Love Valentine’s Day chocolate? Love Your Bike and burn off those calories!

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In the run up to Valentine’s Day on Sunday 14th February, Love Your Bike campaigners will be delivering scrumptious chocolates to council, health and business leaders in Greater Manchester to deliver the sweet message that cycling can help people get healthier and burn off those extra calories from eating chocolate. [1]

The Love Your Bike campaign is calling on local authority, public sector and business leaders to increase their levels of support and encouragement for people to cycle to work, study or for leisure.

It has been estimated that the average UK person munched their way through 10kg of chocolate. The average 50g chocolate bar has around 250 calories, which would add up to around 50,000 calories a year from eating the sweet stuff. [2]

In 2008 it was reported that the levels of obesity were rising within the population providing an increasing threat to the health of individuals and communities. Recent statistics suggest that about 66% of men and 55% of women are either overweight or obese. [3]

But the great news is that cycling can burn off the typical number of calories in a chocolate bar in less than one hour. Typically, cycling at an average speed burns off 300 calories an hour. [4] So cycling to work or the shops for 25 minutes each way will burn off the calories in that chocolate bar!

Love Your Bike campaigner Catherine Thomson said:

“Cycling is a convenient and quick way to travel around in Greater Manchester and you can eat more chocolate too. So this Valentine’s Day why not Love Your Bike as well!”

Cycling can provide an effective and fun way to encourage people to get fitter and healthier. In 2004, the Health Select Committee’s report on obesity stated:

“If the Government were to achieve its target of trebling cycling in the period 2000-2010 … that might achieve more in the fight against obesity than any individual measure we recommend within this report.” [5]

ENDS

Notes to Editors

[1] Love Your Bike is an award-winning campaign co-ordinated by Manchester Friends of the Earth. Based in Manchester, we aim to promote cycling and to help make it an attractive, accessible and fun way to get around. www.loveyourbike.org.

[2] Typical calories in a 50g chocolate bar: Dairy Milk with Fruit & Nut (240), Dairy Milk (255). Source: CalorieCounting.co.uk

[3] Childhood Obesity in Manchester, 9th December 2008.

[4] Translated into modern lifestyle terms, a fifteen-minute bike ride, five times a week, burns off 11 pounds of fat a year.

[5] Source: www.parliament.uk