Where are you Tommy and Elon? Marina Hyde finds that those provoking the race riots are far, far away; the dead hang delight – how this quick, surprisingly simple exercise can change your life; and ‘A bolt of lightning struck my plane’ – one woman’s incredible story of survival
Continue reading...Category Archives: Fitness
Weightlifting at retirement age keeps legs strong years later, study finds
Year of heavy weights resistance training around retirement age has long-lasting benefits, research suggests
Lifting heavy weights three times a week around the age of retirement could dramatically preserve your leg strength long into the later stages of life, research suggests.
People naturally lose muscle function as they get older, and experts say faltering leg strength is a strong predictor of death in elderly people.
Continue reading...Peloton CEO steps down as beleaguered company cuts 15% of workforce
Fitness company’s sales boomed during the Covid pandemic as gyms closed but sales collapsed as the world reopened
Barry McCarthy has stepped down as CEO of Peloton, the company said on Thursday, as it decided to cut 15% of its workforce to tackle a post-pandemic slump in demand for its connected fitness equipment.
In a note, McCarthy said: “Hard as the decision has been to make additional headcount cuts, Peloton simply had no other way to bring its spending in line with its revenue.”
Continue reading...Getting fitter can reduce prostate cancer risk by 35%, study finds
Increase in cardiorespiratory levels of 3% annually found to be beneficial, Swedish research suggests
Men can reduce their risk of prostate cancer by as much as 35% by doing a little more jogging, cycling or swimming, a study suggests.
Boosting cardiorespiratory fitness by only 3% over the course of a year was linked to a much lower chance of developing the disease. The findings prompted the researchers to encourage men to boost their fitness levels to help cut their prostate cancer risk.
Continue reading...‘I just count the laps’: Canadian swimmer, 99, breaks three world records
Betty Brussel sets records in the 100- to 104- year-old age class in Saanich, while inspiring members of local swim club
By the time an exhausted Betty Brussel finally swims to the finish and pulls herself from the pool, an Olympic athlete could have covered the same distance at least three times. But the 99-year-old Canadian’s quiet determination has led her to shatter world records and transformed her into an unlikely celebrity within the amateur swim community.
At a weekend swim meet in the British Columbia city of Saanich, Brussel broke the existing world record in the 400-metre freestyle, knocking nearly four minutes off the previous standard in the 100- to 104-year-old age class. She repeated her record-breaking performances in 50-metre backstroke and the 50-metre breaststroke that same day.
Continue reading...He’s unimpressed with his physique, but wins bodybuilding competitions … at 90
Jim Arrington, who was recognized as the planet’s oldest bodybuilder in 2015, explains how a ‘low opinion’ motivated him
Like many in the US who are grappling with pressure to look better, Jim Arrington is unimpressed with his physique – but he says that self-perception has motivated him to keep winning bodybuilding competitions at age 90.
The nonagenarian great-grandfather spoke about how he has achieved a level of physical fitness which is superior to that of many people more than half his age in an interview published on Wednesday by Guinness World Records, which first recognized him as the planet’s oldest bodybuilder in 2015.
Continue reading...Body of US bushwalker, 78, found in NSW national park
Woman went missing on Friday night and extensive ground, sea and air search located her body on Saturday near Pearl beach on Central Coast
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A body found in bushland on the New South Wales Central Coast is believed to be a missing 78-year-old American tourist.
Police were initially notified on Friday night that the woman had gone missing while bushwalking. They were told she was in bushland near Middle Head between Pearl and Patonga beaches.
Continue reading...Researchers warn of potentially fatal condition for open-water swimmers
Swimming-induced pulmonary oedema involves the accumulation of fluid in the lungs of swimmers without it having been inhaled
A potentially life-threatening condition that can affect fit and healthy open-water swimmers causing them to “drown from the inside” may involve a buildup of fluid in the heart muscle, researchers have suggested.
Swimming-induced pulmonary oedema – SIPE – is a form of immersion pulmonary oedema and involves the accumulation of fluid in the lungs of swimmers without it having been inhaled. The condition is thought to be a result of increased pressure on the body’s blood vessels as a result of exertion, immersion and cold.
Continue reading...GPs to prescribe walking and cycling in bid to ease burden on NHS
Suggestion of activities to help improve mental and physical health part of wider movement of ‘social prescribing’
GPs around England are to prescribe patients activities such as walking or cycling in a bid to ease the burden on the NHS by improving mental and physical health.
The £12.7m trial, which was announced by the Department for Transport and will begin this year, is part of a wider movement of “social prescribing”, an approach already used in the NHS, in which patients are referred for non-medical activities.
Continue reading...‘It’s a crisis’: US summer pools closed or cut back amid lifeguard shortage
Officials say not enough lifeguards to open pools safely but critics say decision to cut services during Covid has had knock-on effect
A nationwide shortage of lifeguards is forcing local pools across the US to close for the summer, according to reports.
In major cities such as New York, Chicago, New Orleans, and elsewhere, public pools are reducing their hours of operation, or shutting down entirely amid an apparent shortage of lifeguards.
Continue reading...Female fighters to make boxing history at Madison Square Garden
Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano face off in April at legendary New York venue where Ali fought Frazier
At the end of April, boxing history will be made. For the first time, two female fighters, Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano, will face off at New York’s legendary venue Madison Square Garden, in a fight that is predicted to supercharge the sport’s rapid rise in popularity.
For two women to go 10 rounds at the same venue where Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier – twice – and Rocky Marciano knocked out an ageing Joe Louis shows the remarkable, rapid progress that has taken place in the past two decades.
Continue reading...Future of popular NSW walking track through sacred site in doubt after floods
Wollumbin track reopening delayed after floods, while hikers asked to reconsider climb out of respect for Indigenous sacred place
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The fate of one of northern New South Wales’s most popular walking tracks remains uncertain after authorities chose to delay a controversial decision regarding its future for the fourth time.
Situated near the flood-hit town of Murwillumbah, Wollumbin national park previously attracted more than 100,000 visitors a year, and its summit is renowned as the first place in Australia to catch the sunrise.
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Continue reading...Going places: 10 inspirational female adventurers
To mark International Women’s Day on Tuesday, these great women offer inspiration on how to power up your own adventures
Rhiane launched the non-profit organisation Black Girls Hike in Bolton in 2019 to create a safe space for Black women to explore the outdoors and connect with nature. It’s now a nationwide organisation hosting hikes, training events and activity weekends, and she won a positive role model award for gender at the National Diversity Awards in 2021.
Continue reading...‘Fascist fitness’: how the far right is recruiting with online gym groups
Anti-fascist group Hope Not Hate says extremists present self-improvement as part of wider political struggle
The far right is increasingly recruiting via online fitness groups, whose popularity soared during the pandemic, prompting fears that new members are being radicalised to commit acts of violence, new analysis shows.
Researchers have detected a network of online “fascist fitness” chat groups on the messaging app Telegram with a large number directly linked to the neo-Nazi Patriotic Alternative, Britain’s biggest extreme right group.
Continue reading...Muscle strengthening lowers risk of death from all causes, study shows
Half an hour a week of activities such as gardening, sit-ups or yoga could help reduce the risk of dying from any cause by a fifth
Half an hour of muscle strengthening activity such as lifting weights, push-ups or heavy gardening each week could help reduce the risk of dying from any cause by as much as a fifth, according to a new global analysis of studies conducted over three decades.
Health guidelines recommend muscle strengthening activities, primarily because of the benefits for musculoskeletal health. Previous research has indicated a link to a lower risk of death, but until now experts did not know what the optimal “dose” might be.
Continue reading...How to move: exercising after having Covid-19
Even a mild Covid infection can cause lingering fatigue, but exercise plays a crucial role in recovery
The Omicron variant has caused an avalanche of Covid-19 cases in Australia in the past months. While most people who catch the disease experience mild symptoms, many report feeling short of breath and sluggish for weeks afterward.
“It’s normal to feel tired after a viral infection, and everyone’s recovery is different,” says Janet Bondarenko, a senior respiratory physiotherapist at Alfred hospital in Melbourne. “But the severity of your Covid illness doesn’t necessarily predict whether you will have those lingering symptoms.”
Continue reading...Too cool for the pool: how the Dryrobe became the most divisive thing you can wear
They were invented so surfers and swimmers could get undressed without flashing. So why are Dryrobes – half-towel, half-jacket – taking over our high streets?
During the spring lockdown in 2020, Christopher Sloman was walking down a street in Hove when he saw what looked like a green dinosaur looming towards him. The 48-year-old charity shop worker was baffled by the figure in the distance – until he realised it was a woman whose coat was so oversized that her hands (one carrying a phone, the other a coffee) “looked really small,” Sloman says. “I thought: My God, what on earth is that?”
“That” turned out to be a Dryrobe – the £160 ankle-length, waterproof robe designed as an outdoor changing robe for surfers in 2010 which has become the go-to piece of kit for any half-serious outdoor swimmer.
Continue reading...Cold baths, cherry juice and sleep: the secret to staying fit in your 40s
Despite aching backs and stiff joints, a growing number of elite athletes – from Zlatan Ibrahimović to Serena Williams – are pushing the clock back. So why can’t you? We ask the experts how to do it
Six years ago it looked as if Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s footballing career was approaching the final whistle. After Sweden’s early exit from Euro 2016, the striker announced his retirement from international competition. At 34, he was getting on a bit for an elite athlete. Cut to November 2021 and, days after firing in a spectacular free-kick for his club, AC Milan, Sweden’s record goalscorer was helping keep alive his country’s hopes of making the next World Cup. The retirement chat was over. “I am trying to prove that 40 is just a number,” he said.
Ibrahimovic had joined what feels like a growing club: the quadragenarian athlete holding back the clock. In an era of ever more punishing professional sport, these twilight stars seem to challenge notions that youth trumps all else. Members include American football superstar Tom Brady (44), the tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams (41, 40), Roger Federer (40), and Oksana Chusovitina (46), the eight-time Olympic gymnast from Uzbekistan.
Continue reading...How to move: with osteoporosis
The benefits of exercise for those with osteoporosis are great, and many exercises may be safe – so long as you avoid the risk of falling
Ageing brings with it inevitable physical declines, including loss in bone density which can lead to osteoporosis. This condition affects 3.8% of Australians, although many people don’t know they have it until they have a bone fracture. Importantly, it can be prevented and managed through lifestyle factors including exercise.
“Physical activity is one of the most effective tools to counter age-related health conditions,” including osteoporosis and osteoarthritis (which impacts the joints), says accredited exercise physiologist Richelle Street.
Continue reading...Skateboarding in middle age: ‘It helps me switch off’
It’s good for mental health, a study found, but what’s it like being an older person at the skatepark?
Skateboarding in middle age can help people feel empowered and reduce the chance of mental health issues such as depression, according to a study.
Dr Paul O’Connor, 46, who published the research and is a lecturer in sociology at the University of Exeter, said he wanted to look at the phenomenon of ageing within a subculture.
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