#velofixGive30 Update. Halfway through!
Our first #velofixGive30 Challenge is now halfway done. If you’re not already familiar with our new challenge, you can read all about it here:
https://www.velofix.com/locations/ottawa/news/velofixgive30-challenge
In short, the goal is to exercise for at least 30 minutes a day. You can do more than 30 minutes and you can choose any form of exercise: cycling, walking, snowshoeing, yoga, running, the gym, etc. The whole motivation behind his is to get people moving and stay active. You can exercise at your own pace and do your exercise whenever is most convenient for you.
Lastly, if you’re like most people, the hardest part can be finding the time to do 30 minutes of exercise. With the face-paced lives that we live, it seems to get harder and harder to make the time for exercise. If there’s ever a day that you can’t make the time, don’t worry! You can miss a day, or two, or 30. We’re just hoping that this challenge helps motivate you to be consistent and make the time when you can.
I wanted to write a short blog post to give everyone an update on how things are going. In a word: GREAT! I’ve been blown away by how active everyone has been to-date, how engaging they’ve been on social media and how positive everyone has been. It’s hard to say if the participants are doing MORE than their usual amount of exercise, or if they’re usually this active but in the first 15 days, the average participant has missed only one day! I can’t speak for others but I’d love to give you some insight on how the first half of the #velofixGive30 challenge is going for me.
As a bike shop owner, March is a tricky month. The early part of the month is usually spent getting the last details ready for the “spring rush”. I’m cleaning up my website, repairing the van, ordering inventory, scheduling staff for the summer, etc. The first week of March is typically my last chance to get things done before I start to see the influx of bike repairs. Shortly after that, it’s March break, the official start of spring and by then, I’m in the thick of things. This March has held up to expectations. With the warm weather we’ve seen and the on-again-off-again snowstorms, it’s been a busy few weeks with bike repairs AND ski repairs. In years past, if I did happen to have time for exercise, it usually got replaced with work – catching up on emails, cleaning the van, etc. Sometimes it feels like I’m trying to “find work” at the end of the day and I end up doing tasks that probably aren’t all that important. Even though the #velofixGive30 challenge isn’t meant to be difficult or take over other priorities in life, I’ve made a conscious effort this month to make the time for exercise. The results speak for themselves!
1) I’ve only missed one day so far. On that one day, I had a family engagement pop into my calendar last minute (literally as I was getting dressed to go cycling!) and I had to miss my pre-scheduled workout. However, I chose to park 15 minutes away from the event I was going to, so I would walk 15 minutes there and 15 minutes back. While this “might” count as a 30-minute exercise, I chose to leave it as a “miss” to remind myself that things will get in the way and that it’s okay to take a day off.
2) I haven’t fallen behind on work. At the end of the day, I’m left with the same amount of work as I had before. That tells me that I was spending over 30 minutes a day doing things inefficiently or doing things that really didn’t need to be done. By putting more into my schedule (the daily exercise), I’m able to get just as much work done, in less time!
3) I’m on a roll! At the beginning of the month, I had a harder time getting my exercise in. I was always hunting for the right clothes to wear, my bike wasn’t set up, I could never find the shoes I needed for the sport, etc. However, now that I’m in a routine, all the little details are in place and it couldn’t be easier to be active. If I plan to do a 30-minute Zwift ride , I can get changed, set up my laptop, clip in, do the ride, upload the ride to Strava and get changed, in 35 minutes. When all it takes is a minute or to get started, it’s a lot easier to decide to do it.
With all this being said, I have 3 takeaways from my first 15 days with the #velofixGive30 challenge:
1) Get in a routine. I know it’s hard to find time but if you can force yourself to do even 5 days in a row, your body will start to crave the exercise and you’ll look forward to it.
2) Prepare. Before my velofix days, I was more of a runner than a cyclist and my job at the time made morning-runs more convenient- scheduling-wise. I use to lay out my running clothing and put my running shoes at the edge of my bed at night. When I woke up, the first thing I saw was my running shoes and it reminded me to do that morning run, or risk not being able to run at all that day. Having my outfit laid out help me get dressed in record time so that I could be out the door before my motivation ran out.
3) Have fun. There have been days where I plan to ride Zwift, but the weather tells me I’d have more fun riding outdoors. There are days where the icy sidewalks make for a difficult run, so I opt to take a spin class instead. If all I’m trying to do is tick a box, so that I can say my daily exercise is done – I don’t have a system that’s scalable or built to last.
Speaking of spinning – did you know that we’re hosting a FREE spinning class on March 24th at 2pm? There’s still room to attend and there really are no strings attached. We’ll be hosting the class at The Dailey Method I met the owner recently, took one of their classes and had a blast! I convinced them to let me borrow their studio for an hour so that we get more people active.. Cost can be a big barrier to exercise and I’m hoping that a free class makes it easier for people to attend. Please email Adam@velofix.com if you’d like to join us for that class. All abilities are welcome for this 45-minute class.
We’re now halfway through the #velofixGive30 challenge. If you’d like to join, there’s still time! If the idea of signing up for anything official isn’t your thing – no worries! You can still get involved by using the hashtag #velofixGive30 on your next workout.
Thanks for reading and thanks for being active this month!
Adam Kourakis | Owner and Operator
C: (613) 857-2818
1-855-VELO FIX | www.velofix.com
velofix Canadian Franchise of the year – 2018
Canadian Cycling – Bike Shop of the Year, 2017
Leadership in Health – Go Green Award Winner, 2017
Rideau Valley Conservation Authority – Certified Carbon Neutral since 2015