Jason Feavers

NHS staff to be given 'duty' to promote good health

2012-01-10T09:12:00.003Z

An independent panel of government advisers says health professionals should take every opportunity to discuss diet, exercise, smoking and drinking habits.

At first glance this may seem like a good idea. Lack of physical activity, poor diet, excessive alcohol consumption and smoking is costing the NHS a fortune. GP's, practice nurses and pharmacists are at the front line in terms of having contact time with people with poor health. But are they the right people to be providing lifestyle advice.

I would argue absolutely not. How much time will they have available to discuss lifestyle changes? Anyone who works in this field will be aware that you can't just tell someone what to do. You need to understand what their readiness to change is, what barriers they may face, how confident they are that they can make changes and what support they may need. Unless health professionals are to be given training in areas such as motivational interviewing and cognitive behavioral therapy then they are likely to do more harm than good.

Are health professionals in a position to identify patients who want to make lifestyle changes and then refer them onto specialist smoking cessation, exercise referral programmes, etc? Absolutely. What waits to be seen is whether these sort of initiatives will receive the funding, or if the government will continue to look for what it considers to be a cheap, quick fix.

BBC article "Ministers back call to quiz patients on lifestlye"

Change 4 Life reveals exercise personality quiz

2011-10-14T15:43:00.002+01:00

Having been using Suzanne Brue's wonderful '8 Colors of Fitness' quiz for the last 3 years, to help people discover their best approach to exercise, I was interested to see that the government funded Change 4 Life are promoting their own fitness personality test.

I've just done the Change4Life quiz and came out as a 'Super Grouper'. Supposedly I prefer to exercise with other people, need to agree personal targets with friends and should sign up for group classes.

Whilst I do prefer to have other people around whilst I exercise, it has to be with people I feel comfortable exercising with. I'd much rather exercise on my own rather than with the 'wrong' person. I don't tend to set targets for my own training. I find this more of a distraction and a cause of unnecessary pressure. As long as exercise is fun and doesn't involve too many processes to get started then I don't have a problem fitting lots of exercise into my life.

All the above is reflected in my 8 Colors personality type of Saffron. The Change4Life profile is a bit more straightforward than 8 Colors. So which is more effective? Why not try both quizzes and see for yourself.

Change4Life Quiz

8 Colors of Fitness Quiz

Let me know how you get on.

Why goals don't work

2011-08-22T10:00:00.001+01:00

When it comes to health related exercise, do we need to set goals? Most techniques used for exercise motivation came out of sports psychology, and in my opinion do not transfer particularly well to the general population, particularly when it comes to motivating the 70% of the population who don't do enough activity to be beneficial to their health.

You may argue that we need to have goals to maintain motivation. Most motivational 'experts' talk about the importance of goals. Some refer to a study into how students who had clearly defined and written goals went on to be more successful than their peers. The research was carried out at Harvard University. Or was it Yale? The interesting thing about this research is that the motivational guru's who have often cited this research can't seem to remember where they found the research and both universities have searched their archives and have no record of any such research.

Personal Trainers are taught the importance of goals. We make sure our clients have SMART goals (specific, measured, achievable, realistic and timed). We spend considerable amounts of time putting together periodised training programmes to make sure our clients achieve their goals.

So am I saying that this is approach is all wrong and that we should completely forget about goals ? I believe that we place too much emphasis on the wrong type of goals. Think about activities that you do on a regular basis. It may be something as mundane as brushing your teeth. It may be something more enjoyable like meeting with friends for a meal or going to the cinema.

How many people set themselves a goal to brush their teeth twice a day? How many people set a goal to go out with friends at least once a week?

Many people feel that they need to have a goal to stay active. I don't agree. If we set a goal to reduce body fat, or to reduce blood pressure then unless we continue to be really passionate about achieving that goal, then at some point the whole purpose for us being active will cease to exist. When we tak about setting goals we often refer to outcome goals. In other words what is it you want to achieve. Just to feel better, or improve health would be an outcome goal, but would not fit within the context of a SMART goal.

Process goals are often used alongside outcome goals. The idea of a process goal is that it breaks an overall goal into small, manageable steps. Aiming to go for a 15 minute walk every day would be a process goal. I believe that as long as we remind ourselves of the benefits of being active, then using process goals on their own can be extremely effective.

If our prime reasons for exercising is that it's beneficial for us, and something that we know that we should be doing, then we can start to get into the habit of being more active on a regular basis. If it's something that we actually enjoy doing, then so much the better.

Once exercise has become a habit, you may want to focus on specific challenges or events. I've worked with clients who have gone on to trek up Kilimanjaro, complete triathlons or marathons and achieve various other outcome goals, but with each client the initial stage has always been to create an exercise habit.

I often set challenges for clients in terms of being able to master a particular exercise or activity. Again, this can be an important driver to maintain motivation, but is never the main reason for that person to be active.

Focus on the benefits of exercise and find ways to fit 15 minutes of exercise into each day. Once this has become a habit, you may want to think about specific goals and challenges to inspire you to try new activities and increase activity levels.

Exercise and Stress

2011-08-15T09:55:00.000+01:00

Exercise is known to improve mood, reduce depression and anxiety and increase ability to deal with stress. Studies have shown that exercise can be more effective than medication for mild to moderate depression. So how does exercise help with mental health?

Here are a few ways in which exercise can improve mood and increase ability to deal with stress.

Neurotransmitters People often talk about the runners high or the production of endorphins whilst exercising. At low intensities, the feel good factor from exercise comes mainly from neurotransmitters such as serotonin that are released during exercise.
Time out Exercise is a great way to get away from the pressures of daily life and to take your mind away from stressors
Thermogenic effect Exercise increases the body temperature which can help create a relaxed state in the same way as having a hot bath.
Social Just being with other people can help improve mood. Exercise is a great way of meeting new people with a common interest.
Accomplishments Achieving results in terms of physical changes such as weight loss and increased strength or improved skills and ability to perform activities has been shown to alleviate depression.

Choosing the right type of exercise can also help to balance the autonomic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system gives us our 'fight or flight' response. This is the stress response part of the autonomic nervous system. This helps us to respond to danger. By increasing stress chemicals in the body, heart rate, blood pressure and blood glucose levels increase. This response is extremely beneficial if we need to think and move quickly to get away from danger. In today's environment, this stress response is generally created whilst we are sat at our desks or sat in a traffic jam. Without an outlet for this stress response blood glucose levels, blood pressure, heart rate and cortisol levels remain high, and over time will have a detrimental effect on health. Exercise can help reduce these stress chemicals and the stress response in the body.

Exercises such as yoga or Walking Meditation and Energiser type exercisers will help stimulate your parasympathetic nervous system. This is the opposite branch of the autonomic nervous system, sometimes referred to as 'rest and digest' and helps us to relax, recharge out batteries, digest food and sleep.

Just including 10-30 minutes a day of walking and low intensity movement based exercise can be incredibly effective to improve ability to deal with stress .

Exercise and the Immune System

2011-08-08T10:00:00.000+01:00

Have you ever noticed how people who are physically active tend to suffer from less colds and viruses? Or perhaps you may know someone who exercises a lot and tends to pick up every cold going? So does exercise help boost the immune system, and is there such a thing as too much exercise?

Exercise has the capacity to enhance the immune system. In fact regular exercisers are 30% less likely to get ill then non-exercisers.

The intensity of exercise required to protect the immune system is relatively low. Twenty to thirty minutes of brisk walking on most days of the week is ideal for maintaining a healthy immune system.

So how does exercise support the immune system?

Increased blood flow from moderate exercise increases the circulation of antibodies and white blood cells that fight infection.
Exercise creates an increase in body temperature which can help the body to fight infections by inhibiting growth of bacteria.
Exercising is known to reduce stress which is thought to contribute to the onset of flu, colds and other illnesses.
Moderate exercise may also help cleanse the body of certain cancer causing cells and waste products as well as helping remove airborne bacteria and viruses. It's important to ensure you are breathing through the nose whilst exercising. See Running and Breathing

How much exercise is too much?

During intense exercise, the stress hormones released in the body will actually cause a temporary reduction in immune system function.

For a healthy individual, this isn't a problem, and over time will help to create a stronger immune system. For anyone with chronic inflammatory health conditions such as osteoarthritis, cardiac disease and asthma, sticking to low intensity exercise is recommended. Certainly avoid any exercise that results in muscle soreness after exercise.

Top 5 Myths about Low Back Pain and Exercise

2011-08-01T10:00:00.000+01:00

Back pain effects 80% of the population at some point in their life. Here I explore some of the common myths surrounding exercise and back pain.

Top 5 Myths about Exercise and Back Pain

Avoid exercise Keeping active is now recognised as a key part of treatment for people suffering from chronic low back pain. The government’s health advisory panel, NICE, recommendations are to ‘advise people with low back pain to exercise, be physically active and to carry on with normal activities as far as possible.
Stretch the hamstrings Admittedly, stretching the hamstrings will often give some relief and may feel better in the short term. The problem is, the reason the hamstrings feel tight is probably due to the pelvis being tilted forwards putting the hamstrings on stretch. Stretching out the hamstrings will allow the pelvis to rotate forward even more making the condition worse.
Perform sit ups to strengthen the core Whilst it sounds logical that strengthening the abdominal muscles will help protect the spine, sit ups will increase muscle strength whereas it’s muscular endurance that is needed to protect the back, not strength. Also, sit ups place huge compressive force on the lumbar spine.
Avoid bending Unless you have a specific condition such as disc derangement, spinal stenosis, or spondylolysis, then bending and rotation of the spine is a normal movement pattern that can help improve your spinal health rather than increase back pain. Any exercise should be controlled and shouldn’t increase pain.
Bend the knees when lifting The important thing is to make sure that the correct muscles are working when lifting. If the glutes (buttock muscles) aren’t working correctly you can still be placing a compressive force through the spine even with the knees bent. I’m not saying not to bend the knees when lifting, just that on it’s own that wont be enough to compensate for faulty muscle firing.

Running and Breathing

2011-07-25T09:53:00.000+01:00

Surely running isn't supposed to feel easy? It's something that makes people go red in the face, and it hurts, and it's ok if you're really fit but it isn't for the rest of us?

Yet running is one of the most natural ways for us to get around, so why does it feel so hard for the majority of us? Probably because most of us are doing it wrong.

If you would like to be able to run effortlessly and actually enjoy all the benefits that you can get from running then keep reading.

Most runners will breathe through the mouth as they run. I believe this is where most people start to go wrong and the first thing I look to correct with clients.

Breathing through the nose as you run has many benefits.

Nasal breathing can;

Regulate blood pressure
Increase enjoyment of exercise
Increase ability to relax
Reduce cortisol levels

Research has suggested that chronic mouth and chest breathing will activate stress receptors in the upper lobes of the lung that stimulate the body’s fight or flight response. By breathing instead through the nose and breathing diaphragmatically, exercise can be relaxing and rejuvenating.

When air is inhaled through the nose it passes a series of hairs and a mucus lining that filters out dust, bacteria and other tiny particles. The air swirls around turbines in the nose that forces the air to swirl around and change direction causing the air to warm. By contrast, air inhaled through the mouth is unfiltered and often cold.

Nasal breathing also increases the amount of Nitric Oxide produced in the body. Nitric oxide has been associated with many health benefits including
• Regulates blood pressure
• Boosts immune system
• Protects against cardiovascular disease and Parkinson’s disease

A study comparing nitric oxide production in nose breathing and mouth breathing, found that nasal breathing produced significantly more nitric oxide than mouth breathing. The quantity of nitric oxide increased in line with exercise intensity using nasal breathing. No increase was found using mouth breathing.

Want to know more? Contact us and request your free guide to getting started with running and nasal breathing.

Latest Nordic Walking sessions in York

2011-06-29T08:01:00.001+01:00

Whether you're new to Nordic Walking, have tried it before and want to improve technique or just want an alternative way to improve health, then we have just the answer for you.

Try Nordic Walking - Free Taster sessions

An introduction to Nordic Walking. You will learn the benefits of Nordic Walking and find out how Nordic Walking can help you burn 46% more calories than ordinary walking but actually feels easier. Discover the difference between Nordic Walking and walking with hiking poles - they are very different. Taster sessions last 45 minutes.

Next Free Taster Sessions at Rawcliffe Country Park, York

Monday 18th July 6:30pm

Wednesday 20th July 9:30am

Learn to Nordic Walk

This ensures that you learn the correct technique in the most effective way to be able to get the most out of your Nordic Walking and to enjoy Nordic Walking safely.

The program is taught over four, one hour sessions at at the end of the program you will be issued with a Nordic Walking UK Certificate of Competence Card. This is your passport to attending any of our regular classes and walks as well as those of other participating Nordic Walking UK instructors. The course costs £49 for the 4 sessions including the certification card.

Wellness Class

Nordic Walking to improve health and mobility. A Wellness class is held at Rawcliffe Country Park on Wednesday mornings, at 10:30 am and Millfields Park, Easingwold on Monday mornings at 9:30am. These sessions include lots of mobiliser exercises, and stretching and strengthening as well as walking at a gentle pace. Participants soon realise that they can get fitter and keep improving whatever current fitness levels. These classes are taught by a qualified Exercise Referral Instructor and are suitable for people with many medical conditions. No prior Nordic Walking experience is necessary and the first class is free. Nordic Walking poles are provided. Pre-booking is essential to ensure we have enough poles. The first class is free and subsequent classes cost £4.

Adventure Athlete Workout Launches in York

2011-05-16T12:40:00.004+01:00

Adventure Athlete: One who possesses the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility and endurance required for physical exercise or sports that bring an unusual or exciting experience. Such activities typically include mountain biking, trekking, trail running, kayaking and adventure racing.

Ever imagined yourself mountain biking through forests? Or trekking along mountain paths, maybe whilst raising money for a favourite charity?

Well you could be doing these things with my new 8-week Adventure Athlete Workout.

Of course, taking part in activities that you look forward to doing is one of the best ways of staying active and healthy. But if you feel put off from doing activities due to a medical condition or because you don't have the fitness to take part; or you already do these activities but want to improve your fitness further or reduce the risk of injury, then I can help you get back on track.

My new Adventure Athlete Workout will help you to:

Increase strength, agility and endurance
Correct muscle imbalances that may lead to injury
Improve performance at your chosen activity
Add a fun element to your resistance training

Having worked with dozens of clients preparing for such activities, I’m well aware of the benefits that this type of training can have. And, I also know the cost of personal training can be prohibitive.

So I'm launching the Adventure Athlete Workout as a group personal training programme to give clients all the benefits of structured, progressive personal training sessions at a fraction of the cost.

The first programme starts on Tuesday 7th June at 7-8am at Body Fix Group Training Studio on James Street, York.

Group size - 8 places
Duration - 8 weeks
Cost £89
Suitable for - all levels and fitness

So come along and you'll also receive access to our on-line training journal that enables you to log you activities and training, and monitor your progress towards your goals.

Contact me for more information or to book a place.

Nordic Weight Loss

2011-05-16T11:09:00.000+01:00

Nordic Walking is a great form of exercise for weight loss. Not only does it burn around 40% more calories than ordinary walking, classes can also incorporate resistance exercises to fire up your metabolism and get you burning more calories even when you're not exercising. On top of that, Nordic Walking is something you can do in groups or on your own, adds more purpose to walking and is a great fun, outdoor activity that will leave you feeling fantastic.

We've teamed up with weight loss guru and former GMTV life coach Pete Cohen to help you to effortlessly learn the habits neccessary to lose weight and keep it off forever. Pete's on-line weight loss programme has a proven record in helping people to make the changes neccessary to lose weight and to make this a lifelong habit.

The Nordic Weight loss programme includes 4 weekly Nordic Walking sessions with emphasis on promoting weight loss

4 weeks unlimited access to all our Nordic Walking classes

21 day on-line coaching programme with Pete Cohen

3 months access to Pete Cohen's weight loss resource site

resource pack to record and monitor progress

Our Nordic Weight Loss package includes all this for just £89.Launch dates to be released shortly. Please contact us to register your interest.

Discover your Fitness Personality

2011-05-10T14:28:00.000+01:00

Have you ever wondered why some people seem to maintain an exercise routine, or are 'naturally active'? Is there such a thing as an 'exercise type' of person?

My view is that it's just a case of finding the right approach to exercise for you. When working with personal training clients, I often use a personality quiz to give clients an understanding of why a certain approach may or may not have worked for them in the past. It also gives me an insight into what approach I can use to help them to get the best results.

You can now take the Fitness Personality Quiz free of charge and discover your fitness personality. The quiz takes around 5 minutes to complete. When you complete the quiz you will be shown your fitness colour followed by the word Harmony or Efficiency.

Take the quiz

Buy the book "The 8 Colors of Fitness by Suzanne Brue"

All it takes is a nudge?

2011-01-26T08:43:00.006Z

So, a few 'nudges' in the right direction and we'd have a much healthier, more active society. Well, that's the thinking behind the book 'Nudge' by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein. Health Secretary Andrew Lansey is an advocate of this approach. The government's white paper "Healthy People, Healthy Lives" looks at encouraging people to make small changes rather than forcing change through legislation.

According to academics at Cambridge University, there is very little evidence to suggest that this approach actually works. A voluntary agreement between the Foods Standard Agency and food manufacturers in the UK led to a reduction in daily salt consumption of 0.9g. In Finland and Japan, where legislation was used it fell by 5g. There is even a danger that if the 'nudge' approach is used at the expense of other approaches, then this could actually have the effect of making us as a society less healthy.

My approach is to help people to take responsibility for their own health. I certainly feel that any health campaign that lectures people and tells them what to do is not going to be effective long term.

So, does this mean the government is right to favour nudges over legislation? Marketeers have been doing this for years. Suggesting that our lives aren't complete without product x, putting sweets next to the checkout at supermarkets and of the almost hypnotic use of language to sell their products.

The effectiveness of this approach is also part of the problem in using a 'nudge' approach to getting us healthier. The amount of nudges needed to counteract the selling of unhealthy products would be immense and certainly outside the budget allocated by the government.

Even worse, is the governments intention to partner with the food manufacturers to offer vouchers to be used for discounts on 'healthy foods'. A scheme was introduced four years ago to provide fruit and veg vouchers for new mothers who are receiving benefits. This scheme has been abused with some retailers who have been accepting the vouchers for other products including cigarettes and alcohol. However, the recently published findings that one in five retailers, health professionals and recipients knew of occasions when tokens had been swapped for products outside the scheme, was carried out by the government. Could it be that the current government is looking for an excuse to replace the scheme with one funded through discount vouchers from food manufacturers rather than public money?

I certainly would not class processed foods as healthy. Discounts on fresh fruit and vegetables? Fantastic, particularly if targeting deprived areas and monitored to ensure it isn't being abused by a minority. But low fat yoghurts containing sugar, products containing artificial sweeteners and rather dubious 'healthy' cereal bars really aren't my idea of foods that we should be encouraging people to have more of.

And that's where I feel that the government does have more of a role to play. In terms of public health, legislation can play an important role. The previous example of reductions in salt intake through voluntary agreements versus legislation illustrates this point. For food manufacturers, the more salt, sugar and vegetable oils in a product, the lower the cost and the greater the profit margin. So if a manufacturer looks to cut down the fat content of a lasagne, do they go for leaner, more expensive cuts of meat? Unlikely. Do they add more water, emulsifiers and even sugars or chemical additives to improve the taste. Almost certainly.

This is an area where legislation could set down standards for nutritional quality of foods. Anything that doesn't meet this criteria could be classed as a non-food or junk food. Food manufacturers would argue that this would force up the price of 'food'. Yet why should we have a situation where a processed lasagne costs less to buy than a homemade one, even though VAT applies to the former and not to most of the ingredients required to make your own.

Back up this legislation with increased education in things like the importance of good nutrition and teaching people how to cook and we're starting to get a joined up policy that could actually make a difference.

Get More Active with our Personal Training Package

2010-12-13T15:10:00.007Z

Are you are making a new years resolution to get more active or lose weight? If so, have you made similar resolutions in the past, and wondered why you haven't been able to stick with it? Quite often it's just a case of trying the wrong approach or not having the right reasons to maintain your motivation long term.

We are now offering a package of 6 personal training sessions with 3 months on-line and telephone support for just £220, saving over £60 on our usual price. Personal Training sessions take place from a studio in York or home based personal training is available within the York area. Contact us for a free initial consultation

We also offer live webinar coaching which gives you all the tools you need to increase your activity levels to improve health.

Reduced cancer risk from aspirin versus exercise

2010-12-07T16:54:00.007Z

There's been a lot of coverage in today's media about how a daily aspirin reduces the risk of developing certain cancers. What a shame the same amount of coverage hasn't been given to the reduction in the risk of cancers from regular exercise.

According to the research from Oxford University, which has been cited in the newspapers, regular use of aspirin reduces the risk of prostate cancer by 10%. Research has found regular exercisers to have a reduced risk of prostate cancer of 30%. Breast cancer risk was reduced by 7% in the study for those taking aspirin daily. Studies have found exercise to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer by up to 18%. For bowel cancer the risk was reduced by 40% for those taking aspirin compared to a 24% reduction from exercise, however the risk of bowel cancer is further reduced by reducing or cutting out red meats, particularly processed meats, alongside other lifestyle changes.

A side effect of prolonged use of aspirin is internal bleeding. Side effects of exercise include increased energy, improved mood and improved mobility. Which would you rather have?

On-line health and wellbeing coach

2010-11-12T11:57:00.009Z

Fitbug is an activity motivator that fits in your pocket. The device can be ued to set activity targets for the week, monitor progress and you can even use the website to log food intake, amount of water and other factors which can effect your health.

We've been testing Fitbugs for the last few months and have really seen a difference in clients using these devices in terms of helping them to get more active between sessions and to get even better results. We're now able to supply Fitbugs and also provide additional motivation through ongoing personal support with the option of joining one of our groups where we arrange monthly challenges.

The cost of a Fitbug works out at just £7 per month when bought with a 12 month subscription.

Buy Fitbug for £84 with 12 month subscription
(includes P&P within UK)

Do rewards help people to be healthier?

2010-09-27T08:25:00.003+01:00

You may have seen on this mornings news that the health watchdog, NICE may be considering a scheme to offer financial rewards in return for people giving up smoking or losing weight. A lot of people would claim that this is unfair on people who are already leading a healthy lifestyle and not getting rewarded. I would even argue that this type of scheme would make people less healthy.

It is widely believed that if you reward people for good behaviour and punish them for bad behaviour then this will motivate people to act in the desired way. This form of extrinsic motivation relies on an external input. Numerous studies have shown that this form of motivation does not work long term. A study in America provided a reward scheme where a group of school children were given vouchers in return for reading books during the school holidays. The study found that whilst the group of children who were offered the reward read more books than the control group who just read for enjoyment, as soon as the reward scheme ended the group who had been given the rewards not only read less books than the other group, but read less books than they had done before the scheme started. Other studies have shown that with an external rewards scheme the level of reward has to be increased over time just to maintain the level of motivation.

Helping people to have there own reasons for following a healthy behaviour pattern is much more effective than trying to reward people with cash incentives. If someone wants to be able to play in the park with their grandkids, go skiing in their sixties or just feel fantastic when they wake up in the morning then surely this is a better way to motivate people. I watched 'Are you fitter than a pensioner' last night, and one of the people on the program recognised that they didn't want their child to be as unhealthy as they were and that was their main motivator for getting more active and kicking the junk food.

So, find your own reason for wanting to make lifestyle changes, think what assistance you need to be able to make this a long term change and think what you can do right now to make that change happen.

What exercise is best for type 2 diabetes?

2010-08-16T12:10:00.005+01:00

Exercise can be classed as aerobic (or cardiovascular) and resistance (or strength). Aerobic exercise has widely been considered the most appropriate exercise for those with type 2 diabetes, but is this correct for the most effective management of diabetes and how much should you do?

More recent research has found that both aerobic and resistance exercise improve glycaemic control, and that improvement is greatest when both forms of exercise are combined.

Aerobic Exercise

There are lots of definitions of 'aerobic' exercise, but I use it to refer to any activity involving movement of large muscle groups for 10 consecutive minutes or more. This could be walking, cycling, swimming, kayaking, etc.

Moderate intensity aerobic exercise would generally be at around 50-70% of maximum heart rate. An approximation of maximum heart rate can be established by deducting your age from 220. Therefore a 40 year old would have a maximum heart rate of 180 and this would give them a target heart rate of 90-126 bpm. Please note that certain medications have a lowering effect on heart and that this is just an average. Some people may have a naturally higher or lower heart rate. The important thing is that you are working at a level where you are having to breathe a little deeper, though should still be able to hold a conversation without being out of breath.

Vigorous cardiovascular activity - also known as huffy puffy exercise - would generally take the heart rate above 70% of maximum. It is important to have medical clearance before attempting vigorous activity and always build up to this gradually through more moderate intensity activity.

Resistance Exercise

This is anything using the application of a force to increase muscle strength. The resistance can be anything from medicine balls to kettlebells, dumbells to powerbags. Basically anything you pick up and put down again. Resistance can also be from bodyweight, suspension trainers like TRX and resistance bands.

Current Guidelines for exercise and diabetes (ADA Guidelines)

At least 150 minutes a week of moderate to vigorous cardiovascular activity spread over at least three days.
No more than two days without exercise
Resistance exercise three times a week progressing to 3 sets of 8-10 reps

My opinion is that 150 minutes of cardiovascular exercise a week is not enough. To be beneficial to health at least 30 minutes of activity a day is recommended. For most people this can be easily achieved by walking or cycling as a means of transport, taking a brisk walk on before or after work or even on a lunchtime - this will also make you much more energised and productive in the afternoon. Structured exercise is a great way to include additional exercise and by making a regular commitment to an activity you are more likely to keep doing it. Things like aqua aerobics, Nordic Walking classes or spinning classes (though make sure you build intensity up gradually) are great ways to get regular exercise into your life. Also, don't just think of exercise as being something you need to do. Think of activities that you would like to do. This could be going for a cycle ride with family, learning to kayak. Think of activities you'd like to have a go at and go for it, even if it means enlisting the help of others to give you the confidence to get started.

Not going more than two days without exercise is important for everyone's health, but particularly important when using exercise to manage type 2 diabetes. The benefits of exercise in improving glycaemic control last for between 24 and 72 hours, depending mainly on the intensity of the exercise.

Many of the studies into diabetes and resistance training have been based on completing 8-10 repetitions. Other studies have shown that 10-15 or 20-25 repetitions have a beneficial effect. Higher intensity resistance training activities can be considered safe provided there are no underlying heart conditions or high blood pressure. As with any exercise, it is important to build up intensity gradually. With the appropriate supervision there is no reason why activities such as kettlebell training, boxing and other high intensity activities can not be enjoyed. As insulin resistant individuals often have lower aerobic capacity and less slow twitch (endurance type) muscle fibres, activities working the fast twitch (strength/power) muscle fibres can be an effective way to train.

Look out for next weeks blog when I'll explain the safety considerations of exercising with type 2 diabetes.

Benefits of Exercise for Type 2 Diabetes

2010-08-09T09:07:00.005+01:00

It has long been realised that exercise is beneficial for managing type 2 diabetes, but what type of exercise is best, how much do you need to do, how often and how safe is exercise? Over the course of the next few weeks I'll answer all these questions. Today, I'm going to start by looking at the benefits of exercise.

The main benefits of exercise for type 2 diabetes are increased glucose uptake and the improvement in insulin sensitivity. Glucose uptake is the use of glucose, which comes from our foods, to be converted into energy to power the muscles. The muscles contain insulin receptors which must first be unlocked by the presence of insulin to allow the glucose through.

Exercise helps manage type 2 diabetes in a number of ways. In simple terms, exercise increases enzymes that help convert fat to energy, and enable more glycogen (the form to which sugars are converted in the body) to be stored within the muscles and liver. Exercise also improves pancreas and liver function and reduces fat stored around the abdominal region which in turn reduces secretion of harmful toxins, known as adipocytokines, into the blood stream.

Glucose is transported along both insulin dependent pathways and insulin independent pathways. A pre-diabetic with mild insulin resistance can find that exercise improves the functioning of both these pathways. Studies have found exercise to be more effective than metformin in treatment of pre-diabetes. With full blown insulin resistance, exercise still has a great benefit in being able to improve glucose up take through the insulin independent pathways. The benefit of improved insulin sensitivity last for around 24 to 48 hours after exercise and therefore regular exercise is extremely important for managing diabetes.

The amount of circulating glucose is also increased in times of stress. There's a pretty good reason for this. When our ancestors spent their lives hunting and surviving in a much harsher environment, stressors would tend to be events like seeing a potential dinner and chasing after it, or seeing something that saw us a a potential dinner and getting away from it.

The initial psychological stress response would be quickly followed by a fight or flight response. Along with many other chemical reactions in the body, glucose levels increase. This glucose provides fuel for the brain to help us react quickly along with energy for the muscles to enable us to move quickly. Compare this to today's stressors. Being stuck in a traffic jam, talking to an irate customer on the phone. With no outlet for the stress response, circulating glucose levels increase. Regular exercise can help make us more resilient to stress. Yet another way in which exercise helps manage type 2 diabetes. I also recommend various relaxation techniques that can be used at any time, even whilst sat in a traffic jam.

So, now you know why you should be more active, but what type of exercise should you do? Join me next week to find out.

Nordic Walking Wellness Classes in Easingwold

2010-07-10T10:44:00.005+01:00

Do you want to improve your health and mobility? Don't fancy going to the gym and find walking boring or ineffective? Nordic Walking wellness classes incorporate plenty of mobility work and stretching. Walking is at a gentle pace and participants soon realise that they can get fitter and keep improving whatever their current fitness levels. All Wellness Classes are instructed by a qualified Exercise Referral instructor who is experienced working with clients with a range of medical conditions including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, heart conditions and osteoarthritis.

The first session is free. Subsequent classes cost £6 per session. Places can be booked on-line or by telephoning on 07790 702313.

Learn to Nordic Walk at Burn Hall

2010-07-10T10:14:00.006+01:00

The next Learn to Nordic Walk course starts on Friday 16th July at Burn Hall, Huby at 12.15pm.

The Learn to Nordic Walk program will help you to understand your current level of fitness and empower you to get out and get the results you want from Nordic Walking.

The structured 4 session course includes

Session 1- Fundamentals of Nordic Walking technique, gaining forward propulsion from the poles by engaging correct upper body muscles, understanding correct gait and co-ordination

Session 2- Mastering hand grip and use of the pole straps in order to develop technique. Adapting the body position and pole angles for walking up and down hills.

Session 3- Adding more speed through improved technique, understanding how your body reacts to exercise and learning how to stay within your comfort zone.

Session 4- Improving posture and understanding how to use technique, distance, speed and terrain to constantly ensure that you get the most out of your Nordic walking.

Upon successful completion of all four sessions you will be issued with a Nordic Walking UK Certificate of Competence card. This is your passport to walks and events with participating instructors all over the UK.

The program costs £59 which includes all four sessions, plus use of poles, Nordic Walking UK certification and tea/coffee after each session. The dates for the four sessions at Burn Hall or as follows

Session 1 Friday 16th July 2010, 12.15pm
Session 2 Friday 23rd July 2010, 12.15pm
Session 3 Friday 6th August 2010 12.15pm
Session 4 Friday 13th August 2010 12.15pm

If you are unable to attend any of the dates you can complete the course at an alternative date and/or venue, provided the sessions are completed in the correct order.

Please contact me to book a place or for additional information.

Additional Try Nordic Walking session in Easingwold, Friday 4th June

2010-05-25T18:07:00.004+01:00

Following a write up in last weeks Easingwold Advertiser, there's been a great deal of interest in our 'Try Nordic Walking' sessions. The Friday morning session is now fully booked and we're therefore now taking bookings for an additional free taster session on Friday 4th June at 12 noon.

The session will give you the opportunity to see for yourself why Nordic Walking is becoming one of the fastest growing fitness activities in the UK. Poles are provided and the session will give you an understanding of basic Nordic Walking technique and the many benefits from using Nordic Walking poles.

Places are limited so please contact us to book a place or book on line

Improving workplace health in York

2010-05-10T15:20:00.003+01:00

Having spent over 10 years working in the insurance and financial services sectors, I'm well aware of the demands of workloads and deadlines. I also become acutely aware of the importance of work life balance and regular exercise.

According to research by Aviva, 37% of employees don't take a lunch break. As well as loosing out from an almost certain reduction in productivity as a result of lack of breaks, employers may also be failing their duties under the Working Time regulations to ensure that staff take regulatory breaks.

As well as increasing productivity, NICE have found that physical activity programs at work can reduce absenteeism by up to 20%. But isn't that all very idealistic and expensive?

We have been working with a number of local employers to introduce Nordic Walking into the workplace as a lunchtime activity. A 45 minute walk can yield fantastic benefits in terms of reduced stress, improved morale, increased cognitive function, improved health and reduced absenteeism. Nordic Walking combines the benefits of outdoor exercise, with increased muscle usage as well as mobility and stretching and strengthening exercises to help improve posture.

We are offering free Nordic Walking taster sessions to employers within the York area. All we ask in return is that you promote the sessions to your workforce. Regular sessions can then be arranged, usually paid for by the participants, however employer subsidised or fully paid classes can be arranged.

To find out more about how Nordic Walking could improve the health and profitability at your workplace contact us for full details.

Try Nordic Walking sessions in York

2010-05-10T14:49:00.005+01:00

Nordic Walking is a great way to improve fitness, gives you the benefits of exercising outdoors and is suitable for all levels. Nordic Walking is completely different to walking with hiking or walking poles. The poles are used to propel you forward and using the correct Nordic Walking technique can use over 40% more calories than ordinary walking and uses 90% of your muscles.

We're aiming to give as many people as possible the opportunity to try Nordic Walking for free. The next free taster session in York is on Sunday 6th June at 10am at Rawcliffe Country Park on the York Outer Ring Road.

Poles are provided and the sessions will give you an undersanding of basic nordic walking techniques and the many benefits from using Nordic Walking poles. Places are limited so please contact us to book a place or book on-line

Nordic Walking Wellness Classes in Easingwold

2010-04-13T20:17:00.007+01:00

The first session is free. Subsequent classes cost £6 per session. Pre-booking is essential. Places can be booked on-line or by telephoning on 07790 702313.

Free Nordic Walking taster sessions in York

2010-04-13T20:05:00.005+01:00

Want to find out more about Nordic Walking? The next FREE Nordic Walking taster sessions in York are on Sunday 18th April at 10am and Monday 19th April at 6.00pm. Both sessions are at Rawcliffe Country Park in York. Free parking is available at the Park and Ride site on the junction of the A19 and A1237. The taster sessions are suitable for all levels and give you an opportunity to experience Nordic Walking and to find out how it can help you to get more active, improve health and achieve your fitness goals.

Nordic Walking poles are provided. Places are limited so please pre-book to reserve your place. To book use the on-line diary or telephone me on 07790 702313.

Special April Offer on Nordic Walking Technique workshops

2010-04-07T14:44:00.007+01:00

Do you want to get fitter, lose weight, improve health? Nordic Walking is a great fitness activity that gets you outside in the fresh air. Now it's getting warmer and evening's are getting lighter it's a great time to get started with Nordic Walking.

As an added incentive, any technique workshops booked in April will be charged at £40 for the 4 week course, instead of the usual £59. These structured courses give you the necessary skills of Nordic Walking and teach the correct technique in a recognised format.

Upon completion of the 4 session technique workshop you will be issued with a Certificate of Competence card that enables you to attend classes and Nordic Walking sessions with any Nordic Walking UK instructor.

For details of upcoming free taster sessions, workshops and classes visit my Nordic Walking diary or contact me on 07790 702313 for additional information.

Nordic Walking Classes York

2010-03-08T19:34:00.007Z

Free 45 minute Taster sessions

Wednesday 31st March, 5.30 pm
Sunday 4th April, 10am

4 session technique workshop

Session 1

Wednesday 7th April, 5.30pm
Sunday 18th April, 10am

Session 2

Wednesday 14th April, 5.30pm
Sunday 25th April 10am

Session 3

Wednesday 21st April, 5.30pm
Sunday 2nd May, 10am

Session 4

Wednesday 28th April 5.30pm
Sunday 9th May, 10am

Fitness Class (must have completed technique workshops)

Wednesdays, 6.30pm

Nordic Walking Taster Sessions

2010-02-25T21:53:00.004Z

Free Nordic Walking Taster session

10 am Sunday 7th March at Rawcliffe Country Park (free parking at Rawcliffe Bar Park and Ride site)

Contact us for details or to book your place.

Reasons not to exercise

2009-12-17T17:15:00.003Z

As a personal trainer I hear all sorts of 'reasons' why people don't do enough activity. "I'm too busy"; "I'm not the sporty type"; "I have a medical condition"; and my favourite of all "I'm too tired to exercise".

Exercise can help reduce tiredness. By getting moving and getting oxygen circulating round the body you actually have more energy and feel less tired. It's also a great way to combat stress by reducing stress hormones and increasing levels of feel good chemicals such as serotonin.

Many medical conditions can be improved with regular exercise, not least, back pain and joint problems, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, heart conditions, osteoporosis, osteoarthritis, asthma, parkinsons, multiple sclerosis and depression. The important thing is to seek expert advice on the right exercise to do for your condition.

Being too busy to exercise is a common problem, but as Edward Stanley said, "those who think they do not have time to exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness". It's really a case of finding a way of giving exercise a greater importance in your life. Set goals based on what's important to you.

Many people have been put off exercise simply because they've followed the wrong approach in the past. Find out your fitness personality and find activities that work for you.

Next time you start thinking of a reason not to exercise, ask yourself "Is it an obstacle or an excuse?" If it's an obstacle, find a way round it. This may involve enlisting the help of a trainer or coach. If it's an excuse either turn it into an obstacle, or re-look at your goals and find a better reason for being more active.

Resolution revolution

2009-12-12T15:36:00.007Z

Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. So how many people are making new years resolutions to join a gym or to start exercising but trying the same approach that they used last year and the year before?

Judging by the usual increase in gym membership sales and purchases of fitness equipment shortly after the new year, it's quite a few.

Here's a few tips to enable you to do things differently this year.

1. Think of the problem before you think of the solution. Many people buy a piece of equipment or join a gym before they've given any real thought as to how it's going to work for them. If you hate going to the gym why try to force yourself to go? Try to discover what it is you don't like about what you've done in the past. Is is the environment that you're not comfortable with? Is it the lack of support or interaction with other people? Is it just the wrong activity for you? There's lots of way to be active so don't your waste time and money doing one that's not going to work for you.

2. Ask yourself why it's important for you to be active. We all have lots of demands on our time, and if exercise isn't important to you right now, then it's not going to get the priority it deserves. Find ways to make exercise a priority. This could be reminders of why you need to be active, rewards for reaching certain fitness goals, or setting challenges that inspire you.

3. Discover your fitness personality. I've been fortunate enough to have worked with Suzanne Brue, author of The 8 Colors of Fitness, and I integrate Suzanne's fitness personality profiling with my personal training clients. Take the quiz and discover why your past approach to exercise may not have been right for you and how you can exercise right for your personality type.

4. Prepare and plan. This is one of the areas where personality can make a huge difference. Some personality types do best with minimal planning. Others are happy to spend time planning and preparing rather than getting on with things. Recognise which you are and make sure that you spend enough time planning to get results and to ensure that your're doing enough activity but not too much time that it gets in the way of your actual training.

5. Monitor progress. Write down details of your training sessions to see how your progressing. There's some great on-line diaries available as well as iphone apps and paper diaries. Decide what information you want to keep track of and find the best way of doing that for you.

6. Enjoy. By finding the right way of exercising most people can actually enjoy exercise. At the very least make sure that you enjoy the results and the feeling that you get from being more active.

Obsessed by obesity

2009-09-28T16:57:00.020+01:00

A client mentioned this week how someone she hadn't seen for a while had told her she'd noticed that she'd lost weight. Now, if this person had a habit of picking my client up everytime she sees her, then, "you've lost weight" could have been a valid comment. Surely by looking at someone you can only tell if they're slimmer or more toned. To know if someone has lost weight you need to determine how heavy they are. So why do we have this fixation with weight (or if I'm being really pedantic, mass)?

The point I'm trying to make is that you can't see if someone has lost weight. You cannot tell how fit and healthy someone is by looking at them or, in my opinion even by measuring weight, yet this is something that current health campaigns seem to be focusing on.

I can understand why health campaigners are targeting obesity. It's a recognised risk factor for a number of medical conditions including hypertension, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and certain cancers. But is the focus on body image and obesity doing more harm than good? Let's look at some very simple facts about weight and health.

FACT 1 If you eat too much and don't do enough exercise you are more likely to gain weight.

FACT 2 Some people can have a poor diet, do very little physical activity and not be overweight

FACT 3 Some people can eat healthily, do regular exercise and still be overweight

There's two main reasons why I feel this emphasis on weight is leading to a less healthy population.

Firstly, it allows people who do not do enough physical activity (over 70% of the population acording to the British Heart Foundation) and have a poor diet, to believe that they don't need to make any changes as long as they're not 'overweight'.

Secondly, for those who are considered overweight or obese how do these campaigns make them feel? According to a survey only 25% of women were happy with their body weight and 22% admitted to staying at home because they didn't think they looked good. Now, if so many people already have such negative thoughts about their body image, will focusing on weight really help to improve peoples health? This approach is much more likely to make people feel bad about themselves and less likely to get out of the house to take up a more active lifestyle.

Surely it would be far better to emphasise more positive goals. Focusing on being stronger, fitter and healthier conjures up much more positive thoughts than focusing on losing weight. It's what you want that's important. Not what you don't want.

Here are some body boosting activities - adapted from Psychology Today www.psychologytoday.com/articles/199702/survey-says-body-image-poll-results

1. Exercise for health, fitness and strength rather than focusing on weight control.
2. Do activities that help you feel good about yourself.
3. Move your body in ways that feel good.
4. Focus on how your body functions rather than how it looks.
5. Set goals to recognise achievements in terms of exercise sessions completed rather than short term aesthetic changes.

Exercising at the right intensity

2009-08-04T10:49:00.011+01:00

We all know we need to be more active, but how much exercise do you need to do, how hard do you need to work and is there such a thing as too much exercise?

Heart rate monitors can provide useful feedback as to exercise intensity and enable you to train more effectively.

Maximum heart rate is the highest number of heartbeats per minute during maximal exertion. For most people, a rough guide to maximum heart rate is to use 220 minus your age, so for example a 40 year old would have an estimated maximum heart rate of 180 beats per minute. Once you've determined your maximum heart rate you can determine the targets zones for your exercising heart rate.

A fairly basic heart rate monitor such as Polar's FS2C, measures heart rate and highest and average heart rate during a session, as well as having the ability to set target heart rate zones with an audible warning when you go below or above your set zone.

Different Training Intensities based on percentage of maximum heart rate

Less than 60% - Improves basic fitness when new to exercise. For regular exercises this low intensity exercise can help aid recovery from higher intensity sessions.

60-70% - Improves basic fitness and provides a foundation for higher intensity activities. Ideal intensity for long duration exercise.

70-80% - Will be starting to feel hard going. Greater improvement in fitness, though only perform exercise at this intensity 2 to 3 times a week and ensure adequate recovery between sessions.

80-90% - Used mainly for interval type training. Develops fitness levels quickly but requires adequate base fitness levels before introducing this type of training to your workouts. Can easily lead to overtraining which may force you to take a long break from your training.

Over 90% - Benefits are primarily psychological and used only for sports performance training. Not appropriate for general fitness training.

The Polar F4 monitor also calculates number of calories used during exercise. Whilst I'm not an advocate of counting calories for weight loss (in my opinion types of food and efficient metabolism are more important) using calories as a measure of workload can be very effective.

Research carried out at Stanford University found that the risk of heart attack is, as you would probably expect, much higher in those who do least physical activity. Those doing less than 500 calories of physical activity in a week (half an hour of walking at 4mph is approximately 150 calories) were most at risk. Incidents of heart attack in this group was around double that of those doing between 2000-3000 calories of physical activity a week, which was found to be the optimum level. Above 3,000 calories activity a week, incidence of heart attack increased slightly, indicating that you can do too much, though even the most active people were much less at risk of heart attack than those who did less than 500 calories of activity a week.

2,000 calories of exercise a week equates to around 6 hours of moderate intensity activity. Much more than the government's advice of 30 minutes of moderate intensity activity on 5 or more days of the week, and probably more than most people feel they have time for. To burn more calories in less time you will need to increase intensity. Nordic Walking has been shown to increase calorie expenditure by up to 46%, therefore 3 x 1 hour Nordic walking sessions a week could be 1300 calories. compared to 3 hours of ordinary walking which would use around 900 calories. A high intensity activity such as Spinning can burn around 300 calories in a half hour class.

Making sure that you don't overdo your training is another important consideration. Planning your training to allow sufficient recovery after high intensity training is important. To really get the best out of your training, a monitor like Polar's F6 determines correct exercise intensity based on heart rate variability. This detects how stressed the body is before exercise and recommends the appropriate level of intensity for a particular session.

View the range of Polar heart rate monitors at Escape Fitness

Coopers Droopers - Breast Support

2009-05-27T14:48:00.007+01:00

York sports bra retailer, Elizabeth Wells explains the importance of getting the right support for exercise.

What’s all the fuss about?
So you may, or may not have heard about Coopers Ligament. It’s the ligament that holds up and supports the breast, very important as we ladies try to defy gravity!

Why is it important?
Coopers Ligaments run from the nipple to the pectoral muscle; attaching the fatty tissue of the breast to the pectoral muscles of the chest wall. While we can exercise to improve the tone of the muscles behind the breast; they are just this – behind the breast. They form the foundation of what your breast tissue lies upon but they do not support the fatty tissue that makes up your breast. You may have strong pectoral and chest muscles but still suffer from saggy boobs! It is so important that we look after Coopers Ligament giving it extra support when exercising, as well as supporting properly it everyday.

Why do boobs sag?
Without the internal support of this ligament, the breast tissue sags under its own weight, losing its normal shape and contour. Naturally over time, and as we get older this ligament stretches, this process is accelerated by not supporting the breast properly. During exercise the ligament becomes pulled and stretched; loosing its elasticity leading to irreversible sagging. Portsmouth University found breasts moved in a 3D figure of eight, this uncontrolled movement strained fragile tissues and ligaments – sounds painful!

Exercise is painful!
Many women experience pain during exercise – sadly this puts them of doing it! Pain is often across your back, particularly if you have larger breasts, as well as general pain from the breast bouncing up and down and from side to side. A fitted sports bra will minimise pain and discomfort across your back and across your chest as the bust is lifted into place and held snugly, dramatically reducing movement caused by exercise. Now you will be able to exercise at a better quality as your pain is removed thus getting more from your workout!

How can I stop the sagging!
Poorly fitting bras and exercising in non-supportive bras will results in permanent stretching of the Coopers Ligaments leading to irreversible sagging, an average breast can bounce as much as 4.7inches up and down with minimal support! It is so important to get fitted every time you buy a new bra. There are non compression sports bars available in soft or wired styles; it is your choice as to which you prefer. An encapsulating bra minimises bounce and will lift, separate and support the breast a lot better than the old fashioned compression bras (they also have the added advantage of giving a great shape!). The importance of being fitted correctly cannot be stressed enough.

Where Now!
Dr Chris (GMTV) recommends the Freya Active range, which are unique in their non-compression design. There is no sports bra like it, due to its design Freya is set to revolutionise the sports bra market.

Health & Fitness Magazine put their running shoes on to rigorously test the best high impact sports bras and we at Elizabeth Wells are proud to say that Freya Active came out on top receiving 5 out of 5 in all categories which include style, performance and features.

Elizabeth Wells Lingerie, 23 Shambles has a trained bra fitter (who is also a keen runner!) ready to fit you out in a new sports bra which as well as being engineered to fit, makes use of the best fabrics with wicking properties and comfortable to wear. www.elizabethwells.co.uk

When and how to stretch

2009-05-12T06:47:00.005+01:00

I was in London on Friday for a Power Plate training course. One of the issues that came up was the subject of stretching. It's an area that causes confusion within the fitness industry as well as to the general public.

Static stretching (holding a fixed position, usually for between 10-30 seconds) at the start of a workout is now generally frowned upon, unless done to address a specific muscle imbalance. Static stretching lengthens a muscle and if done before exercise can cause an instability in the joint.

I use Muscle Activation Technique when working with clients. The principle behind MAT is fantastically simple. If it's tight stretch it. If it's weak strengthen it. The difficult part is identifying if a muscle is tight through overuse or if it's tightened up to protect a joint due to another muscle being weak. If muscle tightness is caused by muscle weakness (which in my experience is often the case) a series of strengthening exercises are more effective than stretches.

Static stretching after exercise is still prescribed by many fitness professionals, particularly in classes. Research suggests that this may not always be a good idea. If the exercise has caused micro tears in the muscles, stretching can increase the size of these tears which isn't a particularly good idea. This is more of a problem with high intensity exercise, though without scanning muscles after exercise it is impossible to tell if any damage to the muscles has occurred.

So am I suggesting that people don't stretch at all. Absolutely not. A full warm-up is extremely important, but this should involve mobility type exercises and dynamic stretches to gently warm the muscles and increase range of motion through the joints in a way specific for the activity to follow.

Flexibility is important, but making time for specific stretching sessions, particularly activities such as yoga which are designed to stretch and strengthen muscles is a much more effective approach.

Is Power Plate for everyone?

2009-01-28T20:03:00.003Z

Regular followers of the blog will be aware that I'm a great believer in using personality type to determine approach to exercise, and that I'm also an Advanced Level Power Plate instructor. I regularly train clients using Powerplate at a studio in York and a gym in Easingwold.

It therefore seemed logical to look at what personality types are likely to be drawn to Power Plate training and why. The fitness personality colours I refer to are taken from Suzanne Brue's fitness personality quiz. To find out more and to find your fitness personality colour follow the link at the bottom of the post.

Vibration training is considered as a new trend within the fitness industry, the sort of activity that would generally appeal to the Play/Abstract types, namely Silver and Saffron. Equally quick to get bored with an activity as they are to get started, the main principle with this group is to allow plenty of flow and variety within the choice of exercises.

Whilst Power Plate machines have only become widely seen in gyms over the last few years, the concept of vibration training is not new at all. The principle was developed in the late 1960's by the Russians as a way of enabling astronauts to avoid muscle wasting and reduced bone density whilst living and working on the Space Station. It's even been documented that the Ancient Greeks had developed a form of vibration training by exercising on a wooden platform whilst vibrations were created on the platform by sawing the wood.

The science behind vibration training - likely to appeal to the Whites and Purples - is very simply Newton's Second Law of Gravity

FORCE = MASS x ACCELERATION

Instead of using an external mass such as dumbbells, barbell or resistance machine along with movement (acceleration) generated by moving the body (ie lifting weight), vibration training provides the movement through the vibrating platform and the mass is the users bodyweight being held in a specific position.

The exercises used on power plate are fairly traditional movement patterns such as press up, triceps dip and squat. The ability to train without using weights or movement reduces the risk of injury associated with training with free weights. These factors, plus the ability to closely monitor progress by recording time and settings used for each exercise, should appeal to the Blue and Gold personality types who look for safety, tradition and the ability to plan and monitor progress.

The Play/Concrete types - Reds and Greens, preferring mainly outdoor activities would be less likely to be drawn towards Power Plate training. That is unless they are looking to recover from injury. Reds in particular tend to go all out and injury is one of the main reasons for this personality type not exercising. When they can be persuaded to train to avoid injury and improve performance, Power Plate can be a good choice due to the time saving over conventional resistance training, giving them more time to pursue their chosen activity.

Versatility is certainly one of the reasons I have trained so many clients using Power Plate. It's also the reason the machines are being used by such a wide group of people; from physiotherapists working with groups including MS and Parkinsons sufferers and to speed up recovery after surgery, by exercisers who appreciate the ease of use and time saving, through to professional golfers and sports teams including Manchester United and Chelsea.

Discover your fitness personality

Personality Type and exercise choice

2009-01-24T15:39:00.008Z

When you think about starting to exercise, how much thought do you give to the choice of activity? You may have decided that you want to lose weight, be fitter, feel better or have more energy, but how do you go about finding an activity that will achieve what you want, and just as importantly ensure that you stay active long term. This is especially fitting this time of year when many people have already started and given up on new years resolutions to be more active.

Over the past year I have been incorporating something called Fitness Personality Profiling when working with my personal training clients. It's been fascinating to see how different personality types respond to different types of activities in different ways.

The system of fitness personality profiling has been pioneered by Suzanne Brue, an expert on psychological type and the connection between physical activity and personality type. Suzanne uses 8 colours- Red, Green, Blue, Gold, White, Purple, Silver and Saffron to describe the 8 different personality types that have very different approaches to exercise.

Flicking through a monthly advertising magazine pushed through the letterbox this morning, I noticed a number of new fitness activities advertised in the York area and started thinking how they would appeal to different personality types.

British Military Fitness has just started running outdoor classes in York. Military Fitness classes are run by serving or former members of the Armed Forces. This is the approach that many people think about when you mention personal training. They think of the drill sergeant yelling orders, a bit like Harvey from Celebrity Fit Club. This approach can be very effective in getting results, but is also the reason a lot of personality types shy away from exercise or feel that exercise isn't for them. This type of exercise will certainly appeal to Reds. They love the physical challenge and if they can push themselves to compete against others in the group, so much the better. Greens may also enjoy such a class, mainly for the opportunity to get outdoors, though will also enjoy the physical challenge, provided they can feel that they are competing with themselves rather than being pushed to compete openly with others. Blues and Golds may also be regulars in such a class, provided the environment and activities are considered safe and that they know what they should be doing and what is expected from them. A big difference between the Reds/Greens and Blue/Golds is that the former will expect to have fun and enjoy the activity, whereas the Blues/Golds will be there more for the results. The more abstract types - Silver, Saffrons, Purples and Whites are unlikely to be drawn towards Boot Camp style training.

Another new class advertised is York Dance Factory who run street dance classes. Dance generally appeals to Saffrons and Silvers who love the flow and opportunity for creative expression that dance provides. This type of class may also appeal to Reds as a fun, high energy activity. It is unlikely to appeal to Greens who would generally rather connect with the outdoors rather than their own creative side. The "Job" types - Blue, Gold, White, Purple, will generally not regard dance as being structured enough to provide the monitored improvements that they will look for when following an exercise program.

By knowing your personality type you can ensure that new activities started this year are right for you. Many people feel that they have failed when they give up on a new activity, rather than realising that it just wasn't the right approach for them.

Follow the link below to find your Fitness Personality Type.

Find your fitness personality

Post event sports massage

2008-09-26T18:08:00.005+01:00

Having tackled the arduous Yorkshire 3 Peaks and completed the 24.5 miles and 1600 metres of climb within 12 hours, the sense of achievement was incredible, reduced only by the severe tightness in my calf muscles caused by trekking through miles of boggy ground whilst walking the 10 or so miles between Pen-y-ghent and Whernside. As a personal trainer I need to be out training with clients, and as a lot of the work I do involves running and Nordic Walking I needed to be fully recovered as soon as possible.

I went to see Mark Tipping of Body-Fix Wellness Clinic in Barlby, near Selby and couldn't believe the difference half an hour of sports massage made. Most of the soreness wore off almost immediately and my movement improved straight away.

I will certainly be recommending Mark for pre and post event massage therapy to any clients who are taking part in endurance events such as marathons or treks as well as those competing in sports. The benefits of regular massage in speeding up the recovery process and avoiding future more serious injuries should not be overlooked.

Mark can be contacted for sports massage therapy at Body-Fix Wellness Clinic, Selby on 07894 705826

Exercise reduces fatigue and increases energy

2008-09-24T19:15:00.003+01:00

Research shows that regular exercise can improve energy more effectively than stimulants such as coffee or energy drinks. Regular exercisers have known this for years, but now this has been backed up with research carried out by the University of Georgia. "A lot of times when people are fatigued, the last thing they want to do is exercise," says researcher Patrick O'Conner, "but if you're physically inactive and fatigued, being a bit more active will help."

In this study, published in Psychological Bulletin, the researchers analysed 70 studies on exercise and fatugie involving more than 6,800 people. The results showed that regular exercise increases energy and reduces fatigue. So next time you're tempted to hve yet another cup of coffee or reach for an energy drink, try getting out for a brisk walk or doing some exercise instead and just see how much better you feel.

Wearing the right bra for exercise

2008-09-22T20:16:00.005+01:00

According to research by scientists at Portsmouth University, 9 out of 10 women could be damaging their breasts by wearing the wrong bra. Most bras do not give enough support to prevent irrepairable damage during exercise.

Specialist retailers such as Less Bounce provide full guidance and assistance in choosing the right bra to make sure that you can exercise comfortably.

Having the right clothing and equipment is vital for any sport. Having the right sports bra is often overlooked and the wrong choice can be the cause of pain and discomfort during exercise which could easily be prevented.

Nordic Walking in York

2008-07-28T19:41:00.006+01:00

Nordic Walking in York - Want to burn 40% more calories than walking, get an active workout for the upperbody and be able to exercise without aggravating back or joint pain? Then Nordic Walking could be for you. Already popular in continental Europe, Nordic Walking is one fo the fastest growing fitness activities in the UK and Noridc Walking tuition is now available in York.

Nordic Walking provides people of all abilities with an ideal alternative to higher impact endurance training. It enables you to increase intensity levels to up to 75% of maximum whilst still walking, though the effort actually feels much less due to the load being spread over more muscles. The incidence of overuse or impact injuries is reduced for the same reason.

I'm a level 3 Leki Nordic Walking instructor and am now providing one to one tuition to personal training clients in York and across North Yorkshire. Group session will be available soon. Contact us for details of dates and locations.

Free swimming

2008-06-06T13:02:00.003+01:00

The government have announced plans to provide £80 million to provide free swimming for the over 60's. Great for grabbing the headlines but is there likely to be any real benefit from this?

Walking's always been free as far as I can recall, yet people are doing less and less walking. Could this suggest that maybe cost isn't the issue for most people.

Why target free swimming to the over 60's? According to the governments own data, the main age groups that don't do enough physical activity are males aged 46-55 and females aged 16-25. What help are the government providing to get these groups more active?

Yes put more money into leisure facilities, but why not allow local authorities to receive money to spend in a way that will benefit their community most positively. This could be improving public rights of way, subsidising swimming costs for all or even providing better support and information for people who do want to get more active.

Self-hypnosis workshop in York

2008-04-27T21:16:00.004+01:00

Can self hypnosis be learnt and used to improve confidence, sport performance, exercise adherence and to improve focus and reduce stress? After attending Sophie Nicholls' 'Self Hypnosis' workshop today the answer is a resounding yes.

Sophie went through a number of techniques to enable us to find a particular way of inducing self hypnosis. There are different approaches and what works for one person may not necessarily work for someone else. Despite being a complete novice at self-hypnosis, I was able to feel the technique working straight away, giving me the confidence and incentive to keep using the technique at home after the workshop.

Once in self hypnosis, we were able to use a self hypnosis program guided by Sophie, using effective language to enable our minds to be more receptive to the positive thoughts of what we wanted to achieve.

As someone who can find it difficult to relax, I've found self-hypnosis to be an excellent way of inducing a relaxed state of mind. Even though I already use a lot of visualisation techniques and positive thinking, being in a hypnotic state seems to have a huge improvement in the effectiveness of how well I respond to these thoughts.

I will be recommending Sophie's workshops to all of my personal training clients, therefore I would suggest that if you want to attend the next workshop that you book your place now.

Best type of exercise to burn calories

2008-04-27T17:19:00.002+01:00

Type 'best type of exercise to burn calories' into Google and you'll get about 1,540,000 results with a confusing array of conflicting advice. In my many years experience as a personal trainer, the best form of exercise for weight loss and burning calories is simply one that you will do.

Much better to play tennis three times a week consistently, than to decide to go running or cross country skiing and not be able to fit it in to your lifestyle or give up after a few weeks because you don't enjoy it.

Yes, some activities do have a higher calorific demand than others, but even then it depends so much on other factors such as intensity of the exercise session, how efficient you are at carrying out that activity and even the temperature that you're exercising in.

Find an activity or combination of activities that you enjoy and do it regularly enough and guess what? You will loose weight.

"Yes, but surely aerobic activity is better than anaerobic activity for fat loss" I hear some people say? Interesting theory about how a higher percentage of fat calories are burnt at lower intensity (around 60% of max heart rate) therefore to burn fat that's what we should do? Wrong! Short intense activity (subject to medical clearance) can burn more total calories. After all, when was the last time you saw a fat sprinter or boxer?

But going back to the original point, unless you are training for a specific event such as a marathon or to play a specific sport, the important thing about exercise is that you can do it on a regular basis and at a level appropriate for you existing fitness and health.

By trying different activities, focusing on the process of enjoying exercise rather than just concentrating on an end goal such as weight loss, you can make physical activity a regular part of your life and see the benefits of improved health and the ability to maintain a healthy weight.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

Kettlebell Training in York

2008-04-18T20:44:00.009+01:00

Kettlebell training is available in York under the expert guidance of Kettlebell instructor and strength and conditioning coach, Al Chambers. Sessions are available from the Mount School in York. I believe that 1-1 tuition is essential to get the most out of Kettlebell training.

I've introduced clients to Al and have always received great feedback about his expert and supportive instruction. Kettlebell training is a great high intensity workout to burn fat, build up high levels of cardio fitness and provide phenomenal gains in strength and power.

Used for hundreds of years as a way of developing strength and improving fitness, Kettlebells have grown in popularity over recent years with the likes of Gerri Halliwell and J Lo using them as well as strength athletes.

Visit Al's website for more information http://www.aftyork.com/

Vitamins 'may shorten your life'

2008-04-16T15:22:00.006+01:00

Most weeks there's some story in the media about what we should or shouldn't be eating. This week it's the turn of vitamins. A study carried out by Goran Bjelakovicat at Copenhagen University suggests that vitamin supplements either don't work or even increase the risk of dying.

The research papers used in the study had been based on trials of very high does of synthetic isolated vitamins over a short period of time to individuals already suffering from serious illness. The study therefore has no relevance to the vast majority of vitamin consumers.

I personally use a food based multi-vitamin daily on the basis that even though I have a diet with a good amount (way above 5 portions a day) of organically grown fruit and veg, the quality of our foods has deteriorated over the past few decades and we are unavoidably exposed to a large amounts of pollutants and toxins that require us to consume even more nutrients to repair the damage.

With an emphasis on watching what macro nutrients we consume (the proportion of fats, carbohydrate and proteins) which give us energy, we seem to have lost sight of the importance of micro nutrients (vitamins and minerals) which provide us with vitality. Many of these vitamins, and certainly the enzymes within food that we need, are destroyed by pesticides, microwaves and processing methods which means many of us are deficient in micro nutrients even if we do consume a 'healthy' diet.

There's certainly nothing in the study that would give me any cause for concern in continuing to take a daily multi-vitamin. I just wish the same amount of media coverage would go into the negative effect on our health that the food industry are having with growing techniques and processing methods.

I strongly recommend a book called 'The Vitamin Murders' by James Ferguson for anyone interested in knowing more about this subject. (It's also a great true life murder mystery story)

Power Plate featured in Yorkshire Living Magazine

2008-04-10T12:37:00.005+01:00

If you get chance to pick up this months copy of Yorkshire Living magazine, there's a great write up of some training I did, with journalist Natalya Wilson, using Power Plate at York Wellness Clinic in Fulford, York.

Natalya was already a regular gym user and swapped her resistance training sessions in the gym with two sessions a week on Power Plate for two months. In this time Natalya lost almost three inches from the waist and found a noticeable difference in muscle tone, especially the arms and buttocks. Body fat also reduced by around 4%.

As someone that was initially sceptical about the claims made about vibration training, I only became a convert myself when I tried the machine at a fitness conference a year ago. Since then I've gained many hours experience working with clients and attending training courses and am constantly becoming even more impressed with the results I am getting with people using Power Plate both at the studio in Fulford and with personal training clients at Galtres Fitness Centre, Easingwold.

Obesity Growing to Be Top Cancer Cause

2008-03-31T21:30:00.004+01:00

Obesity Growing to Be Top Cancer Cause

We all know that being overweight can increase the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and stroke but what about cancer? According to Dr. Walter C. Willett of the Harvard School of Public Health, obesity is on its way to being deadlier than smoking as a cause of cancer. Being obese is currently associated with about 14 percent of cancer deaths in men and 20 percent in women, compared with about 30 percent each for smokin.

Yet another reason to get more active and shed those excess pounds. Another benefit of getting more active is that regular exercisers are 200% more likely to give up smoking than non-exercises.

Phase IV Cardiac Rehab, Easingwold, York

2008-03-18T19:16:00.003Z

Following my completion of Phase 4 Cardiac Rehabilitation exams, I am now providing two phase IV classes a week at the Galtres Centre in Easingwold. The groups run on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1pm till 2pm. The activities are designed to follow on from the hospital based phase 3 program, and encourage participants to try different gym based activities in a supervised environment.

For further details, speak to your gp or contact Galtres Fitness Centre directly on 01347 822472.

Supersize vs Super skinny features Powerplate

2008-03-04T21:00:00.006Z

This weeks Supersize versus Superskinny program on channel 4 featured vibration training on Powerplate for helping to loose inches off the bum. I've seen some fantastic results in inch loss from the waist and hips from clients using Powerplate as well as some great results on toning arms as well.

By selecting the most appropriate exercises, a fun and effective workout can be carried out within 15 minutes. Much quicker than conventional resistance training, and although you will feel the muscles working, it is a lot less effort than alternative types of training.

Another huge benefit of Powerplate is the ability to remove cellulite. The vibrations increase blood flow which can help to get toxins out of the body and open up blood vessels to improve oxygen supply to the tissue under the skin.

For details of training sessions on Powerplate in York and Easingwold, North Yorkshire, I can be contacted on 07790 702313

Advanced Powerplate Training

2008-02-23T15:21:00.008Z

Had a great day yesterday at Powerplate International's training centre in London where I completed the Level 2 Advanced trainer qualification.

If anyone feels that acceleration training is 'not proper training' they should try performing plyometric exercises on the powerplate. We took part in a 5 minute plyometric session which was more challenging than many 30 minute plus advanced training sessions that I've done in the past.

Vibration training is extremely effective for improving sports performance. If it wasn't it wouldn't be used so widely by premiership football teams, including Chelsea, Man Utd and Newcastle, PGA golfers and many elite level athletes and gymnasts. In fact, a number of machines have been ordered for use at the Beijing Olympics.

Knowing how to use vibration training effectively is the key. It can be used to 'pre-activate' muscles before conventional training, though it must be done for the right time and intensity. It can be used effectively with conventional training in supersets to improve strength gains and can also be used after training for faster recovery.

I have been able to achieve some fantastic results working with my personal training clients using Powerplate at the Galtres Fitness Centre in Easingwold and at a studio in Fulford, York and look forward to introducing more and more clients to the benefits of Powerplate training in the future.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

Nike Free Trainers - Review

2008-02-20T16:01:00.003Z

I've been using Nike Free running shoes for over a year now and have found them pretty impressive. Nike Free provides a sort of running barefoot feel. They can help to strengthen lower limb muscles, particularly the stabiliser muscles that can be neglected when using more supportive shoes.

Certainly need to follow Nike's advice and get used to wearing them round the house and then build up the distance in them gradually. Having said that, I found that within the first month I was able use them to run my usual 'easy' run along the river through Huntington into Earswick and back through Haxby (about 6 miles). As a personal trainer, I wear trainers all day long and find Nike Frees a lot more comfortable to wear than any other trainers. (I used to change between martial art shoes and running shoes).

The only downside has been the first pair I had split around the heel within the first couple of months which was dissapointing to say the least. They are still useable though and now get used for wet weather runs. My second pair of Nike Free's have been excellent and have had no problems despite almost daily use for the last 6 months.

Obesity - All in the genes?

2008-02-07T11:56:00.000Z

Listened to the news this morning to hear of yet another study proving that genetics are to blame for soaring obesity rates! There's a nice linear link between increased car usage, reduction in activity levels and the rise in obesity, but no, it's all to do with genetics. Could someone explain to me how an increasing number of people are being born with this 'fat gene'? Do people with this gene get more sex than the rest of us or are they less careful? The study was carried out for Cancer Research UK and one of the researchers, Professor Jane Wardle of University College London has been quoted saying "it is wrong to place all the blame for a child's excessive weight gain on the parents - it is more likely to be due to the child's genetic susceptibility".

Rubbish! It is a parents responsibility to ensure that their child has a healthy diet and spends time being active. I really struggle to see what the usefulness is of research like this. Yes genetics do play a role in the ability to store fat, but surely this means that the parents of a child susceptible to storing fat easily, need to be even more responsible for ensuring they eat healthily and do plenty of exercise.

No mention of chemical exposure in the study. Organochlorines (widely used as pesticides and have previously been used as growth promoters in animals because of their ability to fatten animals quicker and with less feed) can effect people with certain genetics more than others, but no testing for organochlorine levels was carried out in the research.

If someone has an increased genetic risk of heart disease, charities like the British Heart Foundation educate people of the importance of reducing other risk factors by being physically active and having a healthy diet, etc.

So why can't cancer charities spend some of their multi million pound research budgets doing something useful and accept that there is a link between lifestyle/environmental factors and cancers.

I'm only aware of one cancer charity in the UK - www.cancerpreventionsociety.org that is aimed at reducing the incidence of cancer through lifestyle changes rather than research into some 'miracle cure' and they receive only a tiny fraction of the funding received by other charities. I know which charity will be receiving my donations.

Exercise is fun

2008-02-06T16:04:00.000Z

According to a survey conducted by Edinburgh Leisure, 74% of repsondents exercise for enjoyment and to de-stress rather than to loose weight, and over 99% agreed that exercise makes them feel happy.

I couldn't agree more. Many new exercisers that fail to stick to their new regime set themselves performance goals, such as to loose weight or to 'get fitter' without giving any thought to enjoying the process. It's only by enjoying exercise and reaping the benefits of increased energy levels, reduced stress and improved mood and self esteem that exercise becomes a lifelong habit rather than a chore.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

Children and Exercise

2008-02-03T19:16:00.000Z

Been doing some work today with a gym based childrens exercise program at the Galtres Fitness Centre in Easingwold. As a personal trainer, I'm used to helping clients set goals and devising them detailed exercise programs to help them reach their goals.

Was like a breath of fresh air to see people exercising just for the fun of it. No complex programs. Just doing the activities they enjoyed doing. If they were bored of rowing after 5 minutes they'd move on and do something else. They didn't feel they had to do a set time at a set pace. They just enjoyed what they were doing, or tried something different.

Working with adults, it is often necessary to devise programs to take account of muscle imbalances and health conditions but in many cases if they had carried on being active through into adulthood they wouldn't have these problems in the first place.

So what stops people being more active as they get older? Certainly lack of time, lack of facilities and cost play a part, but a large part of the problem is us adults taking the fun out of exercise. Competitive sport is extremely beneficial for lots of reasons but there's an even bigger need to make sure everyone enjoys exercise in one form or another and is able to take part as often as they want.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

FAQ's: Does vibration training work or is it a gimmick?

2008-02-01T10:40:00.000Z

If anyone's not heard of vibration training, you basically perform exercises on a vibrating platform. There's lots of hype at the moment about 'a full workout in 10 minutes' and coverage in glossy magazines showing celebrities using them. It's easy to see why people might think it's a gimmick. Is it too good to be true?

The principle behind vibration training is extremely sound. force = mass x acceleration. To improve strength of the muscles a force needs to be applied. Traditional weight training involves using weight (mass) to overload the muscle. Vibration training instead uses acceleration caused by the high speed movement to apply an increased force.

If used correctly, vibration training is very effective. I use Powerplate at a weight loss clinic in Fulford, York where clients are generally looking for weight loss and toning. In this case, the main advantage comes down to time. Resistance training is hugely beneficial for weight loss. By increasing lean muscle tissue you increase your metabolic rate and burn more calories even when you aren't doing anything. Many people who wouldn't be prepared to spend three hours a week in the gym will do a couple of 20 minute sessions on Powerplate each week and can acheive better results in a fraction of the time.

I also use Powerplate in rehab work with clients with postural problems as well as osteoarthritis, osteoporosis and Parkinsons and have seen some fantastic results. Loads of scientific studies also showing this method of training to be hugley beneficial.

Vibration training really comes in to it's own when combined with other methods of training. It's fantastic for correcting faulty movement patterns (the sort of thing that will lead to injury and pain if not corrected) before progressing to more complex movements. Also great as part of a warm up and cool down. Can even be used to reduce cellulite by increasing blood flow and helping get rid of toxins.

A number of gyms are starting to install these machines without providing adequate trainging for their staff on how to use them. Used incorrectly you will be dissapointed with the machines and consider them overhyped and useless. Used correctly, the results are exceptional. I definately think vibration training is here to stay.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

FAQ's What is Muscle Activation Technique?

2008-01-28T19:57:00.000Z

Muscle Activation Technique (MAT) is a system developed by biomechanics expert Greg Roskopf to identify and correct muscle imbalances. Most people will have muscle imbalances at some time, caused either by overuse, trauma or just from activities that allow an imbalance to develop - this could include sitting for long periods of time, as well as many sporting activities. Untreated, these imbalances can lead to to inefficient function, pain and injury.

As a personal trainer, I use MAT with all new clients to ensure that any imbalances are corrected before we start putting increased stresses through the body. If a muscle is weakened through injury or lack of use, other more dominant muscles will take over the work. This leads to faulty movement patterns that will eventually catch up with you! By working the weak muscles in such a way that other muscles aren't able to 'help out' ensures that muscle strength is restored and correct movement patterns can be relearned.

Only a handful of trainers in the UK are qualified in MAT techniques and I am proud to be amongst the first in the country. Personal Training sessions incorporating MAT are available in York and Easingwold.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

Relaxation and running

2008-01-27T12:46:00.000Z

Came across a great research article this week on the effects of relaxation technique on running performance. Always believed that for middle to long distance runs, being relaxed during the run is beneficial and I already incorporate relaxation techniques into my warm ups.

Good to have some scientific research backing this up though. The idea is that by lowering heart rate and breathing rates whilst running, oxygen demand is reduced thereby improving economy. The research found that by using relaxation techniques, oxygen consumption fell by over 7%. The research was carried out on competitive male and female distance runners over a 6 week period. A 7% improvement in efficiency translates into a possible reduction in 10K race time from 42 minutes to under 40 minutes. What other methods of training can show this sort of improvement within 6 weeks?

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

Government plans to reduce obesity

2008-01-23T19:24:00.000Z

A £372 million strategy to reduce obesity levels has been launched by the government. £372 million to tell people to move more and sit on their bums less, and to eat more proper food and less junk food!

The fact is it's our choice if we want to eat unhealthy foods (and despite talk of traffic light systems and food labelling most people do have a reasonable idea what's healthy and what isn't). All the confusion over food labelling applies to processed foods that are generally best avoided anyway.

To choose to be more active and eat a healthy diet we have to feel that we have the time and resources to make these changes. Any obstacles can easily become excuses for not making change.

People need to know how they can make a healthy meal on a budget when they only have a limited amount of time. Jamie Oliver has done more to encourage healthy eating in Britain than any government funded campaign. People need to be encourged to find healthy activities that they enjoy doing. If they think it's fun they'll keep doing it. If they find it boring they wont.

Most people know that their health will suffer if they don't exercise, yet only 22% of people who have suffered a heart attack maintain lifestyle changes 12 months on. If people whose diet and inactivity almost killed them don't feel able to stick to these changes by following government advice, then how is this advice going to make a significant difference to people who haven't had such a wake up call.

Whilst on the subject of heart attacks, I spent this morning at the cardiac rehab unit of my local hospital. These sort of programs make a huge difference to peoples lives and in the long term save an absolute fortune to the NHS through reducing repeat heart attacks and subsequent hospitilisation. Yet funding for these schemes is virtually non existent.

Improving provision of exercise facilties does increase take up. So why reduce funding to local authorities to use for leisure facilities? Why allow sports grounds (including school sports fields) to be sold off for housing developments?

Surely it would be better to resource existing initiatives before wasting money on such wide ranging initiatives where even the few sensbile ideas being set out are unlikely to receive sufficient funding to become effective anyway.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"

About Body Balance

2008-01-19T19:16:00.000Z

I created Body Balance to help people to get more active and improve their health.

fact: most people don't do enough exercise.
fact: most people know they don't do enough exercise.
fact: most advice given is either dictorial or so long and boring, it's not suprising that people don't do enough exercise.

I've worked in the fitness industry for over 8 years during which time I have worked as a gym instructor, exercise referral specialist, group exercise instructor, gym manager and personal trainer. Recently started working in cardiac rehab which is hugely rewarding and existing provision in North Yorkshire is virtually non-existent.

I specialise in working on a one to one basis with clients who need a bit of extra help to get more active due to medical conditions. Work mainly in client's homes and gyms in York and Easingwold. Looking to start offering some group exercise sessions soon though so watch this space.

Part of my work involves helping people find activites that they enjoy doing (and making sure they're not going to injure themselves in the process) and basically making exercise fun and accessible.

I'm a big fan of Acceleration Training - you might have heard of Powerplate; Kylie, Madonna and Victoria Beckham are all advocates of it. Powerplate is basically a vibrating platform that you perform different exercises on. I don't believe it's a substitute for other types of resistance training but it does get people training on it that wouldn't dream of using other types of strength training. It's great for clients with osteoarthritis and osteoporosis and it does get spectacular results.

"Improving health by creating positive attitudes towards fitness"