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1:00 AM 11th January 2025
lifestyle

How To Stay Active In 2025

If your New Year resolution is to get fit, here’s some inspiration.

Stagecoach has come up with six ideas for keeping active across Cumbria this winter with information on how to get there by bus.

Travelling by bus is an easy way to improve your fitness. The walk to and from the bus stop soon adds up and boosts your daily step count. Bus fares are capped at £3 throughout 2025, so taking the bus is good for your pocket too.

Check times online – https://www.stagecoachbus.com/timetables – and don’t forget to download the Stagecoach Bus app, which has a journey planner, maps showing bus stops and real-time information on when buses are running.

North Cumbria

Take a walk


Dodd Wood near Keswick is a fine spot for a winter walk. There are four waymarked trails, between one and four miles long, including the Dodd summit trail for magnificent views over Derwent Water and Bassenthwaite Lake. Fellwalkers can press on to the summit of Skiddaw but check the weather forecast and make sure you’re equipped for winter conditions.

Buses: 554 from Carlisle and X4 from Penrith to Dodd Wood.

Go for a run

Carlisle parkrun is a free, fun and friendly weekly 5km community event. Walk, jog, run, volunteer or spectate – it's up to you. The run takes place every Saturday at 9am at Chances Park, Wigton Road. The organisers ask that you register in advance.

Buses: 61, 300, 400, 600 to Morton Manor.

Carlisle’s Sands Centre
Carlisle’s Sands Centre
Have a swim

Swimming is one of the most beneficial forms of exercise and is low impact, so easy on your joints and bones. Carlisle’s Sands Centre has two brand new pools – a 25m eight-lane competition pool and a four-lane 20m pool – and offers swimming lessons and courses for all ages and abilities.

Buses: All Carlisle city services and the 79, 179, 300, 400, 554 and 600 stop nearby at the Market Hall, or the 104 and 685 to Carlisle bus station.

Join a gym

Regular gym going is a great way to build and maintain your fitness levels. Just pick the one that’s most convenient. Many offer classes too. For example, Bannatyne in Kingstown Road, Carlisle, offers body pump, yoga and pilates classes and a StartSmart programme for gym newbies. As well as the gym there’s a swimming pool, sauna, spa pool and café.

Buses: 62 or 79 to Moorville Terrace.

Go climbing or bouldering

Here’s a challenge if you’re agile enough. Kong Adventure in Keswick offers unsupervised bouldering and rope climbing with 48 roped lines and four auto belays up to 12m. There are also climbing hour and Krazy Kong sessions for beginners and the option of private lessons for adults and children.

Buses: 554 from Carlisle and X4/X5 from Penrith to Keswick bus station.


Take up tennis

Chatsworth Tennis Club in St Aidan’s Road, Carlisle, has indoor and outdoor courts that can be booked by non-members. It has junior and senior sections, catering to players of all ages and abilities, and offers a comprehensive coaching programme including pay-and-play classes for adults and children.

Buses: 685 to Brunton Avenue, 63 to Jackson Street, or walk from Carlisle bus station or stops in Lowther Street.


West Cumbria

Take a walk


Dodd Wood near Keswick is a fine spot for a winter walk. There are four waymarked trails, between one and four miles long, including the Dodd summit trail for magnificent views over Derwent Water and Bassenthwaite Lake. Fellwalkers can press on to the summit of Skiddaw but check the weather forecast and make sure you’re equipped for winter conditions.

Buses: X4 from Workington to Dodd Wood.

Workington parkrun
Workington parkrun
Go for a run

Workington parkrun is a free, fun and friendly weekly 5km community event. Walk, jog, run, volunteer or spectate – it's up to you. The run takes place every Saturday at 9am at Workington Leisure Centre. The organisers ask that you register in advance.

Buses: 29, 29A, 30, 50, 51, 52, 60, 300, X4/X5 to Workington bus station.

Have a swim

Swimming is a low-impact impact exercise that’s easy on your joints. Copeland Pool and Fitness Centre, in Whitehaven, has a 25 metre six-lane pool and a teaching pool with slide. It offers lessons and activities such as swim for fitness, family swims, and has sub-aqua, canoe and competitive swimming clubs.

Bus: 30 (Frizington-bound journeys only), to Queens Close.

Xtreme Fitness at Lillyhall, Workington
Xtreme Fitness at Lillyhall, Workington
Join a gym

Regular gym going is a great way to get fit. Xtreme Fitness at Lillyhall, Workington, claims to be the biggest fitness centre in West Cumbria. It’s family friendly catering for all shapes, sizes and beginners and offers regular classes and monthly challenges. You can also book sessions with a personal trainer.

Buses: 29/29A to Joseph Noble Road.

Go climbing or bouldering

Here’s a challenge if you’re agile enough. Kong Adventure in Keswick offers unsupervised bouldering and rope climbing with 48 roped lines and four auto belays up to 12m. There are also climbing hour and Krazy Kong sessions for beginners and the option of private lessons for adults and children.

Buses: X4/X5 from Workington to Keswick bus station.

Learn to dance

Dance is good for your mental health and physical wellbeing. Studio 9 at Moorclose Campus, Workington, runs dance classes for all abilities and ages from two years upwards. Adult classes include ballet and tap. There are also yoga and pilates classes and low-impact exercise classes for the over-50s.

Buses: 50 to Fountains Avenue, 51 to Glenn Road, 52 to Moorclose Shops or take the 30 to Northcote Street, from where it’s a 15-minute walk.


South Cumbria

Orrest-head-seating - Image by lake. District.gov.uk
Orrest-head-seating - Image by lake. District.gov.uk
Take a walk


Orrest Head makes a delightful short walk from Windermere. A choice of paths meander up through Elleray Wood for fabulous views of the lake and surrounding fells. Keen walkers can continue on a six-mile linear route to Troutbeck and Ambleside with an option to climb Wansfell Pike. Do check the weather forecast and make sure you’re equipped for the conditions.

Buses: 6, 555, 599 or 755 to Windermere railway station. Return from Ambleside on the 555 or 599.

Go for a run

Barrow parkrun is a free, fun and friendly weekly 5km community event. Walk, jog, run, volunteer or spectate – it's up to you. The run takes place every Saturday at 9am at Barrow Park. The organisers ask that you register in advance.

Buses: 1, 6 or X6 to Abbey Road, Barrow Park, or 4 to Greengate Street.


Have a swim

Swimming is one of the most beneficial forms of exercise and is low impact, so easy on your joints and bones. Kendal Leisure Centre, in Burton Road, boasts a 25-metre swimming pool and a learner pool. An ASA-accredited swimming lesson programme runs throughout the week for children and adults.

Buses: 41/41A, 42/42A, 563 or 567 to Burton Road, or X6, 46, 530, 555 or 755 to Romney Road.

Join a gym

Regular gym going is a great way to build fitness. Just pick the one that’s most convenient. Everlast at Cornmill Park, Barrow, has a swimming pool and sauna as well as a gym and offers group training classes and access to personal trainers. You can try a free day membership before signing up.

Buses: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, X6 or 7 to Barrow Town Hall.

Kong Adventure
Kong Adventure
Go climbing or bouldering

Here’s a challenge if you’re agile enough. Kong Adventure in Keswick offers unsupervised bouldering and rope climbing with 48 roped lines and four auto belays up to 12m. There are also climbing hour and Krazy Kong sessions for beginners and the option of private lessons for adults and children.

Bus: 555 to Keswick bus station.

Ulverston Tennis Centre
Ulverston Tennis Centre
Take up tennis

Ulverston Tennis Centre in Priory Road is Cumbria's largest tennis venue with four indoor acrylic courts and two floodlit outdoor synthetic grass courts. Qualified LTA professional tennis coaches offer options to suit all ages and abilities, as well as supervising sessions such as ladies-only and social tennis.

Bus: 6 to Elmhurst, Priory Road.