When you walk into the local bike shop or pick up a magazine, there is plenty of choice when it comes to energy products for cycling. But what are they and do they provide any benefit to you as a cyclist?

Let’s start by looking at why you might need an energy product. Energy products are generally a mix of sugars (carbohydrates), salts (electrolytes) and water. The research has been quite clear over the last 30 years or so, in that taking on board both carbohydrate and water does improves performance by maintaining blood sugar during exercise and staving off dehydration. Some of them may contain other nutrients such as caffeine or protein, but these are more advanced drinks and may play a role in certain situations.

Energy products come in many forms. You can get a simple energy gel, an energy chew, an energy bar or energy drink. Let’s take a look each of these in turn.

Energy gels

An energy gel is essentially a concentrated form of sugars. They provide you with a concentrated hit of energy, which is generally simple to digest and absorb. They don’t take up a lot of room in your pocket and you can take quite a few with you on your rides. Generally you only use them during training or races, and the quick hit of energy they provide can really help your performance and prevent fatigue.

If you look on the back of the gel and find the ingredients list you should be looking for a combination of sugars. You want to have either maltodextrin or glucose with some fructose. This will maximise absorption of the gel.

• Advantages: Provide a concentrated hit of energy. Easy to fit in your pocket on a long ride
• Disadvantages: Can be quite sweet and sickly on long rides. A large range are available and it is best to find the ones you like the taste of

Energy chews

Energy chews are small bite sized chunks of sugar, a bit like a jelly baby. They are simple and easy to graze on during training, and allow you to spread your energy intake out a little more throughout a ride. They can be useful on harder group rides where you might not have too much time to take on board some energy while you are riding along at pace with the group.

You should try a few varieties out and see which is more practical but as long as they contain some sort of sugar they should work. You could even use a jelly baby instead, as they are cheaper and very similar in composition.

• Advantages: Simple to graze on during a ride
• Disadvantages: No real hydration advantage

Energy bars

An energy bar is a bit like a cereal bar or flapjack. However, they tend to be made of simpler sugars than a cereal bar so that they can be easily absorbed and digested. They provide another concentrated hit of energy, but this time with a bit more substance and when you are using them during a long ride they fill you up a little more than a gel.

You should take them during long rides when you want something that more resembles food then a sweet. They are quite often useful when the intensity is low as you have time to chew them and digest them.

In a similar way to the gels, you should look for a combination of simple sugars. If it is a training ride or lower intensity ride you might want to look for something which is oat or cereal based so that it is more substantial and takes away the hunger you can sometimes get on these type of rides. You can easily make your own energy bar by using a good flapjack or granola bar recipe.

• Advantages: Can satisfy hunger on long rides. Provide a nice variety of ways in which to take energy on board
• Disadvantages: Can cause stomach problems. Absorption may be slower, depending on the makeup of the bar

Energy drinks

An energy drink is one which contains simple carbohydrates within a drink. They provide you with not only those simple sugars you need during exercise to enhance performance, but water too to enhance performance. They quite often provide you with electrolytes, which will help the body retain the fluid you are taking in during exercise.

You should take them during exercise to maximise performance, delay fatigue and stave off dehydration. Look to drink 500-750 ml per hour depending on the training session and how hot it is. The hotter and longer the session, the more you are going to need to drink.

You should look for that magic mix of sugars providing glucose or maltodextrin with some fructose. Not only will this maximise carbohydrate absorption, but it will also maximise fluid absorption too. Look for a drink which contains 6-8g of sugar per 100ml of fluid on the ingredients list. You can make your own energy drink by watering down fruit juice and adding a small pinch of table salt.

• Advantages: Provide a mix of fluid and carbohydrates so can not only provide energy but fluid too. Designed for optimal fluid absorption
• Disadvantages: To take on board enough energy can be filling and you generally need a large volume

Now you've got the basics covered, put your new found knowledge into action and see how it affects your performance with the new BikeRadar Training resource. It's a free online tool for you to record and analyse all aspects of your training, log your training routes, get yourself tailored training plans, see how you're doing on our leaderboards, set goals and plan your season with a comprehensive events guide. Click here for more details.

Achieving your optimal cycling weight will make you faster, and fitter. But what is it and how do you reach it?

“Excess body weight is the cyclist’s enemy,” says Matt Fitzgerald, author of Racing Weight: How to get lean for peak performance (VeloPress). “It wastes energy, slows you down, affects performance and stresses joints.”

You can’t change your basic physiology such as height, limb length and even potential for leanness, but, says Fitzgerald, “You can reduce your weight to a level that is optimal for performance given those genetic constraints.” You want to up your power-to-weight ratio by improving body composition through training and diet.

Fitzgerald warns against using body mass index (BMI), as touted by many doctors to gauge optimum body weight. “BMI charts are designed to identify unhealthy weights for the general population, based on a statistical susceptibility to disease,” he says. “This is far too vague to identify ideal athletic weight,” says Fitzgerald.

Instead, he says, lowering body fat percentage is the key, as it will increase your aerobic capacity because muscle has less competition from fat tissue for oxygen and fuel. (You can use widely available body fat scales).

1. Diet quality

“If you only focus on one of the five steps to reaching your optimal weight, eating quality foods is the one,” says Fitzgerald. The right foods will have the highest nutrient value, but will often also have the lowest calorie density too.

Fitzgerald splits high quality foods into six categories: fruit; vegetables; lean proteins such as fish, meats that are 10 percent fat or less, nuts and seeds; whole grains; low fat dairy; and essential fats such as omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids, the best source of which is fatty fish.

Low quality foods are grouped into five categories you should avoid: refined grains; sweets – including soft drinks, pastries and desserts that contain large amounts of refined sugar; all deep-fried foods; whole milk dairy produce; and fatty proteins such as any meat with more than 10 percent fat.

2. Balancing energy sources

Rather than strict proportional macronutrient diets, such as 60 percent carbohydrate, 20 percent fat and 20 percent protein, Fitzgerald advises a more measured approach. “It’s not carbohydrate as a percentage of total calories you should worry about. Instead, match your carbohydrate intake to your training load while ensuring you still get adequate amounts of fat and protein and that the overall quality of the calorie sources is high.”

3. Timing nutrition

When you eat has a big impact on body composition, as it affects energy partitioning – how the calories are stored. “The key is to shift the balance of energy partitioning away from fat storage and toward muscle storage and immediate use,” says Fitzgerald.

Eat early, eat often and before, during and after exercise. Eating early makes you less likely to over-eat in the afternoon and means you’re more likely to eat higher quality calories. “Try to eat 25 per cent of your total daily calories within an hour of waking up,” suggests Fitzgerald.

Eating often can boost metabolism and thus burn more calories. It also reduces appetite, helping to avoid over-eating at meal times. The ideal time to eat before a ride is two to four hours ahead, and you should include 100g of carbohydrate.

“Fuelling a ride will enhance your performance and help you burn more fat,” says Fitzgerald. “It will also increase the number of food calories you burn and decrease the number you store.” Fuelling with carbohydrate-based energy drinks and gels during a ride will help you get leaner for the same reasons.

Eating soon after exercise also promotes leanness because it shifts energy partitioning towards muscle protein and glycogen synthesis and away from body-fat storage.

4. Managing appetite

Mindful eating is essential to cut out poor eating habits, such as emotional eating – because you’re sad, happy or even bored; spontaneous eating – just because the food is there; unconscious eating – automatically finishing that packet of biscuits while watching TV; habitual eating – because it’s a mealtime and not because you’re hungry; and clearing your plate – portion sizes vary, so why shouldn’t you leave some food if you are full?

Eat high-satiety foods that are filling and low calorie. “These include fibre, certain proteins, long-chain fatty acids and calcium,” says Fitzgerald. Eat small portions of them as appetisers before meals to help manage your appetite. Soups, nuts and low fat yoghurt are good examples.

Counting calories helps you become more aware of your diet and establish good habits. Online tools such as www.trainingpeaks.com and weightloss websites are useful. “They don’t have to be 100 percent accurate,” says Fitzgerald, “just counting will increase dietary awareness and you will automatically eat better.”

5. Training right

There are two schools of thought about the best way to exercise yourself lean: high intensity interval training or prolonged moderate intensity exercise in the ‘fat-burning zone’.

“Both are effective for fat-burning,” says Fitzgerald, “but the primary goal of most endurance athletes is to achieve maximum race performance, and getting lean is just one means to that end – so focusing on building exercise fitness is more reliable.”

The fat-burning zone is typically between 59 and 64 percent of VO2 max in trained cyclists, and between 47 and 52 percent of VO2 max in unfit individuals. For both this level equates to a comfortable but not ‘dawdling’ conversational pace. “But,” says Fitzgerald, “almost all cyclists could benefit from doing more moderate intensity miles as well as high intensity intervals.” 

6. Weighs and measures

“What gets measured gets managed,” says Fitzgerald – citing research by the Minneapolis Heart Research Institute which found that subjects lost an extra pound for every 11 days they weighed themselves during a weight-loss-through-dieting experiment.

To this end, Fitzgerald suggests keeping a diary of body weight, body-fat percentage, a food journal, and a calculation of calories burned per day. To calculate daily calories burned, add Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) calories to calories burned in non sport activities, plus workouts or rides.

BMR is how many calories you burn at rest and can be estimated using your height, weight, age and, for best accuracy, your body-fat percentage. There are many online resources for calculating BMR, but try www.calculator.org which uses the popular Harris-Benedict formula.

For an estimation of total calories burned, Fitzgerald suggests www.my-calorie-counter.com which calculates, for example, that an eight-hours-a-day desk job for a 68kg male will burn 984 calories a day.

“One weigh-in per week is adequate,” says Fitzgerald, “but the minimum should be once every four weeks.” On the same day, ride a set time-trial course or long hill climb and record your time along with your weight and body-fat percentage measurement. “These are your official weigh-in days,” says Fitzgerald.

If you've enjoyed reading this, our new fitness resource BikeRadar Training might be for you. It's a free online resource for you to record and analyse all aspects of your training, log your training routes, get yourself tailored training plans, see how you're doing on our leaderboards, set goals and plan your season with a comprehensive events guide. Click here for more details.

Whether it's to boost your fitness, health or bank balance, or as an environmental choice, taking up cycling could be one of the best decisions you ever make. Not convinced? Here are 30 major benefits of taking to two wheels.

1. You’ll get there faster

Commute by bike in the UK’s major cities and you’ll get there in half the time of cars, research by Citroen shows. In fact, if you drive for an hour in Cardiff’s rush hour, you’ll spend over 30 minutes going absolutely nowhere and average just 7mph, compared to averaging around 12-15mph while cycling.

2. Sleep more deeply

An early morning ride might knacker you out in the short term, but it’ll help you catch some quality shut-eye when you get back to your pillow. Stanford University School of Medicine researchers asked sedentary insomnia sufferers to cycle for 20-30 minutes every other day. The result? The time required for the insomniacs to fall asleep was reduced by half, and sleep time increased by almost an hour.

“Exercising outside exposes you to daylight,” explains Professor Jim Horne from Loughborough University’s Sleep Research Centre. “This helps get your circadian rhythm back in sync, and also rids your body of cortisol, the stress hormone that can prevent deep, regenerative sleep.”

3. Look younger

Scientists at Stanford University have found that cycling regularly can protect your skin against the harmful effects of UV radiation and reduce the signs of ageing. Harley Street dermatologist Dr Christopher Rowland Payne explains: “Increased circulation through exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to skin cells more effectively, while flushing harmful toxins out. Exercise also creates an ideal environment within the body to optimise collagen production, helping reduce the appearance of wrinkles and speed up the healing process.” Don’t forget to slap on the factor 30 before you head out, though.

4. Boost your bowels

According to experts from Bristol University, the benefits of cycling extend deep into your core. “Physical activity helps decrease the time it takes food to move through the large intestine, limiting the amount of water absorbed back into your body and leaving you with softer stools, which are easier to pass,” explains Harley Street gastroenterologist Dr Ana Raimundo.

In addition, aerobic exercise accelerates your breathing and heart rate, which helps to stimulate the contraction of intestinal muscles. “As well as preventing you from feeling bloated, this helps protect you against bowel cancer,” Dr Raimundo says.

5. Increase your brain power

Need your grey matter to sparkle? Then get pedalling. Researchers from Illinois University found that a five percent improvement in cardio-respiratory fitness from cycling led to an improvement of up to 15 percent in mental tests. That’s because cycling helps build new brain cells in the hippocampus – the region responsible for memory, which deteriorates from the age of 30.

“It boosts blood flow and oxygen to the brain, which fires and regenerates receptors, explaining how exercise helps ward off Alzheimer’s,” says the study’s author, Professor Arthur Kramer.

6. Beat illness

Forget apples, riding’s the way to keep the doctor at bay. “Moderate exercise makes immune cells more active, so they’re ready to fight off infection,” says Cath Collins, chief dietician at St George’s Hospital in London.

In fact, according to research from the University of North Carolina, people who cycle for 30 minutes, five days a week take about half as many sick days as couch potatoes.

Riding’s the way to keep the doctor at bay

7. Live longer

King’s College London compared over 2,400 identical twins and found those who did the equivalent of just three 45-minute rides a week were nine years ‘biologically younger’ even after discounting other influences, such as body mass index (BMI) and smoking.

“Those who exercise regularly are at significantly lower risk of cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes, all types of cancer, high blood pressure and obesity,” says Dr Lynn Cherkas, who conducted the research. “The body becomes much more efficient at defending itself and regenerating new cells.”

8. Save the planet

Twenty bicycles can be parked in the same space as one car. It takes around five percent of the materials and energy used to make a car to build a bike, and a bike produces zero pollution.

Bikes are efficient, too – you travel around three times as fast as walking for the same amount of energy and, taking into account the ‘fuel’ you put in your ‘engine’, you do the equivalent of 2,924 miles to the gallon. You have your weight ratio to thank: you’re about six times heavier than your bike, but a car is 20 times heavier than you.

9. Improve your sex life

Being more physically active improves your vascular health, which has the knock-on effect of boosting your sex drive, according to health experts in the US. One study from Cornell University also concluded that male athletes have the sexual prowess of men two to five years younger, with physically fit females delaying the menopause by a similar amount of time.

Meanwhile, research carried out at Harvard University found that men aged over 50 who cycle for at least three hours a week have a 30 percent lower risk of impotence than those who do little exercise.

10. It’s good breeding

A ‘bun in the oven’ could benefit from your riding as much as you. According to research from Michigan University in the US, mums-to-be who regularly exercise during pregnancy have an easier, less complicated labour, recover faster and enjoy better overall mood throughout the nine months. Your pride and joy also has a 50 percent lower chance of becoming obese and enjoys better in-utero neurodevelopment.

“There’s no doubt that moderate exercise such as cycling during pregnancy helps condition the mother and protect the foetus,” says Patrick O’Brien, a spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

A ‘bun in the oven’ could benefit from your riding as much as you

11. Heal your heart

Studies from Purdue University in the US have shown that regular cycling can cut your risk of heart disease by 50 percent. And according to the British Heart Foundation, around 10,000 fatal heart attacks could be avoided each year if people kept themselves fitter. Cycling just 20 miles a week reduces your risk of heart disease to less than half that of those who take no exercise, it says.

12. Your boss will love you

No, we don’t mean your Lycra-clad buttocks will entice your superiors into a passionate office romance, but they’ll appreciate what cycling does for your usefulness to the company. A study of 200 people carried out by the University of Bristol found that employees who exercised before work or at lunchtime improved their time and workload management, and it boosted their motivation and their ability to deal with stress.

The study also reported that workers who exercised felt their interpersonal performance was better, they took fewer breaks and found it easier to finish work on time. Sadly, the study didn’t find a direct link between cycling and getting a promotion.

13. Cycle away from the big C

There’s plenty of evidence that any exercise is useful in warding off cancer, but some studies have shown that cycling is specifically good for keeping your cells in working order. One long-term study carried out by Finnish researchers found that men who exercised at a moderate level for at least 30 minutes a day were half as likely to develop cancer as those who didn’t. And one of the moderate forms of exercise they cited? Cycling to work. Other studies have found that women who cycle frequently reduce their risk of breast cancer by 34 percent.

14. Lose weight in the saddle

Loads of people who want to shift some heft think that heading out for a jog is the best way to start slimming down. But while running does burn a ton of fat, it’s not kind to you if you’re a little larger than you’d like to be. Think about it – two to three times your body weight goes crashing through your body when your foot strikes the ground. If you weigh 16 stone, that’s a lot of force! Instead, start out on a bike – most of your weight is taken by the saddle, so your skeleton doesn’t take a battering. Running can wait…

15. You’ll make more money

If you’re cycling to lose weight then you could be in line for a cash windfall… Well, sort of. Researcher Jay Zagorsky, from Ohio State University, analysed data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth – which saw 7,300 people regularly interviewed between 1985 and 2000 – to see how their obesity and wealth changed over that period. Zagorsky concluded that a one unit increase in body mass index (BMI) score corresponded to an £800 or eight percent reduction in wealth. So, shed a few BMI points on the bike and start earning.

16. Avoid pollution

You’d think a city cyclist would suck up much more pollution than the drivers and passengers in the vehicles chucking out the noxious gases. Not so, according to a study carried out by Imperial College London. Researchers found that passengers in buses, taxis and cars inhaled substantially more pollution than cyclists and pedestrians.

On average, taxi passengers were exposed to more than 100,000 ultrafine particles – which can settle in the lungs and damage cells – per cubic centimetre. Bus passengers sucked up just under 100,000 and people in cars inhaled about 40,000. Cyclists, meanwhile, were exposed to just 8,000 ultrafine particles per cubic centimetre. It’s thought that cyclists breathe in fewer fumes because we ride at the edge of the road and, unlike drivers, aren’t directly in the line of exhaust smoke.

Cyclists breathe in fewer fumes than drivers

17. Enjoy healthy family time

Cycling is an activity the whole family can do together. The smallest tyke can clamber into a bike seat or tow-along buggy, and because it’s kind on your joints, there’s nothing to stop grandparents joining in too.

Moreover, your riding habit could be sowing the seeds for the next Bradley Wiggins. Studies have found that, unsurprisingly, kids are influenced by their parents’ exercise choices. Put simply, if your kids see you riding regularly, they think it’s normal and will want to follow your example. Don’t be surprised, though, if they become embarrassed by your tendency to mismatch fluorescent Lycra when they become teenagers.

18. It means guilt-free snacks

Upping your salt intake is seldom your doctor’s advice, but in the few days leading up to a big ride or sportive, that’s exactly what you should do. This gives you the perfect excuse to munch on crisps and other salty foods you might normally avoid. The sodium in them helps protect your body against hyponatraemia, a condition caused by drinking too much water without enough sodium that can lead to disorientation, illness and worse.

19. Get better at any sport

Whether you want to keep in prime shape or just improve your weekly tennis game, a stint in the saddle is the way to begin. A recent medical study from Norway carried the title Aerobic Endurance Training Improves Soccer Performance, which makes it pretty clear that the knock-on benefits to other sports and activities are immense.

20. Make creative breakthroughs

Writers, musicians, artists, top executives and all kinds of other professionals use exercise to solve mental blocks and make decisions – including Jeremy Paxman, Sir Alan Sugar and Spandau Ballet. A study found that just 25 minutes of aerobic exercise boosts at least one measure of creative thinking. Credit goes to the flow of oxygen to your grey matter when it matters most, sparking your neurons and giving you breathing space away from the muddle and pressures of ‘real life’.

21. You’re helping others

Many cyclists turn their health, fitness and determination into fundraising efforts for the less fortunate. The London to Brighton bike ride has raised over £40 million for the British Heart Foundation since the two became involved in 1980, with countless other rides contributing to the coffers of worthy causes.

22. You can get fit without trying too hard

Regular, everyday cycling has huge benefits that can justify you binning your wallet-crippling gym membership. According to the National Forum for Coronary Heart Disease Foundation in the US, regular cyclists enjoy a fitness level equal to that of a person who’s 10 years younger.

23. Boost your bellows

No prizes for guessing that the lungs work considerably harder than usual when you ride. An adult cycling generally uses 10 times the oxygen they’d need to sit in front of the TV for the same period. Even better, regular cycling will help strengthen your cardiovascular system over time, enabling your heart and lungs to work more efficiently and getting more oxygen where it’s needed, quicker. This means you can do more exercise for less effort. How good does that sound?

24. Burn more fat

Sports physiologists have found that the body’s metabolic rate – the efficiency with which it burns calories and fat – is not only raised during a ride, but for several hours afterwards. “Even after cycling for 30 minutes, you could be burning a higher amount of total calories for a few hours after you stop,” says sports physiologist Mark Simpson of Loughborough University.

And as you get fitter, the benefits are more profound. One recent study showed that cyclists who incorporated fast intervals into their ride burned three-and-a-half times more body fat than those who cycled constantly but at a slower pace.

Cycling can help you lose pounds – but don't take it too far!

25. You’re developing a positive addiction

Replace a harmful dependency – such as cigarettes, alcohol or eating too much chocolate – with a positive one, says William Glasser, author of Positive Addiction. The result? You’re a happier, healthier person getting the kind of fix that boosts the good things in life.

26. Get (a legal) high

Once a thing of myth, the infamous ‘runner’s high’ has been proven beyond doubt by German scientists. Yet despite the name, this high is applicable to all endurance athletes. University of Bonn neurologists visualised endorphins in the brains of 10 volunteers before and after a two-hour cardio session using a technique called positive emission tomography (PET). Comparing the pre- and post-run scans, they found evidence of more opiate binding of the happy hormone in the frontal and limbic regions of the brain – areas known to be involved in emotional processing and dealing with stress.

“There’s a direct link between feelings of wellbeing and exercise, and for the first time this study proves the physiological mechanism behind that,” explains study co-ordinator Professor Henning Boecker.

27. Make friends and stay healthy

The social side of riding could be doing you as much good as the actual exercise. University of California researchers found socialising releases the hormone oxytocin, which buffers the ‘fight or flight’ response.

Another nine-year study from Harvard Medical School found those with the most friends cut the risk of an early death by more than 60 percent, reducing blood pressure and strengthening their immune system. The results were so significant that the researchers concluded not having close friends or confidants is as detrimental to your health as smoking or carrying extra weight. Add in the fitness element of cycling too and you’re onto a winner.

28. Be happy

Even if you’re miserable when you saddle up, cranking through the miles will lift your spirits. “Any mild-to-moderate exercise releases natural feel-good endorphins that help counter stress and make you happy,” explains Andrew McCulloch, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation. That’s probably why four times more GPs prescribe exercise therapy as their most common treatment for depression compared to three years ago. “Just three 30-minute sessions a week can be enough to give people the lift they need,” says McCulloch.

29. Feeling tired? Go for a ride

Sounds counter-intuitive but if you feel too tired for a ride, the best thing you can do is go for ride. Physical activity for even a few minutes is a surprisingly effective wake-up call. A review of 12 studies on the link between exercise and fatigue carried out between 1945 and 2005 found that exercise directly lowers fatigue levels.

30. Spend quality time with your partner

It doesn’t matter if your paces aren’t perfectly matched – just slow down and enjoy each other’s company. Many couples make one or two riding ‘dates’ every week. And it makes sense: exercise helps release feel-good hormones, so after a ride you’ll have a warm feeling towards each other even if he leaves the toilet seat up and her hair is blocking the plughole again. 

Whether it's to boost your fitness, health or bank balance, or as an environmental choice, taking up cycling could be one of the best decisions you ever make. Not convinced? Here are 30 major benefits of taking to two wheels.

1. You’ll get there faster

Commute by bike in the UK’s major cities and you’ll get there in half the time of cars, research by Citroen shows. In fact, if you drive for an hour in Cardiff’s rush hour, you’ll spend over 30 minutes going absolutely nowhere and average just 7mph, compared to averaging around 12-15mph while cycling.

2. Sleep more deeply

An early morning ride might knacker you out in the short term, but it’ll help you catch some quality shut-eye when you get back to your pillow. Stanford University School of Medicine researchers asked sedentary insomnia sufferers to cycle for 20-30 minutes every other day. The result? The time required for the insomniacs to fall asleep was reduced by half, and sleep time increased by almost an hour.

“Exercising outside exposes you to daylight,” explains Professor Jim Horne from Loughborough University’s Sleep Research Centre. “This helps get your circadian rhythm back in sync, and also rids your body of cortisol, the stress hormone that can prevent deep, regenerative sleep.”

3. Look younger

Scientists at Stanford University have found that cycling regularly can protect your skin against the harmful effects of UV radiation and reduce the signs of ageing. Harley Street dermatologist Dr Christopher Rowland Payne explains: “Increased circulation through exercise delivers oxygen and nutrients to skin cells more effectively, while flushing harmful toxins out. Exercise also creates an ideal environment within the body to optimise collagen production, helping reduce the appearance of wrinkles and speed up the healing process.” Don’t forget to slap on the factor 30 before you head out, though.

4. Boost your bowels

According to experts from Bristol University, the benefits of cycling extend deep into your core. “Physical activity helps decrease the time it takes food to move through the large intestine, limiting the amount of water absorbed back into your body and leaving you with softer stools, which are easier to pass,” explains Harley Street gastroenterologist Dr Ana Raimundo.

In addition, aerobic exercise accelerates your breathing and heart rate, which helps to stimulate the contraction of intestinal muscles. “As well as preventing you from feeling bloated, this helps protect you against bowel cancer,” Dr Raimundo says.

5. Increase your brain power

Need your grey matter to sparkle? Then get pedalling. Researchers from Illinois University found that a five percent improvement in cardio-respiratory fitness from cycling led to an improvement of up to 15 percent in mental tests. That’s because cycling helps build new brain cells in the hippocampus – the region responsible for memory, which deteriorates from the age of 30.

“It boosts blood flow and oxygen to the brain, which fires and regenerates receptors, explaining how exercise helps ward off Alzheimer’s,” says the study’s author, Professor Arthur Kramer.

6. Beat illness

Forget apples, riding’s the way to keep the doctor at bay. “Moderate exercise makes immune cells more active, so they’re ready to fight off infection,” says Cath Collins, chief dietician at St George’s Hospital in London.

In fact, according to research from the University of North Carolina, people who cycle for 30 minutes, five days a week take about half as many sick days as couch potatoes.

Riding’s the way to keep the doctor at bay

7. Live longer

King’s College London compared over 2,400 identical twins and found those who did the equivalent of just three 45-minute rides a week were nine years ‘biologically younger’ even after discounting other influences, such as body mass index (BMI) and smoking.

“Those who exercise regularly are at significantly lower risk of cardiovascular disease, type two diabetes, all types of cancer, high blood pressure and obesity,” says Dr Lynn Cherkas, who conducted the research. “The body becomes much more efficient at defending itself and regenerating new cells.”

8. Save the planet

Twenty bicycles can be parked in the same space as one car. It takes around five percent of the materials and energy used to make a car to build a bike, and a bike produces zero pollution.

Bikes are efficient, too – you travel around three times as fast as walking for the same amount of energy and, taking into account the ‘fuel’ you put in your ‘engine’, you do the equivalent of 2,924 miles to the gallon. You have your weight ratio to thank: you’re about six times heavier than your bike, but a car is 20 times heavier than you.

9. Improve your sex life

Being more physically active improves your vascular health, which has the knock-on effect of boosting your sex drive, according to health experts in the US. One study from Cornell University also concluded that male athletes have the sexual prowess of men two to five years younger, with physically fit females delaying the menopause by a similar amount of time.

Meanwhile, research carried out at Harvard University found that men aged over 50 who cycle for at least three hours a week have a 30 percent lower risk of impotence than those who do little exercise.

10. It’s good breeding

A ‘bun in the oven’ could benefit from your riding as much as you. According to research from Michigan University in the US, mums-to-be who regularly exercise during pregnancy have an easier, less complicated labour, recover faster and enjoy better overall mood throughout the nine months. Your pride and joy also has a 50 percent lower chance of becoming obese and enjoys better in-utero neurodevelopment.

“There’s no doubt that moderate exercise such as cycling during pregnancy helps condition the mother and protect the foetus,” says Patrick O’Brien, a spokesman for the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

A ‘bun in the oven’ could benefit from your riding as much as you

11. Heal your heart

Studies from Purdue University in the US have shown that regular cycling can cut your risk of heart disease by 50 percent. And according to the British Heart Foundation, around 10,000 fatal heart attacks could be avoided each year if people kept themselves fitter. Cycling just 20 miles a week reduces your risk of heart disease to less than half that of those who take no exercise, it says.

12. Your boss will love you

No, we don’t mean your Lycra-clad buttocks will entice your superiors into a passionate office romance, but they’ll appreciate what cycling does for your usefulness to the company. A study of 200 people carried out by the University of Bristol found that employees who exercised before work or at lunchtime improved their time and workload management, and it boosted their motivation and their ability to deal with stress.

The study also reported that workers who exercised felt their interpersonal performance was better, they took fewer breaks and found it easier to finish work on time. Sadly, the study didn’t find a direct link between cycling and getting a promotion.

13. Cycle away from the big C

There’s plenty of evidence that any exercise is useful in warding off cancer, but some studies have shown that cycling is specifically good for keeping your cells in working order. One long-term study carried out by Finnish researchers found that men who exercised at a moderate level for at least 30 minutes a day were half as likely to develop cancer as those who didn’t. And one of the moderate forms of exercise they cited? Cycling to work. Other studies have found that women who cycle frequently reduce their risk of breast cancer by 34 percent.

14. Lose weight in the saddle

Loads of people who want to shift some heft think that heading out for a jog is the best way to start slimming down. But while running does burn a ton of fat, it’s not kind to you if you’re a little larger than you’d like to be. Think about it – two to three times your body weight goes crashing through your body when your foot strikes the ground. If you weigh 16 stone, that’s a lot of force! Instead, start out on a bike – most of your weight is taken by the saddle, so your skeleton doesn’t take a battering. Running can wait…

15. You’ll make more money

If you’re cycling to lose weight then you could be in line for a cash windfall… Well, sort of. Researcher Jay Zagorsky, from Ohio State University, analysed data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth – which saw 7,300 people regularly interviewed between 1985 and 2000 – to see how their obesity and wealth changed over that period. Zagorsky concluded that a one unit increase in body mass index (BMI) score corresponded to an £800 or eight percent reduction in wealth. So, shed a few BMI points on the bike and start earning.

16. Avoid pollution

You’d think a city cyclist would suck up much more pollution than the drivers and passengers in the vehicles chucking out the noxious gases. Not so, according to a study carried out by Imperial College London. Researchers found that passengers in buses, taxis and cars inhaled substantially more pollution than cyclists and pedestrians.

On average, taxi passengers were exposed to more than 100,000 ultrafine particles – which can settle in the lungs and damage cells – per cubic centimetre. Bus passengers sucked up just under 100,000 and people in cars inhaled about 40,000. Cyclists, meanwhile, were exposed to just 8,000 ultrafine particles per cubic centimetre. It’s thought that cyclists breathe in fewer fumes because we ride at the edge of the road and, unlike drivers, aren’t directly in the line of exhaust smoke.

Cyclists breathe in fewer fumes than drivers

17. Enjoy healthy family time

Cycling is an activity the whole family can do together. The smallest tyke can clamber into a bike seat or tow-along buggy, and because it’s kind on your joints, there’s nothing to stop grandparents joining in too.

Moreover, your riding habit could be sowing the seeds for the next Bradley Wiggins. Studies have found that, unsurprisingly, kids are influenced by their parents’ exercise choices. Put simply, if your kids see you riding regularly, they think it’s normal and will want to follow your example. Don’t be surprised, though, if they become embarrassed by your tendency to mismatch fluorescent Lycra when they become teenagers.

18. It means guilt-free snacks

Upping your salt intake is seldom your doctor’s advice, but in the few days leading up to a big ride or sportive, that’s exactly what you should do. This gives you the perfect excuse to munch on crisps and other salty foods you might normally avoid. The sodium in them helps protect your body against hyponatraemia, a condition caused by drinking too much water without enough sodium that can lead to disorientation, illness and worse.

19. Get better at any sport

Whether you want to keep in prime shape or just improve your weekly tennis game, a stint in the saddle is the way to begin. A recent medical study from Norway carried the title Aerobic Endurance Training Improves Soccer Performance, which makes it pretty clear that the knock-on benefits to other sports and activities are immense.

20. Make creative breakthroughs

Writers, musicians, artists, top executives and all kinds of other professionals use exercise to solve mental blocks and make decisions – including Jeremy Paxman, Sir Alan Sugar and Spandau Ballet. A study found that just 25 minutes of aerobic exercise boosts at least one measure of creative thinking. Credit goes to the flow of oxygen to your grey matter when it matters most, sparking your neurons and giving you breathing space away from the muddle and pressures of ‘real life’.

21. You’re helping others

Many cyclists turn their health, fitness and determination into fundraising efforts for the less fortunate. The London to Brighton bike ride has raised over £40 million for the British Heart Foundation since the two became involved in 1980, with countless other rides contributing to the coffers of worthy causes.

22. You can get fit without trying too hard

Regular, everyday cycling has huge benefits that can justify you binning your wallet-crippling gym membership. According to the National Forum for Coronary Heart Disease Foundation in the US, regular cyclists enjoy a fitness level equal to that of a person who’s 10 years younger.

23. Boost your bellows

No prizes for guessing that the lungs work considerably harder than usual when you ride. An adult cycling generally uses 10 times the oxygen they’d need to sit in front of the TV for the same period. Even better, regular cycling will help strengthen your cardiovascular system over time, enabling your heart and lungs to work more efficiently and getting more oxygen where it’s needed, quicker. This means you can do more exercise for less effort. How good does that sound?

24. Burn more fat

Sports physiologists have found that the body’s metabolic rate – the efficiency with which it burns calories and fat – is not only raised during a ride, but for several hours afterwards. “Even after cycling for 30 minutes, you could be burning a higher amount of total calories for a few hours after you stop,” says sports physiologist Mark Simpson of Loughborough University.

And as you get fitter, the benefits are more profound. One recent study showed that cyclists who incorporated fast intervals into their ride burned three-and-a-half times more body fat than those who cycled constantly but at a slower pace.

Cycling can help you lose pounds – but don't take it too far!

25. You’re developing a positive addiction

Replace a harmful dependency – such as cigarettes, alcohol or eating too much chocolate – with a positive one, says William Glasser, author of Positive Addiction. The result? You’re a happier, healthier person getting the kind of fix that boosts the good things in life.

26. Get (a legal) high

Once a thing of myth, the infamous ‘runner’s high’ has been proven beyond doubt by German scientists. Yet despite the name, this high is applicable to all endurance athletes. University of Bonn neurologists visualised endorphins in the brains of 10 volunteers before and after a two-hour cardio session using a technique called positive emission tomography (PET). Comparing the pre- and post-run scans, they found evidence of more opiate binding of the happy hormone in the frontal and limbic regions of the brain – areas known to be involved in emotional processing and dealing with stress.

“There’s a direct link between feelings of wellbeing and exercise, and for the first time this study proves the physiological mechanism behind that,” explains study co-ordinator Professor Henning Boecker.

27. Make friends and stay healthy

The social side of riding could be doing you as much good as the actual exercise. University of California researchers found socialising releases the hormone oxytocin, which buffers the ‘fight or flight’ response.

Another nine-year study from Harvard Medical School found those with the most friends cut the risk of an early death by more than 60 percent, reducing blood pressure and strengthening their immune system. The results were so significant that the researchers concluded not having close friends or confidants is as detrimental to your health as smoking or carrying extra weight. Add in the fitness element of cycling too and you’re onto a winner.

28. Be happy

Even if you’re miserable when you saddle up, cranking through the miles will lift your spirits. “Any mild-to-moderate exercise releases natural feel-good endorphins that help counter stress and make you happy,” explains Andrew McCulloch, chief executive of the Mental Health Foundation. That’s probably why four times more GPs prescribe exercise therapy as their most common treatment for depression compared to three years ago. “Just three 30-minute sessions a week can be enough to give people the lift they need,” says McCulloch.

29. Feeling tired? Go for a ride

Sounds counter-intuitive but if you feel too tired for a ride, the best thing you can do is go for ride. Physical activity for even a few minutes is a surprisingly effective wake-up call. A review of 12 studies on the link between exercise and fatigue carried out between 1945 and 2005 found that exercise directly lowers fatigue levels.

30. Spend quality time with your partner

It doesn’t matter if your paces aren’t perfectly matched – just slow down and enjoy each other’s company. Many couples make one or two riding ‘dates’ every week. And it makes sense: exercise helps release feel-good hormones, so after a ride you’ll have a warm feeling towards each other even if he leaves the toilet seat up and her hair is blocking the plughole again. 

All this week we've discussed the rise of sportives, our opinion of the biggest events around the globe, the bikes most up to the job, plus our tips on preparing and getting through them in one piece. All that's left to do is give you our own personal experiences of riding them. Take a look below at what the BikeRadar team has been riding in the last year...

Cape Argus, South Africa, March

If you've ever put much thought into your 'bucket list' - the things to do before you die - we've got an idea that will leapfrog its way straight to the top. The Cape Argus, a 68 mile gallop across the breathtaking terrain of the Cape Peninsula, was perhaps the most fun we've ever had on a bike.

With over 35,000 lining up for the staggered mass-start in downtown Cape Town, the opening miles on this traffic-free ride are a frenzied whirlwind. It's a job just to stay upright, with riders weaving their through an anxious peloton crying out for lines to be held. Crashes are inevitable, but if you can stay in one piece during the opening motorway miles you'll be rewarded with a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

The coastal scenery is otherworldly, as is the lumpy stretch through Table Mountain National Park. Expect to see baboons at the roadside, too - just don't  throw your banana skins in their direction! If you've kept enough in the tank by the foot of Chapman's Peak, you'll savour the 40km sprint for home. All that's left is to negotiate the stunning Suikerbossie climb, where an expectant public whip up a storm of enthusiasm. It's perhaps the closest an amateur cyclist will get to being a pro.

The only downside is that, at 109km, the fun is over way to early. One solution, providing your start time is early enough and you can handle the blazing afternoon sun, is to do as some of our team did and head out for another loop - this time with added coffee and cake. We politely declined, having hammered through our limit during the ride proper with a respectable time of 3hr 19mins. Instead we took a seat in one of the many beer tents, cracking open a cold one with the time barely gone 10am.

Etape du Tour, France, July

While it was the same length as the ‘Argus’, Act 1 of last year’s closed-road Etape du Tour, thanks to its mountainous parcours, was a whole other proposition. It mirrored stage 19 of the 2011 Tour de France and, as in the race, the truncated 68 mile distance served to animate the ride, giving riders the confidence to tackle the fearsome trio of the Col du Télégraphe, Col du Galibier and Alpe d’Huez without fear of blowing a gasket further down the line.

Procycling's Jamie Wilkins toasts his Look 695 having conquered Alpe d'Huez in just an hour

The organisation was remarkable: police and photographer motorbikes (65 in all), official cars, trucks, vans, coaches, ambulances, Mavic technical support cars... the Étape mimics the Tour with more than just the route. That’s perhaps not surprising as the event is now run by ASO, owners of the Tour. We finished in 4:34, climbed the Alpe in 60 minutes, placed 322nd of 9,500 starters and loved every second of the experience.

Tour of Flanders cyclosportive, Belgium, March

It's hard to tell from the above photo just how fast Tyler Farrar of Garmin-Barracuda is riding the cobbles of the Tour of Flanders but it was considerably quicker than our attempts 24 hours earlier during the sportive. We reckon there was around 20km of pave scattered around the tour's 138km course, and our heart sank every time we saw a new stretch on the horizon.

Bike set-up is all important on the cobbles and, courtesy of our hosts for the weekend, Ridley Bikes, we had their Noah FB Fast, a fantastic bike totally out of tune with our surroundings. Its ultra-stiff frame put us through the wringer, each and every cobble stone sending shock waves through our arms, leaving us battered and bruised by the time we crossed the finish line in Oudenaarde with 4:50 on the clock. If only we could have mimicked Lars Boom's tactic of switching to his low pressured cyclo-cross bike for the cobbles during the similarly punishing Paris-Roubaix, we'd have left Belgium in much better shape.

Over 15,000 tackled the route late last month, with the number of kids, women and older gents taking part reflecting the bike-crazy part of the world we were in. In terms of the world's big sportives - which this is definitely one - it's one of the more relaxed. No timing chips are involved and you depart as and when you want. Don't expect to whizz round in record breaking times, either; the roads are very narrow and, especially on the cobbled climbs, huge numbers of riders can be brought back together to the extent where your only option is to get off and push.

Exmoor Beast, UK, October

While you're never guaranteed perfect weather, most of the big events we've taken on have at least been held during months where the prospect of warm sunshine is a possibility. Not so the Exmoor Beast, a 102 mile slog through Exmoor National Park held every year on the first day of the clocks going back. Only the Fred Whitton Challenge was a tougher day in the saddle last year and if it wasn't for the fact that it came towards the end of the season when we had stacks of miles in our legs, it might have got the nod. We got around in 7:27, far too long a time to spend on a bike on the cusp of November. We could go on forever about how tough it, but this picture says it all.

Wiggle New Forest, April

While it might not be familiar to many readers outside the UK, Wiggle (and their partner in their sportive series, UK Cycling Events) have bagged a winner with their 85 mile event around the rather splendid New Forest National Park. Sportives are only as good as the roads they're based on, and they don't come much better than this. It's not the hilliest by any stretch (our Garmin 800, courtesy of Cotswold Outdoor, registered 3,500ft), but it's an exquisite route to rouse you from a post-winter slumber.

It takes you around the entire perimeter of the park and main roads are only used when absolutely essential. Watch out for the numerous wild horses, too, or you come a cropper in unfortunate fashion. With pigs and sheep roaming free in quaint villages en-route, it really was a world away from hectic city life. We were delighted with our time of 4:42 at the time, but seeing our initially lofty position on the leader board slip away as the day wore on was heartbreaking.

Organisers had to spread the event across two days this year, such was the demand. Over 1,500 took part on the Sunday alone, suggesting it could eventually end up becoming one of the 'must do' sportives on the calendar.

Fred Whitton Challenge, May

Quite what makes people rush on New Year's Day - when entry opens - to sign up to this 112 mile monster is anyone's guess. Maybe it's the guilt from the excesses of the night before, or a rash New Year's resolution.

Whatever the reason, the 1,400 places fill up in a matter of hours, with organisers now drawing the 'lucky' names out of a hat. A near catastrophic crash on the descent of Hardknott Pass, widely thought of as being the steepest road in Britain, left BikeRadar staring at an ignominious time north of 10 hours in 2011, and the desire to right this wrong is the reason we'll be returning next month to do it all over again. This photo stirs up all sorts of horrific memories though - is it too late to back out?

You may have put in hours of training during the run up to your first sportive, but all your good work can be undone if you neglect to prepare your bike, equipment and clothing correctly. Here's a run down of our essential tips to follow to make your big day runs smoothly.

Choose the right gears

Check your gear ratios. Is the cassette right for your style of riding and the event that you’re doing? Would a larger sprocket help you climb a little easier? If you are thinking of changing then give yourself plenty of time to make the swap – first checking with your supplier as to whether the derailleur is compatible with the intended ratios. Bear in mind that this could mean getting a new chain as well. Needless to say, it’s as well not to make such changes to your gearing the day before your big ride.

Sit comfortably

When you’re riding long distances, your closest friend should be the seatpad of your shorts. Treat it accordingly, ensuring that both you and your shorts are cleaned meticulously after every ride. Failure to do so can lead to infection, and that means time off the bike.

Smooth shifting

Check the indexing of your gears. Make sure that all the changes are smooth, tweaking the adjusters where necessary. Ensure that this is completed a few days prior to your target event.

Bottle washing

Wash and sterilise your drinking bottles regularly, particularly if you’ve been using recovery drinks/energy products and the like. It is worth looking for bottles with a cap to cover the spout, although this will make drinking en route a little more awkward. This helps to keep the spout protected from road grime and other unpleasant substances that transfer from the road to your bike and to your mouth – such as manure.

Chamois cream

Applying ‘saddle cream’ to the seat of your shorts should cut down friction and soreness. This tends to be very personal, though, and you need to find out the appropriate cream for you. There are several types available, but petroleum jelly – like Vaseline – is often found useful. A coating of an antiseptic cream containing cetrimide will prevent infection occurring.

Sun safe

Even in the UK the sun can be quite fierce at times, so remember to apply sun protection, not forgetting to coat your neck, nose and ears as well as exposed limbs. Don’t forget your sunglasses either; these will protect your eyes from dust and insects as well as the glare.

Brake alignment

Check your brake pad alignment to ensure you have better and safer braking. The blocks should be slightly toed in at the front so that the block closes on the rim correctly and doesn’t cause any squealing. This correction will improve performance and should give you more confidence when descending.

Gloves

On longer distance events your hands can take a hammering, so a good pair of close fitting cycling mitts are a must. As well as cushioning the hands when you’re holding the bar, they will stop or reduce the chances of unpleasant grazes should you have an accident.

Route recce

Study and take a note of the route ahead of event day. It isn’t unheard of for direction signs to have been removed. Even the best modern instruments can fail, or even suggest going the wrong way. And don’t simply rely on following other riders, because they may be lost too. (There’s even the chance that the cyclists you’re following aren’t even riding the same event!)

One of the best ways to keep yourself motivated and indulge your new-found love of riding is to set yourself a goal, and one of the simplest things for a cyclist to target is a significant distance. Depending on your fitness level, that can be anything from 30 up to 100 miles – anything that you realistically believe you can achieve in a set amount of time.

Whether you opt to ride your target distance on your own, enter a mass-participation sportive or take part in a charity challenge like the British Heart Foundation’s annual London to Brighton ride, one thing’s for sure – you need to train, and train in the right way. Below are a list of guidelines to follow that will hopefully help you in your quest to conquer your first big event.

Set your goal

First off, choose your event. Be realistic: if you took up cycling only a couple of months ago, don’t enter a monster slog through the French Alps. Challenging, yes; sensible, no. Then think about exactly what you want to achieve on your ride. Are you completing, competing or conquering? Again, be reasonable. Set an impossible aim and you’ll soon lose motivation. Once you have your goal sorted, write it down and put it in your wallet, next to your computer, on the dashboard or fridge door - anywhere that you’ll see it often enough to help keep you focused.

Get long rides in

We all miss occasional planned rides, but even if you can’t do high mileage outings all the time, don’t miss the long rides at the heart of your training – they’re vital. Bad weather? Go out anyway; you could get bad weather on event day. Bike broken? Fix it, or get your bike shop to sort it – and learn how you could have solved the problem out on the road. Long rides are when your body gets used to handling the demands you face on the big day; they help you learn to draw on your fuel reserves more efficiently, and they get your head prepared for long, gruelling efforts.

Develop technique

Get used to incorporating technique work into your general rides, as well as devoting regular sessions to improving your skills. Find a long, winding hill and time yourself down it over several runs, looking to get quicker by laying off the brakes, leaning into the corners and learning when to put the power back on. Be careful – do this with a riding mate and only on quiet roads where you can easily see any approaching traffic. And don’t think that you can make up for poor climbing by flying downhill.

Sheltering from the wind in a group saves you masses of power output from your legs and will improve your sportive finishing time, but it doesn’t necessarily come easily – there are tactics to learn here too, so practise in regular group rides and local road races. The more comfortable you are riding in close formation, the more time you can save.

Muscle power

Lactic acid is produced when your body breaks down carbohydrate for fuel, resulting in lactate in your blood that affects your muscle performance. All you really need to know is that the point at which lactate starts to accumulate faster than you can disperse it is your lactate threshold (LT), and raising it helps you ride faster for longer. Working on your power is important too, both for increasing the amount of force you can put into every pedal stroke and also for increasing endurance.

Take breaks

You don’t get fitter when you’re riding, you get fitter when you recover afterwards, which is why you need to have at least one day without exercise every week, or more if you over-stretch yourself, plus an easy week each month.

Drink enough

You might have read that you should drink 500-1000ml of fluid an hour while riding, but that’s only a rough guide. Work out precisely what you need at varying intensities and in different weather conditions by following this process over several rides:

• Weigh yourself while undressed, before putting on your cycle kit. As an example, suppose that it’s 75kg.
• On your return, note the amount you drank and ate during your ride. We’ll say it was 1500ml, which weighs 1.5kg, and three gels of 0.06kg each, so you’ve taken a total of 1.68kg on board.
•  Before showering, eating or drinking, towel yourself dry and weigh yourself again. We’ll say it’s now 73.2kg.
•  Subtract the second weight from the first to get your bodyweight change: 75 - 73.2 = 1.8kg.
•  Add the weight of the food to this to get your total loss: 1.8 + 1.68 = 3.48kg.
•  Estimate any bathroom stops because this will mean losses are higher.
•  Divide total losses by the hours spent riding: 3.48 ÷ 3hrs = 1.16kg lost per hour

You won’t get to the end of your training ride or event at the same weight as you started, but eat and drink enough to be within 1-2kg. Never be more than 2-3 percent down in mass unless it’s a ride where you really can’t get adequate fuel down.

Become fuel efficient

You need to drink when you ride to replace the water you sweat and breathe out, but for longer training rides and during the event itself you must use drinks to help provide fuel. Suffering ‘bonk’ – when your body can’t get the energy it needs and refuses to cooperate any further – is very bad news.

For both training and the big ride, try a drink that’s 5-7 per cent carbohydrate. This is an isotonic level, meaning the drink contains the same concentration of dissolved particles as your body fluids, so will be absorbed fast. Some people prefer a hypotonic drink – one with a carb level of less than 5 per cent. The only way to find out what’s right for you is by experimenting in training. Choose a drink that also contains electrolytes, particularly sodium. This speeds up the delivery of fluid to your body, so it’s especially important on longer rides.

Finally, it’s key to go for a drink that you really enjoy the taste of – that way you’re far more likely to drink enough. Drink plenty before you go out on your bike so that you start off fully hydrated, and continue drinking afterwards – a little and often – to aid recovery. If you’ve trained for over an hour, make it a carb drink. Don’t wait until you feel really thirsty – that’s a bad gauge of need.

You should consume at least 1g of carbohydrate per kilogram of bodyweight for every hour of riding. This can be in the form of carb-electrolyte drinks, gels, bars, solid food, or a mix of these. But your needs could be different from the norm so it’s important to experiment in training. That way you’ll be able to tell exactly what you can tolerate and what you need with you on the day. If riding an event, find out what food and drink will be available and at what points along the route. If you can’t stomach the energy drink on offer, take your own sachets. If you get sick of sweet stuff, check there’ll be something savoury for you to grab, or carry it with you.

Avoid injury

When you step up the amount of riding you do you’ll be adding stresses and strains on your body. You might be tempted to ignore niggles in order to stick with the programme. Don’t! Riding through the pain is a great way to make minor problems major. If you get injured, take it seriously. Take some time off the bike or do some cross-training, and if it’s a biomechanical problem have your riding position looked at by an expert. If necessary, visit a health professional. Whatever you do, don’t ignore a potential injury when it’s still in the niggle stage.

Pace yourself

Pacing is crucial in training and on the big day. The main trick is to climb at an intensity that won’t blow your legs. This comes with experience, but if you’ve trained by heart rate (HR) or power you should have a good idea of what you can sustain. If you don’t know how hard you should be working, don’t go over 85 per cent of your max HR on even the steepest hills or you’ll dip too far into your glycogen stores. You have limited glycogen and can never eat enough to make up for going too hard too soon. Pace yourself, feed regularly and enjoy the ride.

Cyclosportives - commonly referred to as sportives - and gran fondos have become a firm fixture on the the worldwide cycling calendar in recent years, offering both seasoned racers and newcomers to the sport a challenge that can be as gruelling or straighforward as they wish.

Inspired by events such as the Etape du Tour and La Marmotte in France, and the Cape Argus in South Africa, their growth can be explained by several factors, including the increase of people using bikes for commuting and a drive towards healthier, more active, lifestyles.

Sportives appeal to riders of any experience or fitness level. Some riders will be looking for an element of competition, perhaps by signing up with a bunch of mates for a burn up, or trying to be in the first or fastest group to finish. Others, who might find road racing a little strenuous or elitist, can ride at a steadier pace and still enjoy the benefits of a ride with marked directions, feed stops and mechanical support.

Well stocked feed stations are high on the list of priorities of any sportive rider

What is a sportive?

A cyclosportive is characterised by being a mass participation cycling event. In several countries, including the UK and Australia and parts of the USA, they're billed as non-competitive events. However in Europe in particular, there is more of a competitive element with categories and prizes awarded for fastest finishers.

Most, if not all, sportives use timing chips means a healthy level of competitiveness is always present no matter what. Results are usually published in detail on the event website and often have gold, silver or bronze time standards, and nobody wants to see their name languishing at the tail end of the table.

Where to find a cyclosportive

Finding the event that's right for you has never been easier. Like the professional scene, the sportive season doesn't seem to have a beginning or end these days, so whether you enjoy warm weather rides in the height of summer or bone-chilling slogs in the depths of winter, somewhere there'll be a ride for you. Websites such as Cyclosport carry an excellent worldwide events calendar, while British Cycling's sportive section is the go-to place to scout out a UK event.

Once you've found one, sign-up through the event website as soon as you can. The biggest events - the Fred Whittons, La Marmottes and Cape Arguses of this world - regularly oversubscribe and only offer a brief period for you to register interest. They often select entries by ballot, so it can become a bit of a lottery whether you secure a place or not.

Why, with climbs like this, the Fred Whitton sells out instantly, is anyone's guess

Basic preparation and training

Once you've got your place, all you have to worry about is getting through the ride. Newcomers shouldn't underestimate the physical demands of a long 100km or 100 mile sportive, so the hours you spend in the saddle beforehand will have a major impact on how much fun you have on the day. Try and get as close to, if not beyond, the distance of your intended event during your training. Keep your training specific too; don't ride long miles on flat roads if you've signed up to a hilly ride.

Neither should you doubt their difficulty, particularly some of Britain's sportives. While they lack the mountains of their Alpine counterparts, they tend to have more sharper, steeper climbs that can sap your strength as much, perhaps more so, than any mountain can over a seven-hour ride.

The morning prior to setting off is similar no matter which event you sign up to. Expect an early start, a battle to find a parking space and a queue to sign on. Last minute carbo-loading, pinning your number to your bike, getting your machine in good working order, and fitting your timing chip will become second nature after a few events.

At the majority of events, riders will set off in a staggered fashion in small groups in order to avoid large bunches clogging up open roads, but expect to depart in large groups in closed-road events such as the Etape du Tour or Cape Argus.

The start of Cape Town's Cape Argus is like no other on the planet

On the day, pacing is vital. If you're new to cycling and sportives, and riding your first 100km event, don’t be tempted to chase faster riders early on. Take it at your own pace, preferably with a group of friends. Smaller events can occasionally turn into lonely time trials if you're short of company, and can become demoralising after hours of solo riding.

Make sure you're fully tooled up and well versed in the basics of bike mechanics. Spare inner tubes, a pump, a puncture repair kit, a mobile phone, money, medication and appropriate attire are the absolute essentials. While many sportives have mechanics out on the course, you should treat them like you would a solo training ride and leave nothing to chance. Make sure you know how to change a tyre - it sounds simple but you'd be surprised how many people can't.

Make sure you eat and drink steadily throughout the ride and don’t be tempted to skip a feed stop to save time - speaking from experience, you'll pay for it down the line!

Above all, enjoy it. While some sportives, such as the ones mentioned above, have become de facto races, the majority are there to be enjoyed at your own pace and give you a taste of things to come further down the line should you wish to progress into racing.

Our debut installment of Budget Bike Tech focused on keeping your feet warm during cold rides. This time around, we're doing a complete reversal by showing you an extremely inexpensive – and yet extremely effective – method for keeping your hydration pack fluids icy cold on hot days.

Many hydration packs already build some amount of insulation into the body of the pack itself but in our experience, it's woefully inadequate when outside temperatures are really sweltering. Even with a reservoir full of ice cubes, we've typically ended up with a pack full of tepid liquid after riding in summer for even just a couple of hours.

The simple solution is to just create your own insulating sleeve using a thin sheet of closed-cell foam and some sturdy tape. The foam is widely available at office supply shops or hardware stores or – even better – you can simply repurpose some packing material as we've done, in which case the grand total cost for the project is nearly zero. As long as it's a little more than twice as big as the hydration reservoir you wish to insulate, you're good to go.

Adding a layer of closed-cell foam provides effective insulation for your hydration pack's reservoir

Simply lay out the reservoir down on the foam sheet and outline the outer edge with a marker, leaving a buffer of about 1cm. Put the reservoir aside, fold the foam along the bottom edge, then cut through both layers along the outline. Finally, tape the left and right edges together to form the sleeve (or wrap the entire thing as we've done for extra durability), cut out a bit for the reservoir cap as needed, and you should be all set.

Surely this can't work, you say, right? To be honest, even we were shocked at how effective this was. In fact, it even took us a few rides to get the ice-to-fluid mixture right as we often ended up with a reservoir full of solid ice cubes with nothing to drink. Once we figured out the ideal blend, though, we've regularly enjoyed genuinely icy cold refreshment up to three hours after leaving the trailhead.

In addition to being virtually free, our insulating sleeve also weighs next to nothing at just 24g and has held up to over years of regular use with nary a bit of wear to be seen. Since you're making the sleeve yourself, it's also no problem adapting the shape and size to whatever make or model of hydration pack you happen to use. Even better, you can just make another one if you lose or wreck the thing.

One has to ask, though – if this is such a great and effective idea, why doesn't someone offer this commercially? That's a good question and one that we actually presented to Camelbak shortly after we deemed the experiment successful.

Curiously – especially since they utilize a nearly identical strategy for their insulated bottles – Camelbak told us the idea was intriguing but that they were satisfied with the level of insulation that was already incorporated into their packs at the time.

That's just fine with us. Some of you might prefer to be able to just head to your local shop and buy something like for US$10-15 or so but seeing as how no one is ever going to see this thing, anyway, the DIY route gets the job done just as well and still leaves money left over for a decent lunch. Win.

Budget Bike Tech is a new column here on  BikeRadar, focused not on the latest high-end gear and accessories but on cheap and clever tips, tricks and upgrades that cost virtually no money at all. Improve your riding and improve your ride – just don't go broke in the process.

Budget Bike Tech is a new column here on BikeRadar, focused not on the latest high-end gear and accessories but on cheap and clever tips, tricks and upgrades that cost virtually no money at all. Improve your riding and improve your ride – just don't go broke in the process.

This week we're looking at Tyvek. This amazing stuff made by DuPont is thin like paper, flexible like fabric, waterproof and windproof. This makes it a perfect material for protecting your feet in moderately cold conditions. 

Simply take an old race number or shipping envelope, trim it to fit, and wrap it around your socked foot from about the front of the ankle forward. It doesn't have to be pretty since the Tyvek will be invisible once you're done. Just make sure you've obscured all of the mesh panels in your shoes as well as the sole vents, if there are any.

Once your foot is wrapped (a single layer will typically do), slide it into your shoe and make sure to wiggle your toes around thoroughly before tightening down the straps. Tyvek is highly protective stuff but it doesn't stretch so you want to make sure you push the material out to the edges of the toe box so as not to affect the fit.

We've been successfully using this strategy all winter and combined with thin wool socks, our feet have stayed reasonably warm during road rides just below 10°C (50°F). The Tyvek material has virtually no volume so it doesn't affect shoe fit and is easily packed in a jersey pocket or saddle bag, plus it's durable enough to reuse nearly ad infinitum.  Moreover, you still have access to your shoe straps and buckles for on-the-fly adjustments.

Keep in mind that this technique isn't all that effective in wet conditions where conventional booties would be a better choice and that Tyvek isn't very breathable so it's a good idea to leave at least part of your foot uncovered for ventilation, especially on longer rides. 

Unless you're particularly generous with the coverage, you won't get any protection for the front of your ankle this way, either. Otherwise, though, this has proven to be not only an effective alternative to lightweight booties, but one that costs almost nothing. 

If you've done it right, the Tyvek will block off all of your shoe vents but will otherwise be invisible (you can just see a bit of red from the Tyvek scrap we used peeking through the mesh around the toe)