What's Breatnac's Blog about

I have decided to start this blog to publish my triumphs and failures for getting fit and losing some weight.

I am 35 years old with a wife and two children and I have made a New Year's resolution to get in shape. You know how it is, you eat the wrong foods, don't take enough exercise and before you know it you are you get out of breath running up a few flights of stairs.

Don't get me wrong, I do not intend to cut the English Breakfast Butties out of my life completely, I mean its not as if I am 2o stone or anything, I could just do with losing a stone and getting in shape.

I have decided to do something about this, although it is only 9th January a lot has happened to steer me towards using a bicycle to get in shape. My work have offered us a tax incentive to buy a new bike and one of my friends has challenged me to cycle from London to Brighton, which is 54 miles, and if you know me, you know that I cannot resist a challenge.

My other reason to get fit is to improve my health and immune system as my children bring home all sorts of colds, flu's, fevers etc. that they just pass on to me.

The London to Brighton Cycle Ride is on Sunday 15th June 2008, which gives me 6 months to be able to comfortably cycle that type of distance, I will be asking for sponsorship for this for the British Heart Foundation. The entry for this starts 1st March 2008 and it fills up quickly as it is an extremely popular event.

In for a penny, in for a pound, so we have also opted to enter the London to Cambridge Cycle Ride which is 6 weeks after that, on Sunday 27th July 2008, which finishes in midsummer common, Cambridge. Entry for this starts mid-January, so I will be able to book this one early. Again I will be asking for sponsorship, this time for Breast Cancer Appeal.

I have not done anything for charity since I left school and with Cambridge being a very charitable place, now that I live here, I should do my bit towards it.

I will be updating this with how I am doing in training, times and distances travelled. I have been reading other things that people have written about their experiences about starting to cycle, but nothing in much detail.

I have spend the next week or so cycling on my old bike which I bought second hand for £90 two years ago and I have only ridden to work a few times on it.

My new bike is a Ridgeback Element, I would not attempt something like this without advice, a decent bike and the right gear.

My training started last week I did a total of 14 miles on the bike and so far this week I have done 7 miles. I will cycle to work and back on Friday 6.5 miles each way and a short 5 mile cycle at the weekend. I will increase the distance once I get my new bike.