Winter is here again and that means all most people want to do is curl up with their Christmas chocolate stash, put on a movie or two and sleep the cold whether away. This all leads to the average person gaining six pounds every winter but this doesn’t have to be the way.

There are so many ways to stay in shape over winter but my personal favourite is to blow the snow off my old mountain bike, pull on my cycling shoes and hit some of the local trails for a few hours of exercise.

So before I go any further yes there are some bad points to cycling in winter. Your hands and face do freeze (and so does everywhere else if you don’t have the proper cycling kit), your water bottle ices over and both you and your bike get covered in snow, water and road salt.

However it’s not all doom and gloom. Riding your bike in the winter as a way to keep fit allows you to enjoy some amazing scenery, quiet roads, trails and cycle paths and see a side of the countryside that you might skip over in summer when you are out.

The best way to get motivated to ride when it’s cold outside is to plan a route that includes either a cafe or somewhere else that you can stop and have a nice big mug of hot chocolate.

Another great way to get motivated to head out on your bike to lose a few pounds and stay in shape is to drive to a national park and ride around one of their trails. If you take a camera, this also an awesome way to break up a long ride (plus all those photography stops make a great excuse for a break if the going is tough).

Cycling is amazing aerobic exercise and getting out on your bike during winter is a great way to stay in shape and take exercise.