located in two spots along the course, and unfortunately it was during the first one, with a lot of pushing and shoving, that I lost Leah and sadly didn't find each other again until after the race.

Running a race alone comes with more mind challenges than running with others. I knew my body was feeling tired, and my Runkeeper app didn't do a great job of reassuring me of my pace. I need to find my Garmin, I feel lost running without it! Tom came to watch this race, his first in the role of spectator. I was so excited to spot him just before the 1K mark, then again just by the 6K mark- luckily the runners had thinned out a bit by this point! It was great seeing him on the course, and pushed me to keep running, despite feeling exhausted and out of energy. I didn't know exactly where he would be and wanted him to see me running strong, so I powered through.

The support along the course was great, especially the Run Dem Crew cheerers about 3k/8k mark, and the course marshals. I loved the signs that Nike had positioned along the route, 'Run like Ryan Gosling is waiting for you at the finish line'!

I knew from my previous 10K last week, that the worst part of the race is 7K-9K, it's important to keep a strong pace but the finish line isn't quite in sight. My body felt so weak, my stomach was growling and I didn't think I had a sprint left in me. Around the 500m mark, people around me started kicking it up a notch. Around the 200m mark even more people started sprinting, I wasn't sure if I could push it for 200m, but then remembered my run from Monday, 'Run hard or go home'. So I sprinted (it felt like a sprint but who knows how fast I was actually running by that point), across the finish line. I felt worse than I have in a long time after a race. But cheered up instantly when I saw that Tom had somehow managed to sneak into the race village and was waiting for me just over the line!

Trying to breathe and stop my runkeeper!

As I ran under the clock, I saw that it said 54 something and I knew I'd got a PB, but not by how much. I waited to cheer Leah in, and congratulate her on a new PB!!

Sadly there wasn't anyone handing out water directly by the finish line, and instead of medals, Nike gave out pretty bracelets. I understand that bracelets are cute, girly and can be worn more often than a medal, but I think considering there were bracelets in our goody bag, and finishers medal wouldn't have gone amiss! Despite the lack of water, I did manage to find a glass of Prosecco quite quickly before joining the bag collection lines, (I was lucky to be in the orange line but it still took about half an hour to get bags back).

New PB and a glass of fizz = happy runner

Once the rest of the team finished up the race, we congregated outside of a group picture. The best thing about running We Own the Night has been training with these girls. Everyone is so supportive of each other, regardless of speed and time. Before the race Beki told me that she was aiming for a 1.10. something to give her a better time than She Runs Windsor, I told her that after such a hilly 10K there, she could definitely run a sub 1.10 on a flat course and that she should 'just go for it'. At the end of the race she came running up to me and gave me a huge hug, thrilled with her 1.08 finish!! So proud of her! Laura also achieved a huge PB, breaking the 50min barrier!

As we were finishing up our photos, the final runner on the course was just hitting the 200m mark, it was awesome to see everyone clapping and cheering for her to finish. Whilst I don't feel like all the 'girl power' stuff is necessary, even at women's only races, I love how much support there was for each and every runner. This event certainly pushed people out of their comfort zone to achieve their personal bests, and that is the sign of a successful race!

I was thrilled with my official time when it came through...

A massive 3.15min improvement on my She Runs Windsor result! Goal for next week's Bupa 10,000m is sub 53! I know I've got it in me.

Thanks Nike for a great evening, and especially for all the awesome events in the lead up to the We Own the Night race (like running with Ellie Goulding!) . I'll know for next time to start nearer the front, and to check beforehand if spectators are allowed into the village!

Guest Post: 5 Reasons to Start Cycling to Work

I've recently started cycling to work, after much persuasion and reassuring from friends (not from my mother, who is terrified everytime I set off). And I am loving it. The feeling of whizzing through Hyde Park, smiling at passing runners and cyclists (and there are a LOT of passing cyclists, I am very slow.)

My friend Becs, (aka Speedy Becs) from run club, cycles everywhere, so I asked her to write a post to hopefully inspire some of you to start commuting by bike! 

Five reasons to go Dutch and cycle to work 

You never forget how to ride a bike so put your skills to good use in this summer and hitch your own ride to work. Even if you never learnt how to saddle-up, it's not too late to find out how. From saving you money (not to mention time) and relieving stress, here are my five reasons to go Dutch and turn your daily commute into an easy-breezy voyage en velo.

1. Cycling improves your knowledge
There's no better way to get to know your own turf than by bike. In the seven years that I've lived in London, I have pretty much cycled my way from East to West, North to South and then back again. I can quite confidently say that I'm not only a better map reader than before, I also know how to get to most areas of London or thereabouts. If I am lost, then I usually look at the direction of the bus stops to get me back on track (trust me it works). As well a testing your orienteering skills, you notice more by bike such as the opening of a local shop or the changes in the skyline. It really is an eye-opening way to explore and can, on occasion, be pretty useful when it comes to pub quiz questions.


2. Cycling boosts your confidence
Now I'm not under any illusions here, I know how nail-biting cycling can be for those who have never tackled the Wild West that is London's roads. And those good folks at Transport for London have set up courses for beginners aimed at building your confidence on the road (check here)  You may already have heard of Sky Ride (here) (a day of traffic-free routes in London) and the Breeze network (here) , which encourages women to improve their confidence on the road. I'm not a huge fan of women-only rides because I think everyone needs a helping hand but I understand the sentiment at least. Anyway, once you've got to grips with your route and know where you're going, cycling can be a really boost to your self-esteem. Think about it for a moment – not only do you have to leave on time and pack all the right gear, you need to know how to navigate the road so you arrive at your destination safe and sound. The freedom of being on the open road teaches you to be more independent and self-reliant.

3. Cycling relieves stress
Not only does cycling make you more independent, it can also act as a real stress reliever. The last thing I want to do after a tough day in the office is jump on a crowded tube or bus and have to endure a) some inane conversation between two commuters b) blaring music of someone who wants to damage their ear drums c) sweaty armpits – I'm tensing my shoulders just thinking about the commute via public transport. Instead, I'm as free as a bird on my bike, where the occasional nod to a fellow cyclist or comment about the dreaded pot-holes will suffice. The fact that you're focusing on your journey also acts as a distraction from the daily grind. Not forgetting that as a cardiovascular activity, cycling encourages you to produce endorphins (happy hormones), which will boost your mood. Couple this with a glorious day and you'll be beaming when you get on yer bike.

4. Cycling saves you money
Well sort of. You do have to buy all the appropriate gear, including lights, helmet and waterproofs not to mention an actual bike and lock but when you do the number-crunching, you will save a bit of dosh. Over the past year, I reckon I've spent around £100 on my bike. I do have a PAYG Oyster card as well, but even when I compare this to price of a monthly Oyster pass, I'm pretty much quids in. I also take advantage of events such as Bike Week http://www.bikeweek.org.uk/event_search.php . This celebration of cycling includes a free service of your bike by Dr Bike at several locations all over London. The only time I've ever taken the tube for free was on New Year's Eve and after the London Marathon. The initial cost of cycling may feel a little hefty upfront but you'll soon be back in credit after a few months.

5. Cycling is time-efficient exercise
Not only is cycling to work great exercise, it is also the fastest way for me to get to work. Fact. I live in Stoke Newington and work in Camden and it takes me roughly around 25 minutes to commute by bike. My only other options are a bus then tube (around 40 minutes), bus then overground train (around 35 minutes) or bus. A car may be faster but that's without considering the traffic during rush hour. Seriously, if it takes you more than five minutes to walk to the tube and you have to make a change, you're better off by bike. When I want to cycle to Oxford Street during my lunch hour, I can jump on my bike and get there in about 15 minutes via Regent's Park. There's no waiting around for or even on a certain number bus when you travel on two wheels. Cycling to work also gives the exercise a purpose – as in you're actually travelling to a destination using pedal power.

Go and check out Bec's blog http://thestyledynamo.com/

Would you consider commuting by bike? I know that before I started a lot of people warned me against it, and said it was unsafe, but I think if you know the rules of the road, stick to cycle lanes and wear appropriate safety gear, you should be fine!

Run Hard or Go Home

At the end of a race you want to feel like you have given it your all, put in every ounce of effort you have and pushed yourself past the point of comfort. If you've done that, then no matter the time on the clock, you should be pleased with yourself. You may feel that you haven't done enough training, that the course was too hilly, that you didn't eat the right thing or hydrate fully, but knowing that you did the best you could on that day, all factors included, you should feel proud.

Your best is good enough.

During the She Runs Windsor 10K last week, I really pushed myself during the final 2km, thinking 'will I regret it if I don't give it my all'.

So I did, I pushed myself to run as hard as I could down the final stretch, even though it turned out to be waaay longer than it looked (note to self, downhill can be deceptive.)

I crossed the finish line proud of my time and my fitness, knowing I couldn't have done any more. As my first 10K race, I was aiming for a sub 1 hour time, so was thrilled with 56.54. And to have race photos that actually show that I am running!

On Monday evening, it was the last Nike and Elle run club. It was also miserable weather and I'd had a long day at work. I texted Leah to say I was feeling tired and that my sofa was calling to me!

I love having friends to run with on a Monday night, to stop me from bailing out. When you're meeting up with someone to work out with, it makes you accountable and wussing out is not an option. No matter the weather. I know that on Monday evening I would not have pushed myself out of the door to run if I hadn't been doing it with others.

As it happens, we were enjoying a taper week at Nike Run club, completing 5K as a large group.

And the sun came out.

But there weren't any brownies.

I am so glad I went for that run. I got to catch up with friends, stretch out my legs, enjoy Regent's Park in the sunshine, and above all, feel good about myself.

 

Sometimes it's important to have a recovery run, to run slow, cross-train, stretch or even have a rest day. But other times it's better to get out there and run hard. Give it everything you have. Make yourself proud. 

What do you tell yourself in order to get yourself out of the door to go for a run? Do you bribe yourself with brownies? (That definitely works for me!)

Don't forget to enter to win a Magimix Juicer here- entries close on Saturday 18th May!