We love social media. It really does open up the world to us and provides access to a vast amount of information that we would have struggled to find a decade ago.

Yesterday, we found ourselves mentioned in a Tweet. We thought: ‘interesting, thanks for the mention’ and then we proceeded to click on the link to explore further. We were taken to a summary of a British Heart Foundation funded research project about the African-Caribbean community and heart failure.

We just love this about social media. Information is so accessible; it literally falls into your lap (or Twitter feed!). It’s great when people take the time to seek you out and bring relevant information to your attention.

What exactly was being brought to our attention?

The research that was being brought to our attention by our fellow Twitter user was a study published in the journal of Circulation Heart Failure conducted by lead researcher Dr Jason Dungu from St Georges University of London. His work explored the causes of heart failure in different ethnic groups with a particular focus on the Afro-Caribbean population.  This research revealed that the cause of heart failure is dependent on ethnicity.

What did the researchers do in this study?

They looked at all patients with heart failure who attended St George’s Hospital Heart Failure Clinic between 2005 and 2012. These included 1392 patients, 211 of these patients were Afro-Caribbean.

Participants’ diagnosis of heart failure was confirmed through a medical history, an examination and various tests. The cause of their heart failure was determined by an initial assessment and then confirmed by a review of the patient’s records and through any investigations and findings.

What did they find?

The researchers found that the causes of heart failure varied based on ethnic group. For example the most common cause of heart failure in white patients was coronary heart disease; this was the cause of heart failure in 41% of white patients.  When they looked at Afro-Caribbean patients coronary heart disease was the cause of heart failure in just 13% of these patients.

In Afro-Caribbean patients the most common cause of heart failure was non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy. This was the cause in 28% of Afro-Caribbean patients compared to 20% of white patients.  Other causes of heart failure in Afro-Caribbean patients included:

• hypertensive cardiomyopathy (12% of black patients; in white patients this was the cause in 2.2% of cases);
• cardiac amyloidosis (11% of black patients; in white patients this was the cause in 1.6% of cases)
• valvular heart disease (7% of black patients)

The finding that 11% of Afro-Caribbean patients developed heart failure due to cardiac amyloidosis was very significant. This is because whilst, generally speaking, cardiac amyloidosis is considered a rare condition, it features in 11% of Afro-Caribbean heart failure patients, making it the fourth most common cause of heart failure in this ethnic group. Additionally it was found that patients who develop heart failure due to cardiac amyloidosis had a lower survival rate than those who develop heart failure due to coronary heart disease. This means that more attention needs to be paid to these patients.

The Importance of this Research

This research reveals that when diagnosing and treating heart failure ethnicity needs to be taken into account and Afro-Caribbean patients have to be handled differently.

Thank you social media!

It’s great that through social media we can easily gain access to the latest research and we thank those that continue seek us out when relevant research is published.

References

Afro-Caribbean Heart Failure in the United Kingdom: Cause, Outcomes, and ATTR V122I Cardiac Amyloidosis. Circulation: Heart Failure 2016; 9: e003352

On 1^st October, we attended the Fibroid Forum. This was an excellent informative event organised by a group of ladies affected by fibroids.  In our previous blog we discussed the first half of the event and in today’s blog we’ll summarise the second half of the event.

The final part of the fibroid forum focused on treatment and we heard from two speakers on this topic, Dr Raj Das, Consultant Diagnostic and Interventional Radiologist at St Georges and Professor Isaac Manyonda, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist at St Georges.

Uterine Artery Embolisation

Dr Raj Das focused his presentation on uterine artery embolisation (UAE), an established procedure which has been used by doctors since the 1990s to treat fibroids; it involves cutting off the blood supply feeding the fibroid.  Dr Das spoke about the evidence that demonstrated the benefits of UAE. The benefits include patients having a good clinical outcome, patients reporting a good outcome themselves, lower blood loss, a shorter hospital stay and a quicker return to work than  some other procedures.  He also added that for UAE the rate of infection is less than 5% and that after the UAE procedure the fibroids are still there and what they are looking for is symptom improvement rather than disappearance of the fibroids, but in 3-5% of cases the fibroids do clear themselves. He stated that UAE is a viable treatment for those wishing to retain fertility.

Dr Das also mentioned that UAE can be used when women with fibroids have any of the following: severe heavy bleeding,  painful periods, anaemia and pressure on the bladder or bowel.  He also touched on aftercare and suggested that women take 1-2 weeks off work after the procedure, avoid driving for five days and only engage in light activities at home during the recovery period.

Surgical and Medical Treatment

Following Dr Das’ presentation we then heard from Prof Isaac Manyonda. Prof Manyonda discussed surgical and medical interventions for treating fibroids and started by explaining that it is very important that doctors optimise the care that women receive because of the changing demographics of childbirth – women are delaying pregnancy until later in life when fibroids are more common and more likely to be symptomatic.  He said the old adage “babies, then fibroids, then hysterectomy” no longer works.

 Prof Manyonda focused his talk on two areas:

• The surgical removal (myomectomy and hysterectomy)
• The medical management (drug treatment – ESMYA)

With regards to surgical removal, Prof Manyonda stated that a myomectomy is more complex than a hysterectomy (removal of the womb) and there can be more blood loss. He mentioned that for the same sized fibroid it takes 40 minutes to perform a hysterectomy compared to  sometimes 150 minutes for a myomectomy. He also described the benefits of a hysterectomy which are: it provides a definitive cure, there is no possibility of a recurrence of the fibroids and it has one of the best outcomes  in terms of quality of life, but it does remove all fertility potential.  Prof Manyonda talked about the recovery period saying that a hysterectomy requires a 3-4 night hospital stay and an 8 week recuperation period with a phased return to work.

Prof Manyonda then discussed a myomectomy which is the removal of the fibroids while preserving the womb so there is the possibility of pregnancy in the future.  He explained that it requires a 4 night hospital stay and, like a hysterectomy, women will need an 8 week recuperation period with a phased return to work.  He also advised that women wait 6 months before attempting pregnancy. He did warn that whilst one of the main benefits of a myomectomy is to preserve fertility it can actually compromise the very same fertility that it is intended to preserve due to the formation of scar tissue, so it needs to be done carefully. Furthermore he explained that with a myomectomy we’re dealing with the fibroids that are there and it doesn’t tackle the cause so new fibroids can develop. He also said that it’s best that all the fibroids are removed and none are left behind to give women the best chance of a good outcome long-term.

He mentioned that many women are only offered a hysterectomy because it is felt they are too old for child-bearing or their fibroids are too large, too many or in the wrong place, but research has shown that women should also be offered a myomectomy and age, size, number nor location of fibroids should be a barrier.

Finally Prof Manyonda touched on the medical management of fibroids with the drug ESMYA. He stated that we need as many weapons as possible to fight fibroids as not everyone is suited for surgery or UAE. ESMYA is a drug that initially was licensed to be used 3 months prior to surgery but now it can be used as a standalone therapy. Research has shown that it can reduce the size of fibroids and improve a number of fibroids-related symptoms. He said whilst it is promising we have to exercise caution as its unclear what the long-term impact of this treatment will be. He said ESMYA is a good option for older women or for those who are not keen on surgery.

This was a really informative event which ended with an open discussion where women were able to ask Prof Manyonda and Dr Das questions and share their personal stories.

We’d like to thank the House of Bread for organising this much-needed conference and we were very pleased to have been given the opportunity to have a stall at this event.

This week researchers from the University of Otago in New Zealand published the results from their study which showed that taking a short walk after a meal may be effective in controlling the blood glucose levels of type 2 diabetics.

The researchers conducted this study to expand on the current advice that regular physical activity is effective in diabetes management. They wanted to determine whether the timing of  physical activity in relation to meals enhances the benefit of physical activity.

How did the researchers explore this?

To explore this, researchers conducted a study with 41 adults with type 2 diabetes. Participants either took part in 30 minutes of physical activity every day or were advised to walk for 10 minutes after their main meal. Both of these scenarios met the t physical activity guidelines for people with type 2 diabetes.   The blood glucose level of participants was then  measured 3 hours after each main meal.

What did they find?

The researchers found that  blood glucose levels were 12% lower when participants had walked after their meals compared to if they had just carried out physical activity once a day.  They also determined that the improvement was enhanced after the evening meal (22%), as this is the meal where the most carbohydrate is eaten and when people are more inactive.

What were their conclusions?

The study concluded that

“The benefits relating to physical activity following meals suggests that current guidelines should be amended to specify post-meal activity, particularly when meals contain  a substantial amount of carbohydrate.”

The importance of this research

The black community is three times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than their white counterparts and the African and Caribbean diet tends to be quite rich in carbohydrate so this research is helpful for black type 2 diabetics in understanding how they can manage their condition.

As well as following your doctor’s advice on the type of diet you should be consuming, as a type 2 diabetic, make sure you are engaging in enough physical activity and from the results of this research, taking a short walk after your main meal appears to be of benefit.

Reference

Reynolds, A.N., Mann, J.I., Williams, S. et al. Diabetologia (2016). doi:10.1007/s00125-016-4085-2

Today is World Mental Health Day and this year’s theme is psychological first aid and the support people can provide to those in distress.

Watch our video clips below to learn what you can do support someone with a mental health challenge.

Abi Begho, Founder of The Lake Foundation

Abi Begho- from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Baffour Ababio, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist

About Me: Baffour Ababio

Baffour WMHD-_2 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Know What Support Services Are Available

Baffour WMHD- from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Reach Out and Be Inclusive

Baffour WMHD-_1 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Olivia Haltman, Accredited Integrative Humanistic Counsellor and EMDR Therapist

About Me: Olivia Haltman

Olivia WHMD Intro from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Be Informed

Olivia WHMD_1 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Don’t Give Up

Olivia WHMD_2 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Ask if They’re OK

Olivia WHMD_3 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Janet McNish,  Counsellor and Trainer

About Me: Janet McNish

Janet #wmhd Intro from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Take Care of Yourself

Janet WMHD from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Remember the Good Times

Janet WMHD_1 from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

In Conclusion: Validate their experience and provide a listening ear

JanetOliviaBaffour WMHD from Aniku Ltd on Vimeo.

Last Saturday, we had the pleasure of having a stand at the Fibroid Forum. This was an event organised by a group of ladies from the House of Bread who have all been affected by fibroids.

The event brought together clinical experts, organisations working on various aspects of fibroids and women affected fibroids  to discuss this health issue and its treatment. There was also an open forum with an expert panel giving women the opportunity to share their experiences and ask experts questions.

In this blog we’re going to summarise the first half of the event which covered an introduction to fibroids, personal stories and an overview of the NICE guidance.  In our next blog we’ll summarise the second half of the event which covered surgical treatment, radiology treatment, aftercare and the open forum.

An Introduction to Fibroids

The event started with a welcome and opening prayer by Dawn Martin who also shared her story and stressed that fibroids are not just physical but emotional and it’s something that affected every aspect of her life including her relationships, work, what she wore and even planning her holidays.

This was followed by a short film that provided an overview of what fibroids are and then we heard from our first main speaker, Audrey Skervin, who talked through some facts and figures  as well as the symptoms.

We then heard from Yvonne Maye who discussed how fibroids have affected her. She stated that she was happy that we’ve now reached an age where women can speak openly about fibroids as when she was diagnosed many years ago issues like fibroids were not spoken about meaning that many women suffered in silence. Another interesting point she raised was the pressure that women felt at the point of diagnosis to have baby. Many doctors, and this was confirmed by other attendees, placed women under a lot of pressure to start having a family without understanding their personal situation and this added to their distress.

Fibroids Research Update: New NICE Guidelines on Heavy Bleeding

Next on the agenda was Christine Clewlow, Medical Scientific Liaison Manager at Gedeon Richter. She gave an update on interesting fibroids news focusing on the NICE guidelines.

NICE or the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence is the organisation that produces evidence-based guidance that is used by the NHS to decide what treatment should be made freely available on the NHS.

NICE has guidance on heavy menstrual bleeding which is very relevant to many women affected by fibroids, as this is one of the main symptoms. The NICE guidance on heavy bleeding was first written in 2007 and a summary version is available here. The parts of the guidance that are relevant to patients are:

• Any interventions [to treat heavy menstrual bleeding] should aim to improve quality of life measures
• A women with heavy menstrual bleeding referred to specialist care should be given information before her outpatient appointment
• Ultrasound is the first-line diagnostic tool for identifying structural abnormalities (e.g. fibroids)
• A women with heavy menstrual bleeding should be given the opportunity to review and agree any treatment decisions. She should have adequate time and support from healthcare professionals in the decision-making process

Christine highlighted the importance of these guidance  stating that they are designed to ensure that patients are being treated appropriately and women shouldn’t be afraid to challenge doctors if they aren’t following the guidance.

Christine also informed attendees that the guidance is being updated and the new guidance should be published in August 2017

In the discussion following Christine’s presentations there were some really useful recommendations put forward for women who have symptoms they are concerned about:

1. Before visiting your GP make a list of all your symptoms
2. Do your research so you arrive at your appointment with your GP prepared
3. Make a note of all your questions so you can have a constructive discussion with your GP
4. If you think you may have fibroids, be aware of the guidance so you can have an informed discussion with your GP about next steps.

This ended the first half of the event which was a good introduction into fibroids, providing attendees with a good foundation for the next half which was more clinical and this will be covered in our next blog. Stay tuned!

This blog is the second in a two-part series discussing alternative feminine hygiene products. This follows on from our blog on menstrual cups and this series is a result of a discussion at our recent fibroid focus conference that got us thinking about the fact that many women with fibroids experience heavy and prolonged periods. This means they use large quantities of tampons and pads and we want to ensure that women who use these products more frequently than most are aware of all the options out there so they use the best products for them.

What’s the Problem?

Over the last few years there has been quite a bit of focus on the chemicals in feminine hygiene products and these chemicals have raised concerns about their possible health effects.

Research has shown that chemicals like dioxins are found in trace amounts in tampons and pads. These chemicals are by-products of the bleaching process and whilst they are in small quantities and cause no harm after just a one-off exposure, women use these products very frequently and it’s not clear if the frequent exposure could lead to an accumulation of dioxins in the body. The WHO states that long-term exposure to dioxins  is “linked to impairment of the immune system, the developing nervous system, the endocrine system and reproductive functions.”

Additionally, testing has found detectable amounts of pesticides in five out of eleven of the products tested and long-term exposure to pesticides may affect the liver, brain and reproductive system and has been linked to autism and some types of cancer.

Furthermore many manufacturers don’t list all the chemicals in their products making it hard for women to make an informed choice about the products they use. This led to a petition calling for companies to list all the components of their feminine hygiene products which has been signed by over 250,000 people.

The Solution

In order to avoid the chemicals in tampons and pads a number of companies now manufacture organic feminine hygiene products to give women a more natural alternative.

Companies producing organic feminine hygiene products tend to used certified organic cotton as their absorbent material rather than synthetic absorbent material. They also don’t use harsh bleaching agents so their products are chlorine free and won’t have traces of dioxins.  They are also plastic free, fragrance free and many consider the environment and make their products biodegradable.

These organic products are a good alternative to the synthetic products that are widely available and it is worth searching them out.

Where Can I get Organic Feminine Hygiene Products?

One of the most well-known manufacturers of organic tampons and pads is Natracare, they have been producing these products for almost 30 years and have a wealth of experience. Their products are plastic free, certified organic, animal friendly, don’t result in fibre loss and are recommended by gynaecologists.  To find out where you can purchase their products click here.

Other organic feminine hygiene products include:

• Organyc
• NatraTouch
• Naty Nature Women Care
• The Honest Co. Feminine Care

For a convenient one-stop-shop that sells a few different brands, then you can try Be Prepared.Period who sell a range of organic feminine hygiene products.

If you’re looking for a more natural alternative when it comes to tampons and pads then why not give the  above mentioned organic products a try.

Do you use any of these products? What are your thoughts? We’d be interested in hearing what you think about this topic. Is using organic feminine hygiene products important to you? Leave a comment below.

References

A question for women’s health: chemicals in feminine hygiene products and personal lubricants. Environ Health Perspect. 2014 Mar; 122(3): A70-5.

Feminine Protection Products: What do they consist of? 60 Million Consumers, 23^rd Feb 2016

Tampax tampons and Always sanitary towels among feminine hygience products that contact toxic chemicals.  The Independent, 25^th Feb 2016.

This weeks’s blog post is a guest post from Nadene Clarke, the founder of  a new organisation, Voices for Autism. Nadene tells us about why she started Voices for Autism,  provides some background to this condition and shares her personal experience with autism. 

My name is Nadene and I am the founder of Voices for Autism. Voices for Autism is a non-profit organisation which supports parents/carers who care for a young person with Autism living in London. It was created for parents/carers to help spread awareness as well as create a community for parents/carers to feel a part of.

Autism is quite common in the UK affecting approximately 70,000 people. It is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how a person sees the world. It also affects how a person communicates with, and relates to other people. It is a spectrum condition which means people with Autism have a range of difficulties in common but it affects everyone differently.

Voices for Autism was born out of my personal experience with the condition. My son was diagnosed with Autism when he was 11 years old. When he was diagnosed, I felt that there was not enough support out there post-diagnosis in and around my community and whilst trying to deal with our new hurdle, I spent some time thinking of ways to build up the Autism community as it is a very sensitive subject.

My son was born prematurely so we were informed that he would have some difficulties in his childhood and it was not until he reached secondary school age that I felt I needed to do more as he was moving into a new setting so I requested for him to be assessed by a neurological team. Mainstream primary school was fantastic with all of the right support he needed but I knew it would be very different in secondary school……and I was right!

As parents we had never considered a special setting and went ahead with the mainstream secondary setting but this was a terrible experience in my eyes. He moved into a special setting soon after joining secondary school and we have not looked back.

At Voices for Autism we are striving to create a haven where we can come together to share advice, ideas, strategies etc. We want to echo the message that young people with Autism are unique and deserve the same opportunities as those without a disability.

I have been hosting coffee mornings on a monthly basis since the beginning of 2016 and they are proving so useful and are growing. We are a friendly bunch and can see that there is not enough support available for us parents/carers. The coffee mornings are set in a relaxed, informal environment where we are building strong, positive relationships and our group feels like one big family.

As a parent, it is important for me to empower and motivate others with the journey that myself and my son have been on, what a journey, but we are stronger because of it. It is vital for us to remember that we are our child’s biggest advocates and if we do not speak up for them, nobody will.

Let’s build a community, let’s build a voice!

********************

The Lake Foundation would like to say a big thank you to Nadene Clarke for sharing her experience with autism and introducing us to the great work that Voices for Autism is doing. If you would like more information about the support that they provide please visit their website: http://www.voicesforautism.co.uk or email info@voicesforautism.co.uk

The Eve and Grace Wellness Centre in Battersea opened its doors to the public on Saturday 10^th September 2016. This is a lovely space that aims to connect the community and promote healthy behaviours by providing education, support and wellness services to all. The services that the centre will offer will include yoga, reiki, massage,  pre and postnatal care and much, much more.

Our founder, Abi Begho, attended the launch of the wellness centre and said:

“We were delighted to attend the opening of the Eve and Grace Wellness Centre. This is a lovely space that will offer much-needed services to the community and play an important role in improving the health and well-being of its service users. We fully support this organisation, wish them all the best and look forward to exploring opportunities for collaboration”

The centre will start its activities with taster sessions from Monday 19^th September. To find out more and register an interest to attend please visit www.eveandgrace.co.uk

My husband and I decided when we got married in May 2012 that after a year of marriage, we would begin trying to have a baby. When May 2013 finally arrived, we began making the necessary preparations for conception. This, for me, included making sure that I was in good health. I began taking prenatal vitamins and scheduled an appointment to do my annual cervical smear to check for cervical cancer. At the appointment in June 2013, I told my doctor about the small lump that I had been feeling for 3 months, located on the lower left side of my pelvis. I told her that I would like for this to be investigated, and she ordered an ultrasound for me.

You see, around March 2013, I had started noticing a small lump on the lower left side of my pelvis, which was usually more obvious when I was lying down flat on the bed. The lump caused no pain and was not sore, but I worried that it was some sort of cancer. Out of fear, I chose to believe that it may be a benign ovarian cyst and I decided to delay going to the doctor to investigate it until my next cervical smear appointment.

When I attended the ultrasound appointment on 4^th July 2013, the technician had a very concerned look on her face as she was performing the scan, and so I asked her what she was seeing. She informed me that I had not one, but several fibroids located in various parts of my uterus. I was in shock! At a follow-up appointment with my GP a few days later, she reiterated what the technician had found. I had about 4-5 fibroids in my uterus, with the largest two measuring about 7cm in diameter. The bulge that I had been feeling on the lower left side of my belly was indeed one of these large fibroids. She indicated that although I had large fibroids which may cause me to have fertility issues, my uterine wall was “unremarkable” and therefore I am still likely to be able to conceive with the fibroids. These last words were comforting. She referred me to a gynaecologist for follow-up.

For many days, I remained in shock about my fibroid diagnosis, I worried about whether I could have kids, and I spent many hours online reading about fibroids and remedies. My shock came as a result of believing all along that I was in great gynaecologic health. You see, I have always been a health-conscious person who ate very healthily and did my pap smears annually. In addition, In the USA (from where I moved the previous year),it was routine for doctors to do a pelvic exam when doing a cervical smear, and this involved using their hands to check for any changes in size and shape of reproductive organs. Abnormal growths can often be detected this way initially. I wondered why my fibroids hadn’t been detected in these annual pelvic exams. Surely, the fibroids did not appear within less than a year, I thought. In addition, I had not experienced any of the symptoms often associated with fibroids including heavy periods and pelvic and low back pain.

When I visited the gynaecologist at the end of July 2013, she informed me of options available to me for dealing with the fibroids, including removing them surgically prior to trying to conceive. Based on my medical history and the diagnostic ultrasound results, the gynaecologist advised me that the best course of action would be to try to conceive with fibroids intact, and then revisiting the idea of having surgery to remove the fibroids if I did not get pregnant after six months of trying. The concern was that removing the fibroids surgically may pose more of an infertility risk than the fibroids themselves, as the surgery is in effect a major operation to the uterus. I agreed with this approach wholeheartedly as I did not want the risks associated with surgery.

Much to my pleasant surprise, just one month later, in August 2013, I became pregnant (a positive pregnancy test in September 2013 revealed this)! When I got pregnant, I was informed of possible risks that fibroids could pose to my pregnancy, including bleeding, severe pain caused by the fibroids, a higher chance of miscarriage, restriction of the baby’s growth, and increased risk of premature labour. In addition, I was informed that the fibroids would likely grow in size due to pregnancy hormones. Luckily, my pregnancy progressed very smoothly with the exception of the fibroids growing slightly in size and one episode of severe fibroids-related pain at 14 weeks gestation which lasted for two weeks and which was managed with painkillers. In May 2013, I delivered healthy twin boys!

In the end, I am glad that I chose not to remove the fibroids immediately. I am now going to continue monitoring the growth and symptoms of the fibroids over the next few months and years, and will decide at a later time whether to remove them or leave them alone. I am likely to leave them alone as long as they continue to give me no symptoms, mainly because fibroids tend to regrow, and the risk of this occurring is much greater in Blacks. I learned a great deal about fibroids only after my diagnosis. I wish I had known more before. Sadly, I had not paid much attention to the disease before despite the fact that an older sister suffered with it. I had not realized how prevalent the disease was and did not realize that it affects Black women more than women of other racial/ethnic groups. I wish more women would talk about it, and I am now committed to speaking up as much as possible to raise awareness. I would advise other women to become more educated about fibroids and to learn whether they have a family history of it. Where there is known family history, a woman can then be more empowered to recognize symptoms and to make a decision about when to have children (if she desires to do so), as fibroids tend to develop in later years so delaying conception may not be wise for some. Fortunately, fibroids are not life-threatening and it is possible to conceive and have a healthy baby with it.

Pictured, Dr. Wheatley at 35 weeks pregnant.

Nkemdiri Wheatley is a public health researcher whose work has focused mainly on understanding the social and behavioural factors that lead to health conditions such as cancer, obesity and sexually transmitted infections. She is also interested in racial and socioeconomic inequalities in health outcomes, and has participated in developing and evaluating community-based health programmes meant to address these issues.

Sheila is The Lake Foundation’s Cycling Club Coordinator and since joining us in March she has done a fantastic job in managing our cycling club. In this blog Sheila discusses her role and what she enjoys most about it.

Tell us about your role as the cycling club coordinator.

The aim of the cycling club is to give people an opportunity to be more active. So we organise a 2-hour bike ride every 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month. Once a year we organise a 4-hour ride taking us a bit further into the countryside and a social where we will have a meal. The social is usually around Christmas.

Organising the rides involves liaising with our wonderful instructors from Cycle Instructor. They will suggest routes and lead the group on the day. I manage bike reservations and organise our participants. I update them on what we are doing and about cycling opportunities in the local area and beyond. I also spread the word about the cycling club using leaflets, writing and social media.

What do you enjoy most about your role?

London can be both lonely and stressful. This can take its toll on us in the long term. There are physical and mental benefits of people coming together and people doing exercise. So it’s rewarding to know the cycling club is doing its part to promote well-being. The group is fun and positive. You can also chat as much or as little as you want for example. Everyone is welcome and everyone seems to be him or herself.

What has been your favourite cycling route and why?

I like cycling in any green space. There are lots of green spaces in Croydon and I’ve enjoyed discovering them.

What advice would you give to someone who is thinking of joining the club but is a bit nervous?

Cycling Instructor is a helpful resource. They offer free one-to-one and group sessions. They will instruct you in how to cycle on roads and public spaces and teach you techniques. You can do one of their courses before joining The Lake Foundation Cycling Club and can also have a refresher with them at any time. The Lake Foundation Cycling Club members are supportive. In this atmosphere we find that new riders grow in confidence.

Do people have to be super fit or an experienced cyclist to join the club?

Our cycling club members are mixed in ability and fitness. People tend to be less confident if they feel they can’t keep up. So we encourage people to maintain regular exercise outside of the club and to practice cycling where possible. One of our members went on to do the London to Brighton ride and another ride after that. Another couple of riders did a 10k run for Cancer Research UK. London is a great city for charity and fun fitness challenges and the club members seem to inspire each other to take advantage of these opportunities.

Do you have to have your own bike to be a part of the club?

We have a few cycles and helmet sets that people can reserve, this way people can try cycling without taking the lead of buying a bike first. One regular member has since purchased his own bike.

What do you enjoy most about cycling?

I like the fact that I’m being active. I think you experience our city in a different way on a bike than if you were in a bus, car or on the tube. I like the freedom it gives and it’s an efficient way to get around town. I cycled more when I was living closer to central London, which is more cycle friendly these days.

What advice would you give to anyone new to cycling in terms of technique, equipment and building confidence?

I would do a course with Cycle Instructor. Go to a good and reputable cycling shop and get kitted out with a well fitted helmet, good lights, a good lock etc. Be super safe, sensible and make sure you keep hydrated. There are lots of helpful resources out there.

When you’re not cycling what do you do for fun?

I enjoy dancing, walks and cycles in the country, cinema, theatre, cultural events and hanging out with folk.

How can people join the cycling club?

The best way is to drop us an email today at events@thelakefoundation.com. Also stay in touch with The Lake Foundation on twitter and Facebook!