Stress management expert Denise Chilton will be turning to pedal power next month to help boost the funds of a national breast cancer charity.

Denise, of Farndon, is taking part in Breast Cancer Campaign’s women-only cycling event, Pedal it Pink.

The health and wellbeing trainer will join hundreds of women at Liverpool’s second annual event in Sefton Park on Sunday 18 April to support the 46,000 people diagnosed with breast cancer in the UK each year.

Denise said: “I did the race last year in memory of my mum who died 30 years ago when I was 16. She had kidney cancer, but to me, any way to raise funds to beat the disease is a great opportunity. It was a fabulous experience and I had no hesitation in entering again this year.”

Denise regularly takes part in the BBC Radio Merseyside programme Late Night Live with Linda McDermott and will be taking on the challenge with fellow panellists Sue Eccleston and Debbie Boyd.

She hopes her marathon effort will raise £500 in sponsorship.

As a regular cyclist Denise should have no problem in completing the 26 mile route and has been training for some time. “I do a big ride of about 20 miles around the countryside once a week and go out for an hour on another day. I also swim for about half an hour four or five days a week and do yoga,” she said.

“I have cycled from an early age and often used to cycle to work in a leather jacket and pencil skirt when I worked in Liverpool,” she laughs.

Denise is passionate about health and well-being, particularly for women. While working in a management role she took a diploma in aromatherapy and practised at weekends as a hobby.

She then took qualifications in stress management. “People started to come to me for treatment for stress and I decided to combine my management skills and holistic therapies and start my own business,” she said.

Denise now runs Barceidillo Ltd which offers workplace health programmes to organisations ranging from large corporates to SMEs across the UK.

She offers stress management, health and well-being training for managers and staff and has some large corporations on her books.

“I see a lot of unhappy people, particularly in the workplace, but with the right help you can get through it,” she said.

The Pedal it Pink event includes routes of varying length to suit all abilities. Beginners can opt for the family 5k lap (which is also open to men and children) and those wishing to push themselves that little bit further can select to complete either a half marathon (13.1miles) or full marathon (26.2miles). All routes are completely enclosed in the park, so it’s safe, traffic-free and suitable for all existing and aspiring cyclists.

Last year 750 women pedalled it pink in Sefton Park and raised £65,000 for breast cancer research.

For further information about the event visit the website: www.breastcancercampaign.org, email pedalitpink@breastcancercampaign.org or call 020 7749 3700 to sign up. It costs £15 to enter the marathon, £10 to enter the half marathon and £5 for the family 5k lap. To help Denise reach her target visit www.justgiving.com/denisechilton1 to make a donation.