If asked why I enjoy cycling to work, I might jokingly reply that it is because it is exercise I can do sitting down. More truthfully, it is a combination of the faster speed of travel and the chance to work a decent amount of exercise into my daily routine but I do spend most of my cycling time on the seat, except for the hill before I hit the final run home.

It isn’t even the steepest or longest hill in Oxford but it certainly isn’t flat and I have got into the habit of not dropping down too many gears but standing on the pedals to power up it. Observing other cyclists on the same ascent, quite a few others do the same but there are also those who remain seated (and a few who give up and walk – although that’s allowed too). Today, I tried sitting again and using lower gears and…

For me, I think I’m going back to standing. Perhaps I’ve got used to it but it seems easier for the length of the ascent. It is hard to measure and other factors, like temperature and how much weight I’m carrying in my bag come in too, but the standing sprint seems to work well for me so I’ll stick with it.