UK Bike Week is set for 8-16 June, when Cycling UK urges us to pedal for fun and fitness. To get us in the mood, Graeme Wilcockson gives a brief history of cycling and tips on how to get going.
They say you can’t reinvent the wheel, yet it’s not been for the want of trying. In 1817, when Baron Karl von Drais created his ‘hobby horse’, a gentleman’s plaything became a two-wheeled solution to a four-legged problem.
The 1815 eruption of Indonesia’s Mount Tambora had catastrophic global consequences; as what was the largest explosion in recorded history had deposited an ash cloud thousands of miles across, impacting the climate of Europe and North America. The summerless year which followed saw near-total crop failure, famine and the mass starvation of livestock across the entire Northern Hemisphere. This included the world’s then favourite form of transport: the horse.
Equine breeds of all kinds were in desperately short supply, and von Drais seized the opportunity. Stripping weight from his quad-wheeled beast and debuting a two-wheeled version, he marketed the toy across Western Europe. It was greeted with open arms — and aching legs. The 50 lb monster was a far cry from today’s ultra-light carbon fibre speed machines, but they were snapped up in droves. But it didn’t take long before a law was passed, banning them from pavements in England as a menace to pedestrians. Interest waned, and it took until the 1860s and the introduction of the bone-shaking Penny Farthing to see a resurgence. Pedals were introduced within a few years, and various patent battles were fought and lost. It was the Olivier Brothers whose design endured through mass production, and their pedal-powered velocipede became a blueprint for imitators across the globe, particularly in England where appetite was intense.
Esta historia es de la edición Spring 2019 de Optimum Nutrition.
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Esta historia es de la edición Spring 2019 de Optimum Nutrition.
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Summer Of
Summer is when we want to be out and about, as the warm embrace of the sofa on a cold winter’s night becomes a distant memory. So where do you go when the brain is willing but the body just can’t cut it at the same level of performance that it managed decades ago? Graeme Wilcockson reviews a few ways to satisfy those competitive weekend instincts that will tax both mind and body — yet leave you able to move on Monday morning
Common Kitchen Practices Making Us Sick
Every year, thousands of us fall sick from food poisoning because of how we have handled food. Louise Scodie and Louise Wates look at common ways in which we are going wrong
Could Antioxidants Save Our Bacan?
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Eat For A Glow That Is More Than Skin Deep
Now that summer is here, it’s time to peel off the layers and make some vitamin D. But if your skin isn’t as peachy as you would like, or if you are worried about staying safe in the sun, find out how good nutrition may support your skin’s health. Maggie Charlesworth writes
Natural Beauty
If headlines about microbeads from cosmetics polluting our seas have got you wondering how you can do your bit for the environment, try using nature’s harvest to feed your skin. Hannah Maryse Robinson writes
A Summer Selection Of Goods And Goodies
Lazy Vegan frozen Chunky Pulled Peaz is a gluten-free, plant-based protein source suitable for vegans and — with a substantial texture — flexitarians.
Do Something Different
As many of us are concerned about keeping our brains active, Ellie Smith investigates whether trying something completely new could boost both our brain health and mental wellbeing
Lifting Weights, Lifting Confidence
When Bianca Mills was bullied at school she could not have dreamt that she would be able to speak in front of a group of women, let alone coach them in lifting free weights. She told Louise Wates why she believes buddying-up is just as important as physical strength for fostering confidence
Teaching Children How To Forage
Catherine Morgan finds out how foraging can teach children (and adults) about more than nature’s store cupboard, and can foster an understanding of and respect for the environment.
Keep Calm And Curry On
In August, India celebrates the anniversary of Indian Independence, yet the Anglo-Indian community, a legacy of the British Raj with its roots in European and Indian ancestry, still treads the cultural line between both communities. Jenny Mallin, author of A Grandmother’s Legacy, tells us about the fusion food in her family and recipes passed down through the generations
