[Updated: 07.01.2022]

As a collection of cycling journalists from across the titles of off-road.cc, road.cc and e-bike tips, we recognise the positive effects of exercise on the mind and body. With adequate precautions, we can enjoy being outside, staying fit and healthy, take some time for some mental self-care while minimisng risk. Whether it be trail riding or gravel and adventure cycling, here are some good ideas and advice about how you can still get out and about on your own.

• The best mountain bike apps for iPhone and Android
• off.road.cc adventures: Elan Valley bikepacking bothy trip
• Big Read: Can you spend a night in the hills and still make it to work on time?

Stay safe

1. Plan your route and tell someone

Plan your route and share it with someone. Let that person know where you plan to ride, at what time and when you expect to return home, and then let them know when you are back safe and sound. There are plenty of good mapping apps out there, like Komoot where you can even share your ride in real-time. ViewRanger does a similar thing, we have more details on various apps that are great for cycling here.

It's a great idea to share your location sharing via your smartphone, apps such as Whatsapp have this feature. It's called Live Location and it allows you to share your real-time location for a specific amount of time. Whatsapp says this feature is end-to-end encrypted, which means no one can see your live location except the people you shared with. 

What3words is a geolocating app that uses a three-word code to locate anywhere on earth. The downloadable app works by splitting all of the planet into three-metre by three-metre squares, which are then given a unique three-word code. That gives a rapid, simple and relatively foolproof way of sharing any location, which is coming in very handy for emergency services teams - download it and use it!

If you like a bit of tech then check out the Specialized Ambush Helmet with Angi. This lid features a g-force indicator, ANGi, which in conjunction with a smartphone app can detect the impact forces as well as rotational and angular ones involved in a crash, it can call home and can send out your location so help can get on the way to you in an emergency. Some GPS devices do a similar thing, the Garmin 820 Edge can detect crashes, or at least if you stop very quickly and send a similar message to your emergency contact. Both offer you a little more protection and peace of mind when venturing out alone. 

2. Be prepared

Take enough gear with you to fix your bike and get yourself out of trouble should you get into it. For us, our gear list for bigger rides includes: 

• Inner tube
• Multi-tool that includes spoke key, Torx, Allen keys (including one for your pedals), screwdriver and a chain breaker
• Quick link
• Mini pump, shock pump
• Jacket and warm layer
• Water and food/snacks
• Group shelter or bivvy bag and foil blanket
• Small emergency first aid kit
• Phone (fully charged) and money

There is lots more info on the most useful gear to take with you on a gravel or bikepacking ride here, it's also super applicable to mountain bikers too. 

If you choose to stay local and ride but don't want to carry all that kit then at least make sure you have a phone and some cash or a card in case you need to call someone in an emergency or find another way home via public transport should you encounter a mechanical you can't fix.

3. Wear a helmet

4. Alter your typical ride a little

Give a little thought to how and where you ride. If your usual ride involves techy downhill tracks, perhaps tailor your riding to something less high risk. Why not take in some less technical trails or turn your pedal to cross-country riding and explore more of your local area? As Jon would say, "go sniff some spring flowers and leave the gnarly stuff for another time!"

For those gravel riders, it's a time for the less technical and remote routes too. Perhaps you could sniff out some local bivvy spots that are accessible on smooth gravel? Our Jon tried to spend a night in the hills and make it to work on time, why not try something similar?

Whilst we are recommending you alter your type of ride, we don't recommend changing the way your ride. Riding the trails more tentatively or cautiously than you usually would may cause mistakes or lapses in concentration and result in a crash. Keep your eyes up and ride as you normally would.

5. Make sure your bike is well maintained

Other ideas

6. Train better alone?

Riding alone means that you can put in some serious training miles without other riders changing your plans or altering your ride's speed or distance. It's an ideal time to plan out a good training loop and then either add some sprint intervals or record your efforts and see how these change over time as your fitness increases.

7. Ride indoors

If you do choose to stay indoors, you can make turbo sessions a lot more interesting by using tools like Zwift. The online cycling platform has new mountain bike segments so there are plenty of reasons to stay indoors and cycle rather than face the hazards or the poor weather of the outdoors. In a nutshell, Zwift is a subscription-based service that creates an in-game virtual world, so that as you ride your turbo, your little avatar scoots about with other riders exploring the roads of the game world. Add in one of the new crop of smart trainers that can automatically vary the resistance and you can actually feel the climbs and descents of the Zwift world. By gamifying riding on your turbo, you should be able to A- actually, enjoy it and B- be able to do it for longer.

Jon used Zwift all winter in order to improve his fitness levels without getting dirty outside, he says If you want to keep on top of your fitness over the winter in a serious way, a Zwift subscription and a smart trainer is an amazing way to do that. Though the setup isn't cheap, it's possible to get one sorted for almost any budget, like in this video. If you want info on the best ways to get started with Zwift, click here.

8. Take your dog

If your pooch is a fully-fledged trail dog he or she will no doubt love to keep you company whilst your solo ride. Not so lonely now, are you?! If you have a dog but have not yet taken them on the trails, now is an ideal time to train them properly from the start, basics first.

Our Rach says her dog Ebby, is a great trail dog when riding with one or two people but she was a bit of a menace in large groups - she always wants to follow the fastest rider!

Do you have any other advice for riders that choose to ride alone, be it mountain bike, gravel or road? Leave the words of wisdom in the comments below. 

You might also like:

• Big Read: Big mountain pairs racing with Enduro2 Les Arcs
• Big Read: Riding and surviving the Jeroboam, a tough as nails gravel race in Italy
• Big Read: Can you spend a night in the hills and still make it into work on time?