Tour de France or 'Tour de A & E'?
Tom Dyer from Ultimate City Fitness, a London based fitness centre, is encouraging any would be cyclists driven by the Tour de France momentum to be sensible in developing their fitness before challenging themselves too much. He estimates that over 50% of those rolling out their rusty bikes from their sheds are heading for some sort of injury, if not careful!
'I am all for us, as a nation, getting fitter, and cycling is a great leisure pursuit and one of the best ways for most of us to do so, but we know from our work at Ultimate City Fitness that getting fit is a gradual process, and pushing the body too hard too soon frequently leads to long term problems,' he says.
His top three tips for staying out of A & E, whilst building your fitness are:
1. In the first fortnight, go out on alternate days, and take it easy!
2. Warm up at a lower cadence (pedal speed) beforehand, and stretch down afterwards.
3. Drink enough water to avoid dehydration. Exercise and lack of fluids don't go together.
………..and one final recommendation. Get some padded cycling shorts.