Participating in the Critical Lass bike ride at 7 months pregnant - photo by Andreas Morse, Metro Edmonton

Since moving into our new place here in Edmonton I’ve had a few occasions to get out on my bike for short trips. Our neighbourhood library, for example, is a 25 minute walk but a much quicker bike ride so I’ll often hop on my bike if I’m headed there. I endeavour to take quieter streets whenever possible and I am extra-vigilant about hand signals and watching for traffic. At 40+ weeks pregnant I’m appreciating the comfort of my dutch bicycle and the flatness of our neighbourhood and am certainly not tackling big hills or anything.

Overall, I’ve had surprisingly few negative comments from people here about my riding while pregnant – I think I actually had more in Vancouver! However, this blog post was spurred by a comment from a patron in Redbike yesterday. I was picking up my bicycle, which had been in for a repair to the chainguard, and an older gentleman was paying for his purchase of a shiny new bike, helmet, etc. Now I may be wrong, but he didn’t exactly look like a seasoned cyclist but rather someone investing in a new weekend hobby. As I was leaving with my bike he warned me, “Be careful you don’t fall!”

Really? Be careful I don’t fall? I know that Sarah received similar comments when she was pregnant, and I think the people who make them are really out to lunch. Not once in my many years of cycling as an adult have I ever fallen off my bike, and I think falling off my dutch bike would be particularly impossible given the comfy upright riding posture! If you want to worry about something, worry about a careless driver hitting me (not that it’s any more likely now than when I am not pregnant!). Of course, unless you are my doctor or my partner it’s none of your business anyhow.

Okay, rant over, but here are some great links that cover the topic of cycling while pregnant:

• Pedaling Pregnant
• Biking with a bump: Should you ride while pregnant?
• I’m still riding…
• Baby on board: Pregnancy and bicycle commuting
• With child: cycling whilst pregnant

I’m offering a similar incentive for donations made between August 1st and the start of the event (September 6th, 2008), so it’s not too late to donate and garner yourself a chance for four hours of my time! You can make a donation at http://www.bicycletrek2008.kintera.org/jkarenparker

One of the things I love about this city is that it’s just so easy to stay fit! And you don’t need to buy a gym membership to do so. As a starving grad student I’ve managed to find tons of inexpensive activities.

Here are some of my favourite (and frugal!) ways to stay fit in Vancouver…

1. Kayaking

This summer we’ve really been enjoying two-for-one Tuesdays at Ecomarine Kayaks. A single kayak rental usually costs $34, but on Tuesdays you can rent two for that price, which drops the price to a very reasonable $17 per person for two hours of kayaking. Foursomes can rent two double kayaks for $46 – an even better deal! We usually rent from Ecomarine’s English Bay location since it’s just steps from out apartment, but they also have locations at Jericho Beach and Granville Island.

2. Yoga

Vancouver has undoubtedly got to be the yoga capital of Canada. However, sometimes it seems like the price of a yoga class can run you almost as much as a fancy Lululemon tank top! But if you look hard enough there are some options for not-so-flush fans of yoga. Several local studios offer karma classes.

Yaletown Yoga runs two karma classes on Friday nights: hot yoga and power yoga. These classes are both by-donation, and proceeds are donated to local charities.

Unity Yoga currently offers its members a karma class on Monday nights. While this requires you to sign up for an annual membership (only $25), the class itself is free. Attendees are encouraged to bring non-perishable items for the food bank.

During the summer you can enjoy free yoga at Sunset Beach every Saturday morning, weather-permitting.

3. Running

Vancouver is blessed with a plethora of lovely places to go running. Since I live in the west end I tend to spend a lot of time on the seawall. However, there are great multi-use paths all over the place! When I lived in North Burnaby I used to frequent the Burnaby Mountain and Burnaby Lake trails.

Need some running buddies for extra motivation? Many local running stores have free run clubs. The Running Room hosts theirs on Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings. The Nike Runner’s Lounge in Coal Harbour also hosts a variety of free running clinics.

4. Cycling

It’s certainly no Barcelona, but Vancouver is pretty cycling-friendly for a North American city. And a decent bicycle doesn’t have to cost you a fortune in this town. Check out Our Community Bikes or The Bike Kitchen, both of which offer reasonably priced used bikes. They also offer lessons on how to do your own bike maintenance and repairs.

Once you’ve got a bike, visit Translink’s Cycling Around Greater Vancouver page. It includes maps of cycling routes in Vancouver and the surrounding area, as well as other useful info for local cyclists.

Come up with a fun cycling outing. One of my favourite rides is over the Lions Gate Bridge and around North Van, with a stop at Whole Foods on the way home for some yummy treats. To plan your route, check out the Cycling Route Planner developed by UBC’s Centre for Health and Environment Research. It uses Google Maps along with info about local bike routes to help you plan trips based on various criteria including least traffic pollution, most vegetation, or gentlest slope!

And there you have it! My mini-guide to frugal fitness in Vancouver. What’s your favourite inexpensive way to stay in shape? Let me know in the comments section!

I need to raise a minimum of $425 in order to participate in the ride, which takes place on September 6th and 7th. However, I’ve set a personal fundraising goal of $1000 and have come up with a couple creative ideas to help me reach that goal. The first of these is a draw for my computer expertise services…

If you need help with your website, or if you just have some general computer issues you need solved, sponsor me $25 or more and be entered into a draw to win four hours of free tech support! I’ll choose the winner on August 1st, 2008.