HEALTH & FITNESS Kids set for ‘summer of screens’


Almost three quarters of pri- mary school teachers expect their pupils to spend the impending summer holidays in front of tablets and TVs, according to Fit For Sport. Having produced research


earlier this year which found two thirds of children are ‘insufficiently active,’ the youth activity provider’s latest poll of more than 100 primary school teachers found 40 per cent believe children’s fitness levels actually decrease over the summer, as the majority of young people reject games outdoors in favour of computers and TV. Despite the warm weather making summer


Drinking beetroot juice may lengthen workouts


Regular consumption of beetroot juice has positive cardiovascular effects dur- ing exercise and leads to increased endurance, a clinical study has found. New research found healthy male sub-


jects who drank beetroot juice for 15 days had lower blood pressure and more dilated blood vessels at rest and during exercise. Blood vessels also dilated more easily


and the heart consumed less oxygen during exercise with beetroot juice consumption. Te researchers suggest that regular con-


Just 12 per cent of teachers expect pupils to fill their time playing outside


arguably the easiest time of year to engage in physical activity, just 12 per cent of teachers believe that their pupils will fill most of their time playing outside with family or friends. “All parents want their children to be fit and


healthy, but oſten struggle to find ideas to tempt their children off their tablets and into the gar- den,” said Dean Horridge, founder and CEO of Fit For Sport. “Te best way to encourage chil- dren away from screens is making activities fun


and getting all the family involved. It’s impor- tant to find a balance between screen time and being active and the summer is the perfect time to develop healthy habits to last a lifetime.” As a result, Fit For Sport has created a free


guide and website to help inspire families to have an active summer. Te site features a host of ideas and games for families to play together, as well as an Activity Challenge that helps par- ents to measure and track their children’s fitness and activity levels by taking part in short and simple tasks. Details: http://lei.sr?a=H6q9J_O


Spotify Running pinpoints a user’s pace Oxygen Freejumping opens for business


Oxygen Freejumping, a new venture helmed by David Stalker and Fred Turok, has sprung open the door of London’s first trampoline park in West Acton. Te debut site for Oxygen


Freejumping – which has been set up by ex-ukactive chair Stalker and LA fitness founder Turok, was officially opened last month by the mayor of Ealing Harbhajan Kaur Dheer, film star and freerun- ning legend Sébastien Foucan and Team GB gymnasts Jenna Barrett and William Cowen. Having opened to the public on July 20,


Spotify launches range of curated running playlists


Spotify has sought to tackle the often- tricky task of finding a decent playlist that will help runners pick up the pace through the launch of Spotify Running. Te new streaming service is accessible


to both paid and free subscribers through the Spotify app. It offers runners an array of different playlists tailored to their genre preferences and – here’s the clever bit – the pace at which they’re running to ensure the beat matches their feet. On choosing a genre, a woman’s voice


Mayor Harbhajan Kaur Dheer, Stalker and Foucan at the launch


Oxygen Freejumping in Acton features 150 con- nected trampolines on the main floor, along with dodgeball courts, a giant airbag, ‘walk the wall trampolines,’ basketball hoops and tumble tracks. Tere are plans to open a second site in Southampton this October, with five more sites planned for the next 12 months and a further 15 in the pipeline. Speaking at the launch party, Oxygen Freejumping CEO David Stalker said:


© CYBERTREK 2015


“Oxygen Freejumping has been many months in the making and we have been overwhelmed by the support of the local community. “We look forward to hosting your


parties, teaching you to jump, helping you get fit, learning together how to free-run but most of all making sure that you have a fan- tastic time. I challenge all of you here to jump on a trampoline and not smile!” Details: http://lei.sr?a=M5D6R_O


Twitter: @leisureopps


tells users to “Start running to detect tempo.” As the runner starts to move, Spotify pinpoints their pace using a smart- phone’s accelerometer and gyroscope to calculate a selection of on-tempo songs. In addition to playlists based on a user’s


genre preference and listening history, there are also curated playlists from some of the world’s foremost DJs. Spotify has also announced a series of collaborations with Nike to bring music to more run- ners, including the integration of Spotify Running into the Nike+ workout app. Details: http://lei.sr?a=D6e9f_O


Read Leisure Opportunities online: www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital 5


sumption of beetroot means exercise can be “performed at a given workload for a longer period of time before the onset of fatigue.” Details: http://lei.sr?a=f4J6a_O


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