As we gear up to welcome the Tour of Britain Women’s on Saturday 8 June, it’s a great time to talk about the benefits of exercising regularly. 

People who exercise regularly have a lower risk of developing many long-term (chronic) conditions, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and some cancers.

David Herne, Director of Public Health at Warrington Borough Council said: “Research shows that physical activity can also boost self-esteem, mood, sleep quality and energy, as well as reducing your risk of stress.

“Physical activity and fitness protect our health and can be fun. Walking, playing sport, swimming, cycling and gardening can all keep you fit.”

Warrington is perfect for cycling because it's quite flat and compact. Most places are close and easy to get to by bike, and with a vast network, you could make up your own route, join a bike ride, or follow one of our suggested routes on our cycling page.

For more information about the Tour of Britain, and to help plan your day, visit warrington.gov.uk/tourofbritain

Notes to editors/ further information:

Cycling benefits

• Cycling combines physical exercise with being outdoors and exploring new views. You can ride solo - giving you time to process worries or concerns, or you can ride with a group which broadens your social circle.
• Cycling raises your heart rate and gets the blood pumping round your body, and it burns calories.
• Exercise has been repeatedly linked to brain health - and the reduction of cognitive changes that can leave us vulnerable to dementia later in life.
• Cycling is an incredibly sociable sport. Grassroots cycling revolves around cycling club culture - which in turn revolves around the Saturday or Sunday club run.
• Regular cycling is positively regular to overall psychological wellbeing
• Cycling has positive physical and mental health benefits. Incorporating cycling into a daily routine, even slightly, not only promotes a healthier lifestyle but also provides substantial financial benefits including reducing fuel and maintenance costs. The financial impact of cycling, results in saving a significant amount on an annual basis.  

Warrington cycling infrastructure and plans

• With over 100 miles of cycle paths primarily flat and compact Warrington is ideal for cycling
• The Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan (LCWIP) Proposed Plan and approach - “To provide a network of primary, neighbourhood and strategic greenway cycle corridors to act as core routes for highest volumes of journeys and improve the last mile of journeys into the Town Centre for pedestrians and cyclists”
• We are continually striving to upgrade existing cycling routes and develop routes to encourage cyclists to participate in cycling.
• Warrington Town Centre has over 350 publicly available cycle parking spaces.
• We delivered Bikeability cycle training to over 2200 children in 2023. In 2022/23 93% of children in Year 6 received level 2 training (the national average is 52%). As a result, we are pleased to report that Warrington is third in the country for the delivery of Bikeability training for schools.
• In our annual cycle survey, over 44,000 cycle movements were recorded in a single day (23 June 6am -10pm)