Safety Cycling Tips

Cycling is an easy yet effective way to keep body healthy and stress-free. For the rider, it is important to know safety tips and details to be taken care of while cycling. There are some basic guidelines for riding bicycle, which if followed sincerely, go a long way in ensuring the well being of the rider and others in the way.

Get The Right Bicycle
Choose a bicycle that suits your height and requirements. Besides regularly checking its tyres, gears, nuts and bolts and lubricating its chains and cables; make a point to get it professionally serviced at least once a year. Adjust the seat in proportion to your leg length and set the handlebars about 5 centimeters lower than your seat height.

Obey The Traffic Rules
The first and foremost lesson of driving is obey the traffic rules. Same applies for riding bicycle too. You must obey the traffic rules of your country properly, to avoid any kind of accident.

Always Wear Helmet
Even if wearing of helmet is not compulsory, you should wear it as it will reduces the risk of head injury by 60% in case of any accident. Make sure that you replace it, if it hits the road or an object.

Be Alert To The Sounds
It is very important to be alert to the sounds of vehicles around you, so avoid wearing your headphones while riding a bike.

Keep An Eye
Keep an eye on the rear view mirror to watch the movement of the traffic behind you. In most of the bicycles these mirrors are not available when we buy them, so you must buy it on your own for the sake of your safety.

Give Signals
It is must that every time before changing your move or side, you should give adequate hand signals to motorists, or pedestrians, to indicate the direction, you are going.

Keep Distance
Always keep adequate distance while crossing stationary vehicles to prevent injury if a door suddenly opens.

Use Headlights
Use headlights if you have them while traveling at night. This part is also not usually found in normal bicycles but you can get it from any cycle workshop.

Health Suggestions
Cycling is an energetic workout; longer workouts can dehydrate the body. So, it is advisable to carry a bottle of water along. Besides, if you're cycling on a hot day, take enough rest breaks and drink lots of fluids. Exposure to sun for long hours can cause skin cancer; to deal with this, you must liberally put sunscreen on the exposed parts of the body. Before starting, always warm up with some stretches so as to prevent injuring your muscles. Keep changing your sitting position and the gear from higher to lower to prevent muscle soreness, stiffness and stress on your knee joints.

Conclusion
Always keep your hands on the brake so that you are always ready to stop the cycle if any uncontrollable situation occurs. Never ride your bicycle so fast that you loose control of it, as it is rightly said "haste makes waste". Make it a point to follow the lane markings properly. If you will follow all the above safety rules, it is sure that you will enjoy a happy ride and a happy life.