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Try a Prehistoric Workout

I am hanging by one arm from the branch of a tree, my bare toes clawing into the gnarled bark of its trunk. “Try swaying your body,” shouts fitness trainer Colin Holding from several feet below. Sway? Were I to move so much as my little finger, I fear I will lose my grip and land in ungainly fashion at his feet. Muscles contorting with effort, I cling on until Holding instructs me to “walk” my way back down the tree before letting go. But we are not done. There are bushes to be scooted under on all fours, boulders to be leapt over and logs to be hauled. Holding is one of the UK’s leading instructors in evolutionary fitness, an approach to exercise that aims to reintroduce the natural movement patterns — crawling, jumping, lifting and climbing — that kept our ancestors strong and agile before the advent of plush gyms and yoga studios. The idea is simple: turn nature into your fitness emporium by using stones as dumbbells, branches as pull-up bars and logs as steppers. Five years ago the concept of crawling through leaves and squatting like a gorilla might have seemed an inconceivable alternative to a bootcamp class. But a growing anti-gym sentiment among people who have become bored with “sterile” training environments is fuelling demand for more natural, organic workouts taught by instructors such as Holding. Read on at The Times

 

Will Minimalist Trainers get you Fit?

There is always a trainer of the moment, a shoe that promises to propel you to better butt toning, faster running times or fewer injuries. Who hasn’t been seduced at one time or another by a sole with pockets of visible air, zig-zag springs or an integral wobbleboard that promises to transform their workout? Usually, of course, we are hit with the realisation that footwear, in itself, won’t improve fitness. This month our hopes of achieving leaner legs and a pert derrière simply by wearing Reebok’s Easytone trainers were dashed when the company was ordered to pay $25 million (£16 million) for making false claims about the line’s muscle-toning abilities. Now, though, there is a newcomer to the trainer market that promises more. Enter the minimalist shoe, the foot-gloves of the fitness world that strip away gadgetry and claim to let feet move in a natural and uninhibited way. By mimicking barefootedness, the new arrivals are said not only to improve balance and stimulate the nerve endings in the soles of the feet, but also to prompt a better running style that gives rise to stronger limbs, better posture and fewer injuries. Read more at The Times

 

Born to Run Masterclass, July 5

Fancy coming along to try a Born to Run circuit, the tough running class being launched by Save the Children? On July 5, I will be joined by leading international runner Jo Pavey, who is likely to be representing Britain in the marathon at the London 2012 Olympics, for a Born to Run Masterclass at the Regent’s Park track in London. All levels and ability of runner are welcome and you will be put through your paces using a variety of training techniques employed by top runners to gain super-fitness. Afterwards, Jo will answer questions on running and fitness. Click here for more information 

   

Running in Reverse

article-1389790-0C13B03500000578-940_468x286IT’S A breezy afternoon in a South London Park and my attempts at fitness are heading, quite satisfactorily, in the wrong direction. Bemused onlookers can’t help but take a second glance as backwards running expert, Karl Twomy, and I trot past them in reverse, picking up speed as I become more adept in the technical aspects of 2011’s most unexpected workout trend. Whereas last year saw joggers ditch their shoes to try barefoot running, said to burn calories faster and be kinder to the feet by ridding them of footwear constraints, this Summer has seen a rise in the popularity of reverse running, heading backwards to shed fat at the same time as protecting the knees. Enthusiasts claim there are endless benefits to the approach, not least that it entails less of the pounding associated with regular jogging and, inspiringly, gobbles up a fifth more calories in the same time as running forwards. Read more at the Daily Mail

 

Can marathons really make you fat?

ON NEW Year’s day, I started training for the London Marathon and have since become your archetypal running bore, reeling of statistics about my state of body and mind to anyone who will listen. Come race day, on April 17, I will have run for 107 consecutive days, totting up an average 45 miles a week and regularly clocking 15 miles or more in a single hit. The more running I’ve been doing, the more virtuous my lifestyle has become. My alcohol intake has been negligible on account of the fact I am too knackered to socialize and I have given up croissants and cakes. Yet despite the monumental physical effort and the accompanying dietary straight jacket it entails, there is one factor of my training that has confounded me: I have yet to lose a single, solitary pound. Surely, pounding the streets in preparation for the ultimate test of human endurance should guarantee the pounds melt away? But John Brewer, professor of sport at the University of Bedfordshire, who is running his 13th marathon in London, says too many runners wrongly assume weight will drop off once they start training. “In reality, it’s not that easy,” he says. “To lose 1kg in body fat, you need to burn about 8,000 calories more than you consume. Most people burn about 100 calories per mile, so that's around 80 miles of running just to lose one kilo in weight, even if you don't eat any extra food.” Read more at The Times

   
My Books
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Get Fit For The Games
'An Official 2012 Fitness Guide for Women.'
Wild Gym
Wild Gym
'50 ways to get fit outdoors.'