Archives
0800 040 7526
-
May 28th, 2011
Ashma pills are as good as inhalers.
More than 5 million people suffer from asthma in the UK and most of them use inhalers to manage the condition. However, for many of them this is an unsatisfactory solution; they either find it hard to breathe in the medicine properly (it’s thought that up to a third of people may be using their inhalers incorrectly) or they forget to bring their inhalers with them in the first place. At Diets Don’t Work we have first hand experience of the latter as quite a few of our PT clients forget their inhalers, making it difficult for us to do effective cardio vascular work with them.
A simple solution may be at hand though. Researchers have concluded that a rarely prescribed asthma pill is just as effective at controlling symptoms. A two year study at the University of East Anglia found that the class of one a day tablets known as leukotriene receptor antagonists, which are currently only recommended as a third or fourth option, worked just as well as inhalers. They were also easier for the patients to manage. Adherence to treatment improved by as much as 60%. Samantha Walker, director of research at Asthma UK says the pill may offer a “realistic alternative choice of treatment”.
-
May 18th, 2011
Is lack of sleep making me fat?
With an ever-increasing number of studies finding a direct connection between sleep deprivation and weight gain, it’s difficult to deny the cause-and-effect relationship. People who get at least seven hours of sleep per night tend to have less body fat than people who don’t. There are, of course, other factors involved in determining who becomes overweight and who doesn’t, like food intake, exercise and genes. But sleep is a more integral part of the process than most people realize. In a study involving 9,000 people between 1982 and 1984 (NHANES I), researchers found that people who averaged six hours of sleep per night were 27 percent more likely to be overweight than their seven-to-nine hour counterparts; and those averaging five hours of sleep per night were 73 percent more likely to be overweight.
If you are sleep deprived, there are some obvious tie-ins to obesity, like chronic sleepiness making physical activity unlikely. But there are also a number of things going on in your body that could contribute to weight gain. In scientific studies, the most commonly cited effects of sleep deprivation are hormonal disturbances, specifically involving the hormones leptin and ghrelin.
When you don’t get enough sleep, your body has too little leptin and too much ghrelin.
Many people who are sleep deprived don’t even know it. Lots of us think there’s quite a bit of give in how much sleep a person needs to be healthy and well functioning, but most researchers disagree, putting seven hours as the minimum for all except the very young and the very old. Besides straight numbers, there are a couple of ways to tell if you’re sleep deprived, including:
- Are you typically drowsy during a good portion of the day, especially the morning?
- Are you falling asleep at night in a couple of minutes?
Most non-sleep-deprived people take about 15 minutes to fall asleep at night. Chronic sleepiness and a nearly-instant state of sleep when you get into bed are good indicators that you’re not getting enough sleep.
One of the best remedies for better sleep is actually exercise. Many of our personal trainer clients in London and Berkshire report much better quality of sleep once they have embarked on a structured and effective exercise program. Improved eating and in particular eating the right things at the right time will also be helpful
-
May 9th, 2011
Personal Trainer sessions in Maidenhead at Braywick
A great feature of Maidenhead is the outdoors running track and sports facility at Braywick Park. Free for residents to use, the gravel 400m track is a great resource for personal trainer sessions with clients looking to improve anaerobic fitness and running pace. Due to the measurable nature of the circuit it gives the personal trainer an exact measure of anaerobic threshold, aerobic threshold and allows for training in exactly the correct zone for rapid improvements in cardio-vascular fitness.
This type of traning is of great value even to personal training clients not focussing on running but who just want to get fitter and lighter. Again, as the exercise is outdoors there are added benefits over exercising indoors especially in terms of mental wellbeing. Examples of intervals we use on the running track are 8 sets of 400m at 80% of maximum output to build speed and anaerobic endurance. As we often say to our clients, if you want to get faster at running, you need to practice by running fast!! Contact us to arrange a consultation and some fun outdoors sessions on a real Olympic size running track.
-
May 5th, 2011
Windsor boot camp by Diets Don’t Work
Coming soon to central Windsor, the DDW bootcamp will be a fun, effective and outdoorsy exercise class to get your body and mind going. A great way to get fit and lose weight and a departure from the boredom, stagnation and lack of results that often come with working out on your own in the gym.
It’s effective! Average calorie burn is 640 a class. Military style exercise classes are a proven way to get fit, tone up and lose weight. A typical beginner covers 5k in each class, but your instructor is always on hand to help you on the way!
Central Location: Situated in the heart of scenic Windsor on Batchelors Acre.
Run by REPS (Register of Exercise Professionals) advanced level 3 personal trainers: cost effective access to personal training with nutritional advice on hand!
All levels welcome from absolute beginners to advanced. Classes are divided into three groups with different coloured bibs; blue for beginners, red for intermediate and green for advanced. This way you will always be exercising with people at a similar level of fitness to yourself.
It’s different! Variety and change is the key to our success. Each week you’ll be put through a challenging, effective workout with team games, paired exercises, circuits, strength work and running.
Have fun together! Once enrolled in a class, you are part of a team and never alone. The help of the instructor and your fellow bootcampers means that you keep going, encouraging your team mates with your own valiant efforts. The bootcamp is all about getting fit together.
It’s outdoorsy! Many recent studies have shown exercise outdoors to be more effective than the gym or even indoor classes. The combination of fresh air and nature lead to greater feelings of well being, not just physically but mentally as well. We also use natural terrain and park furniture as inventive tools to keep you young, strong and fit.
It’s social! Make friends and enjoy banter as you exercise with your fellow bootcampers. Encourage and be encouraged by your classmates. No one gets left behind.
Fully Insured: instructors are insured for group classes and ensure that you get a fun, safe and effective session.
3 classes a week: Monday and Wednesday evenings at 6:30pm plus a daytime class on Friday at 9:30am. 1st class Wednesday June the 1st at 6:30pm.
Watch this space for news on how to book and for prices.
