The first week of the summer holiday was full of adventure and fun as we ran beginner, intermediate and advanced camps as well as our first ever adventure ride for kids.
Since 2013 we have run mountain bike holiday camps for kids from Queen Elizabeth Country Park in Hampshire, our favourite local riding spot. Over the last two years we are also used a great location closer to London for our advance riders to give more variety and depth to our coaching.
For the first year we have also started running adventure rides, these three hour long rides are full of trail time giving the kids optimal opportunity to practise their mountain biking as well as pick up new trail skills and ride in new locations around the South Downs.
After what feels like a lifetime of being stuck inside our homes and restricted from non-essential traveling, we are now finally allowed to step into the great outdoors once again. Get rid of those odors coming from your biking clothes, give your bike a good clean and get ready to hit those trails again!
There are a few things that we’ve deeply missed when it comes to the thought of getting out on the bike once again – The view of surrounded forests from the top of a climb, the feeling of the wind rushing past your face, and doing all this whilst the rest of the country is still waking up. Now that we’re feeling that extra appreciation, let’s talk about how we fuel these early morning starts on a full day of mountain biking.
First up, let’s talk about equipment. You don’t need anything fancy to make an amazing cup of coffee, an Aeropress is perfect for making great tasting coffee without the faff so you don’t need to wake up any earlier. Overall it should take around 3 minutes including boiling the water.
Aeropress
In recent years there have been world championship recipes brewed with an Aeropress that are so simple to make, you can prepare a cup before you set out or take it in a flask for the journey to your trails. Try the below method:
Heat some water over your stove or fire until near boiling point
Weigh out 20-25g of good quality coffee, you want a coarse grind if you’re using whole beans and grinding yourself.
Add coffee to the press and use 150ml of hot water
Stir for around 30 seconds using a spoon and then apply the press and push down slowly, don’t stop when you hear the bubbling, we actually want this to happen and create a nice compact coffee disc when we’re done with the brewing.
You should now have a fresh cup of coffee which you can dilute with hot water to get your preferred strength and taste. The smell alone from a freshly brewed coffee is enough to wake you up and give you that boost to tackle the day ahead. Take a deep breath in and savour the moment.
I just wanted to share with you some Pilates stretches I love to do post ride. These stretches help lengthen out my hamstrings and quads, and mobilise through my back.
Cyclists are prone to not stretching but stretching out your muscles after riding your bike can really help with your posture and form on the bike. Try this simple stretch routine after each ride for supple and healthy muscles.
Humans were not made for sitting. Our ancestors where active and on their feet hunting, gathering and playing… The trouble with our 21st century life is we have become addicted to sitting we sit at work from 9 to 5 we get in and sit down with a nice cup of tea before standing briefly to make dinner before then sitting again to eat. I know isn’t quite like this and a lot of people make a real effort to exercise.
The trouble with sitting is it causes our abdominals to weaken, muscles in the back of your legs to shorten, your spine to slump and your shoulders to round forward. This can lead to lower back ache, and neck and shoulder pain. Doesn’t sound great does it!
Now, we all must sit for periods of the day there is no escaping that, try and think about your posture as you sit. Think about engaging your core pulling your belly button towards your spine, dropping your shoulder blades almost as if they were melting down your back and imagining you have a piece of string from the top of your head to the ceiling that is pulling you up making your spine longer.
Improving your core, back and hip strength will help you sit more comfortably and decrease the pressure you put on your spine. Pilates is the ideal exercise program to promote good posture and a well-balanced body.
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