Tracey Kelliher had the best of intentions of getting fit. She brought a bike with the view of cycling the 12-miles to work. However, she just didn’t know how to get started. Sound familiar? Then she spotted our Sofa2Saddle challenge on Instagram and, after completing the 8-week plan, Tracey is now regularly cycling over 30 hours evert week.

“I used to love cycling. I would cycle for miles with my dad when I was a kid so when I decided I wanted to improve my health, I thought cycling would be a good fit for me. I had tried to get into running and had signed up for the Couch to 5k, but I could never complete it; I felt too overweight to run but cycling felt more achievable.

“I got myself a bike and planned to start cycling to work. It was a 12-mile round trip so knew I couldn’t just hop on and start pedalling, so I was a bit stuck at what to do. That’s when I found out about Sofa2Saddle. The thought of an 8-week plan to get me started and working towards my aim really appealed. My father-in-law had also died of lung cancer, so it felt the ideal challenge for me.

“The challenge came with a comprehensive 8-week plan which made everything so much easier. It also helped to know I was raising money so, on those inevitable days when I thought I can’t do this, I kept going because I had made this commitment.

“By the time the 8 weeks were done, I had formed the habit of cycling so didn’t need that extra push to keep it up. I am now cycling to work three times a week. If you had told me 7 months ago that I would be cycling 36 miles a week, I would have fallen about laughing – and so would everyone who knows me! Now, if I don’t cycle, I don’t feel good.

“I would definitely recommend the Sofa2Saddle challenge to anyone looking to start cycling. The well thought out plan took me from an unfit novice to a cyclist in just 8 weeks. I have lost nearly a stone but, more importantly to me, is my mental health has improved so much. I feel so much fitter and stronger and I have more energy.

“I would like to thank the team at Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation for creating this challenge. Nothing else had worked for me before but I have now found something I enjoyed and can do.”