Women's health Archives -

Fit and fabulous at 50 – Why not take up cycling?

August 6, 2020 Nicola Anti-ageing, Women cycling, Women's health

When I was younger, I remember my partner’s aunt saying to me “Everything starts to fall apart when you turn 50”, so as a consequence I was not looking forward to reaching this milestone, and never thought I’d be fit and fabulous at 50. However, I’m happy to report that if you’re fit and healthy turning 50 is not as bad as she suggested. In fact, for many women, it can be quite liberating. In researching this topic I was horrified to find that when I googled ‘fit at 50 female’ I got a whole lot of images of women

You should add some resistance training for female cyclists to your life

July 31, 2020 Nicola Resistance training, Women cycling, women in sport, Women's health

Whether you’re a competitive or recreational cyclist you can benefit from regular resistance training for female cyclists. Cycling is an endurance activity, while resistance training is an anaerobic activity, that is, periods of work interspersed with periods of rest. But regular resistance training can improve your strength, help you maintain bone mass and aid in injury prevention. I’ve been doing a weekly resistance training session for about 15 years which is longer than I’ve been cycling. I believe it plays an important part in my exercise program which also includes jogging. My focus has always been on general resistance training

Why riding your bike will make you happy

July 3, 2020 Nicola Life purpose, Mental health, Mindfulness, women's bikes, Women's health

When I started riding some 12 years ago I could never have answered the question – Why riding your bike will make you happy. But I now know unequivocally why riding my bike makes me so happy. Here are my top five reasons: Riding is fun The simple act of propelling a bike along, and experiencing the wind rushing by, is fun. It’s strange that a bicycle cannot stand up on its own, but it stays upright when you ride it. I find it fun to achieve that balance. It gives me a sense of freedom that I really don’t

How do you find the best women’s bike saddle for a road bike?

June 4, 2020 Nicola Bike retail, Bike saddle, Product reviews, Women cycling, women specific bike, women's bikes, Women's health

Let me share my own experience first. I started riding almost 12 years ago to complete a charity ride and was hooked almost instantly. I recall when I rode that charity ride which was an 80 km ride on undulating and hilly terrain in the Barossa Valley that I got quite uncomfortable on my bike saddle and it wasn’t my bottom that hurt, it was the far more delicate soft tissue area that really felt sore. I remember laughing when a non-riding friend asked me if I had a saw bum after all that riding. By far the most commonly

Here are 12 compelling reasons every woman should take up road cycling

May 15, 2020 Nicola Anti-ageing, Brain health, Cycling while pregnant, Heart health, Life purpose, Mental health, Women cycling, Women's health

Following on from my blog post a couple of weeks ago challenging women to take up road cycling, here are my 12 very compelling reasons every woman should take up road cycling. In truth, the posts should have been published the other way around, but better late than never. Here’s the motivation and you’ll have to skip back two weeks to read the practical stuff. Look younger Scientists at Stanford University have found that regular cycling protects your skin against the harmful effects of UV radiation and reduces the signs of ageing. Dermatologist Dr Christopher Rowland Payne explains: “Increased circulation

10 things I hope we will do after COVID-19 leaves us

April 3, 2020 Nicola COVID-19, Women cycling, Women's health

This week I’m deviating a bit from my usual women’s cycling topics and sharing my list of things I hope we will do after COVID-19. Some of it can actually be applied to my favourite topic but sometimes you’ve just gotta write what works for you. Today this is what works for me, so please indulge me. It’s taken me a couple of weeks to ‘process’ what is going on in our world and to find some level of acceptance. One of the things that has really helped me deal with it is seeing the great things that are happening

A budget guide to indoor riding during COVID-19

March 27, 2020 Nicola Indoor trainers, Women cycling, Women's health

Like so many other devoted road cyclists around the world, I’m now focused on indoor riding during COVID-19, so I thought I’d share my tips on how to do this on a budget. Indoor trainers have evolved in the last few years to become very sophisticated with price tags to match, but you don’t have to fork out thousands. My preference is to ride outdoors but right now I’ve decided to stay home as much as possible to protect the community and to do my bit to stop the spread of COVID-19. One major benefit of indoor trainers is time

Don’t stop riding because of COVID-19 – ride your bike

March 19, 2020 Nicola Mental health, Women cycling, Women's health

I’m not here to repeat the advice of our authorities on COVID-19, on what the rules of road cycling should be during this crisis, but I am here to encourage all riders to keep riding their bikes during this time – Don’t stop riding because of COVID-19. We need to keep riding for our mental and physical health. I’d rather tell you how I feel about this situation rather than prescribe the rules. If you want some great advice and commentary I recommend you visit the Bicycling Australia website, and while you’re there, make sure you complete the survey. For

It’s smoking hot in the land of OZ – Here’s your Summer riding tips

January 17, 2020 Nicola Riding in the heat, Women cycling, Women's health

I often write a few Summer riding tips at this time of year because like many female road riders I’m spending a fair bit of time out on my bike. The thing that has been most obvious for many Aussie bike riders in the past few months is not sun exposure, but smoke exposure. After a number of years of drought we’ve experienced a horrible bushfire season so far this summer and it’s blanketed much of the east coast of Australia in smoke. So I thought it was important to address the ‘elephant in the room’ as well as my

What’s the best food to eat during a bike ride?

December 12, 2019 Nicola Nutrition, training, Women cycling, Women's health

A couple of weeks ago I tackled the question – what is the best pre-ride food for cycling and this week I’m focusing on the best food to eat during a bike ride. Like the previous post, this one is a contribution from sports dietician Rebecca Hay from The Athlete’s Kitchen. Over to you Rebecca…. The length and intensity of a ride dictate how much and what you might decide to take with you on a bike ride. There is a lot of information in magazines and the internet about how to meet needs. Many cyclists choose to consume water only