So let's start with the one main reason for my cycling. The answer to this question is very simple, to lose weight and get healthier. At my heaviest, I was 28 stone and was so unfit that everyday chores were a huge effort, chores that we all take for granted in our everyday lives. So after being an active person for most of my life, I felt embarrassed as much as unhealthy and it came to the stage where I felt really down most of the time, hide behind baggy clothes and even dreaded the weekly food shop because I knew people were always looking at me. I knew I had to do something about it and like many other people in that position I had tried different diets, none of which had really worked so the idea of getting more exercise into my life was the only thing I could think of. I knew running or jogging was out as I was too heavy and after walking for a few weeks I decided to cycle giving me the chance to explore more of the local area
So the next question, what bike do I use? I obtained a mountain bike like most people and started to cycle around my village. I remember my first ever ride took just 15 minutes and covered less than two miles. I was so unfit but very determined to continue every day and this is what I did, even travelling by car out into the wilds of the fens and cycling the quiet droves where I thought nobody could see me. strange thing to do you might ask but you have to understand how embarrassed I was knowing that people seeing this fat guy on a bike would find it hilarious.
After six months and the first few stones of weight loss, I began to cycle further to some local villages, nothing too far away but it really started to make cycling more enjoyable knowing there were so many fen villages out there waiting to be explored. That year for my birthday my wife bought me a Road bike to use which would mean I could travel a lot further and could start to take cycling a bit more serious. But I have to admit one thing, I had that Road bike for many months before I rode it for the first time, I really was worried that being so big I would break it and that's not a joke. So now I use my Road bike for all my cycling and would hate to be without it. must say one more thing, when I cycle it's not to go as fast as possible like those lycra clad guys and girls you see flying along the roads on a Sunday morning, r me it is purely exercise, the time I'm out is far more important than the speed I can achieve.
The next question I get asked is how do I find time to cycle every day? Well, I'm lucky in that I work from home making my glass beads and this allows me to work different hours. Most mornings I cycle anything from 15 to 25 miles which is possible because I can work later in the evenings. And when I want to do a longer cycle I just put in a long working day the day before or after. I think most who know me will know how much I enjoy my work and my cycling is by no way an excuse to miss work.
Finally, my aim is to visit as many fen villages as I can over the next couple of summers, each summer the villages are further away and the area to explore becomes larger helping me discover a lot more gems of the flatlands of East Anglia. Winter cycling is kept to those regular morning cycles when the roads are covered in frost and the rivers are iced over, a very different fen to that of summer but none the less still an amazing place to travel.
Well, I hope that as answered most of the questions and explained the reasons for me cycling the beautiful villages held here in the fens, I thank you all for following my blog and I hope to bring you more villages as and when I find them.
