A study has revealed Brits stick with their hobbies for around 16 months.
The research, which was commissioned by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) and conducted by OnePoll, surveyed 2,000 adults in the UK who cited work commitments, busy family life and lack of motivation as reasons they don’t stick with their hobbies for longer.
I bet they wish they did though, with a quarter admitting they splash out hundreds of pounds on their hobbies only to give them up soon after.
In fact 25 per cent of those polled have never used the items they purchased especially for a hobby.
For example, cycling is one of Britain’s most popular hobbies with the study discovering people spend an average of £306.64 on it as an adult.
But while four in 10 Brits own a bike, three quarters revealed they don’t ride it anywhere near as much as they would like to.
BHF is therefore encouraging Brits to get cycling and participate in a one or more of a series of charity bike rides they have planned for this year.
A spokesperson for BHF said:
Modern life is incredibly busy and sadly fun things like our hobbies are one of the first things to be dropped when we’re pushed for time.
People took their hobbies up for a reason, whether to de-stress or socialise more, so it’s important we make time to rekindle our passion for our hobbies or try new ones.
Having a goal to work towards, like signing up to one of the British Heart Foundation’s bike rides, is the perfect way to give people the motivation they need to keep up their hobbies.
And they can take part safe in the knowledge they’re helping to raise money for the charity’s life saving research at the same time whilst doing something they enjoy.
They continued:
As the old adage goes, you never forget how to ride a bike.
We’re encouraging all those lapsed cyclists and people who said they’d like to ride more to dust off their bikes and sign up to one of the British Heart Foundation’s bike rides.
By getting involved you’ll be helping to fund lifesaving research for the seven million people in the UK living with heart and circulatory diseases.
In varying distances and regions; there’s a ride to suit everyone.
With the research revealing that the average Brit hasn’t ridden a bike in seven years, the BHF hope that they can encourage people to get cycling again while also raising money for a good cause.
A fifth revealed they don’t cycle because they believe they aren’t fit enough to, while one in 10 said they couldn’t find a reason to cycle, not having a goal to aim towards.
Others cited being too busy and not having anyone to cycle with as being reasons they don’t get on their bikes.
To find out more about BHF’s charity bike rides then, click here.
And to inspire you to take part in one of BHF’s bike rides, take this quiz to find out how fit you are.
If you have a story you want to tell, send it to stories@unilad.co.uk.
