“Get on your bike!”:

Hands up if you like to “get on your bike”! That’s great if you do. Not only is pedalling along in the fresh air a fun way to exercise, it’s good for your health.

Cycling benefits mind and body. It increases physical, mental and social activity levels, boosts emotional health, improves well-being and strengthens self-confidence. The New England Journal of Medicine, even notes that people who cycle regularly, live longer and lead healthier lives.

There are many benefits to be gained from joining a pedalling brigade. I learned this from the Hobsons Bay Pelicans Cycling Group at the Hobsons Bay Men's Shed, during their ride from Altona to Point Cook Homestead. This young-at-heart community group is not afraid to use their bikes to get out together - usually around their area. They’re proving that cycling adventures can be enjoyed at every age.

So my challenge to you is to beat the blues of boredom. Challenge yourself. Tackle something new.  

• Don’t let “old-age” thoughts hold you back. Reject them. You’re only as old as you think!

• Be mentally active. You never ‘retire’ from thinking and living.

• Don’t measure or limit the good you can accomplish. It’s possible to “…enjoy more than threescore years and ten and still maintain [your] vigor, freshness, and promise.”  

Conquer fear. Get out and about.

While cycling might not be everyone’s cup of tea, the catchphrase “get on your bike” is still a call to be active at every age and stage of life - to break through the self-imposed limitations of age, gender and fear.

Doubt in one’s ability can be defeated. No one is “too old” to take up something new, engage in positive, stimulating life-activities such as using a computer to bank online, or riding a bike.

A few years back, I decided to cycle again. During my first attempt since childhood, I suddenly realised that I didn’t know how to stop my brand new, state-of-the-art, ultra-modern ladies’ bike. Just then, an elderly man began wandering towards me. With panicked looks on both of our faces, and through good fortune more than good management, we avoided each other. It was a traumatic start to my cycling ‘re-birth’.

Happily, it didn’t put me off. I’ve ridden many enjoyable kilometres since then.  

• Don’t be deprived of fun, advancement and interesting activity. Eliminate the “I can’t” statements from your thinking. Say, “I can”. You have the mental might to “get-up and get-going”.  

• Build-up your confidence level by being enthusiastic and courageous about taking up something new.

• Stop fear in its tracks. It’s never too late to overcome fearful thinking.  You have the power to do so.

• Expect to “get on your bike”, be active and confident right now and into the future.