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I CUTHER0EADVER1ISER&TIMES


www.clitheroeadvertiser.co.uk Thursday, January9,2014 HEALTH


a host of crazes


\A/e take a lookat what there is on offer to help you stick to your resolutions throughout 2014


up the new crazes and classes heading to a gym near you • soon. Predicting a fitness trend


I


can bean unpredictable busi­ ness. You might have thought,


for example, that 2012’s big­ gest hit would be something related to the endeavours of our all-conquering Olympic heroes. Pentathlon, perhaps,- or track cycling and long-dis­ tance running. But no, 2012 was actually the year we all decided to embrace Crossfit, the hardcore strength and conditioning programme held in enormous warehouse- style gyms. Or what about 2013 when,


after seven decades of wait­ ing, we finally had our male


• •WimbledonSingleschampi- on. Did we all dust down our" tennis rackets? Or did we, in­ stead, traipse to dance studi-


. os and seek fitness guidance from a Miley Cyrus-inspired Twerk-out’?


■ What might seem like a ■ maze of contradictions to us,


, though, comes as little sur­ prise to fitness experts. At the end of every year, industry insiders use their knowledge


■ and experience tojudge what will be capturing the public’s


l. active imagination in the coming 12 months, and what we all be enjoying - or endur­ ing - at gyms, parks and dance studios across the country' whenthe New Year resolu­ tions finally kick in. Here’s a


- look at some new trends for 2014.


SMALL GROUP TRAINING The normal,‘30-odd people


jammed in a studio’format


, of most gym classes can feel impersonal to your needs,' dif-: ficultto book, and daunting if


; ;you’re'not a regular. But next year there’ll be a move to-: wards ‘smallgroup personal ’ training’, where personal • ^


i, ■; trainers lead groups of only. -; three to five clients. Combat- ying the‘one size fits all’ap- "


: <


,'proach, small group personal i training gives a more tailored Droeramme forvour bo dv and


TRX Suspension Training is set to take thefitness world by storm


fitness levels than the larger - classes, but you still get the competitive motivation from working out with others, which gives it an edgej over one-to-one personal training. “People still want that


personal service, but with the ability to share their


experiences too,” explains Lee Matthews from Fitness First gyms (www.fitnessfirst. co.uk). •••• Exercises in a typical ses­


sion tend to take the form of paired activities or small group games - which can be “tremendous fun as well as team-building” adds John Williams, an expertise coach at David Lloyd Leisure (www. davidlloyd.co.uk).


-; 1 “Calorie burn is depend­ ent on the session,” says


: Williams. “But most small group training is designed in


. a circuit fashion, making it an ■ effective way to burn calories. Otherkeyhealthbenefits . include improved flexibility, strength and endurance, and


.cardiovascular fitness and . stress reduction.” '


HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING


Tn our time-Door modern ■ '


world, lengthy workouts are falling out of favour. Very few of us have the spare hours, or the inclination, for endless trudging on the treadmill;' we want to fit an effective. workout in our lunch-break instead. Cue the unstoppable rise of‘high intensity interval training’ (HUT) - several short intense bursts of exercise, followed by periods of rest,


‘ contained in workouts of 10- 30 minutes maximum. “It is far more effective at ■


burning calories both from carbohydrates and fat than' low intensity, steady state ex- - ercise,” says Williams. “Not only does it bum


high amounts of calories in one short session, it also has : asignificantpostworkout j calorie burn (or EPOC, Excess Post Oxygen Consumption) so you get double‘bang for your buck’.”


v ■.> This interval training has - ‘The normal, ‘30-odd


peoplejammedinastu- dio’format of most gym classes can feel imper­ sonal to your needs’


been on the radar of dedi­ cated fitness followers for years, but it is now making its step over to the mainstream, with most personal trainers advocating it to their clients, and some gyms will now offer specific classes. For example, Fitness First,


will hold Tabata classes, “an intense four-minute work­ out, scientifically proven to be the most effective way to increase aerobic and anaero­


bic fitness”, while Virgin Ac­ tive health clubs offer their new ‘24 MAXercise’ class - 24


high intensity exercises in 24 minutes. While HIIT has its ben­ efits, experts do advise that


it should be approached sen- sibly, and not every workout session should be HIIT - Wil­ liams advises aiming for two to four sessions per week if you train regularly, and build­


ing up slowly if your body’s new to it.


BODYWEIGHTTRAINING Depending on your sex and


the diameter of your biceps, the traditional weights area of a gym can be a terrifying


■ place to linger. Thankfully, fitness exDerts are not onlv ;


realising this, they’re also do­ ing something about it. Body weight training is a new, but essentially very old and back- to-basics, concept of toning by using the most powerful tool we have - our own bodies.- “High-tech gadgets are


getting pushed to one side,” .. says Matthews. “Body weight • training means you use your own body as a form of resist- • ance.”


■ Think‘old school’ exer- -


cises; push-ups, press-ups >.• and planks, which you can do


in the comfort of your own home, garden or nearby park.-■ Or, if you need someone tell- ■


ing you what to do, gyms are beginning to offer‘minimal­ ist’ classes too, like Virgin Ac­ tive’s 30-minute GEAB3D. . Ifyou’ve become too


swayed by fancy gadgets and don’t think these simple ex-


ercises will work, take heed from a recent survey by The Gym, a budget gym opera-' ■ tor. They interviewed xooo of their members, asking what the best way to banish a belly ■. was - 30% said crunch sit-ups',’ 23% said normal sit-ups and


22% said the plank-and the ; • best way to tone glutes - 40% said the humble souat.


; ■


f you’re determined to get active in 2014, but v want something a lit­ tle more exciting than the treadmill, look no further. Nel Staveley rounds


' PftPHOTO/PROFESSlOKAL IMAGES PLAYGROUND STYLE FUN


Mostof20i4’s fitness trends have a theme of simplic­ ity and ‘back to basics’, and never is that clearer than in the emphasis on good, old- fashioned fun.: ‘ From tribal dance classes


to specifically-designed ‘fit­ ness playgrounds’, 2014 looks set to be the year we start smiling, instead of grimacing when we exercise. Take the new ‘freestyle’


areas at selected branches of Fitness First gyms, complete with monkey bars and pri­ mary coloured boxes, where you can follow a special ‘play­ ground workout’. “It replicates how we


moved as children,” explains fitness expert, Tom Eastham. “Swinging across monkey


: bars not only brings the fan back into fitness, it’s also guaranteed to improve mus­ cle tone, definition, and car- dio fitness.” ' In a similar way, the addic-


tively enjoyable TRX Suspen­ sion Training is set to take the fitness world by storm in 2014 - bright straps you at­ tach to a high point, then use as a support to balance, lean and pull, using both gravity and your own body weight to build resistance. The ultimate smile-rais­


er - dancing - is back with a vengeance too. Billed as ‘the next Zumba’^the phenome­ nally successful Latin Ameri­ can dance craze of 2012, comes Fierce, a South Africar tribal dance class, where participants are encouraged to “let loose as they tap into their warrior energy ”. Ifthat sounds alittle too


. embarrassing, FitSteps (fan. fitsteps.co.uk)is a new ‘fu­ sion’ dance class blending Latin and Ballroom dances, and claims to bum up to 600


. calories in one 45-minute class. • ' ■ Launched by Strictly stars


Natalie Lower and Ian Waite, and former contestant - and world champion swimmer - Mark Foster, FitSteps wholly believes in the power of dance to make you feel good - “and because you’re having sc i much fun,” says L'owe simply,


“you don’t even realise that you’re working every part of thebodv.”:


. ' . Cornus ‘Midwinter Fire’


This is a low growing vari­ ety of Dogwood with bright orange and yellow stems when planted in either sun or light and shade. Prune back every other


year in March to six inches to encourage new colour- ful growth and Comus Mid winter Fire will toler- atea very wet, damp part of thegarden.


(I) www.holdencloughnursery.com


Thursday,January!),2014 www.clitheroeadvortiser.co.uk CUTHEROEADVERTISER&TIMES I 29


MORETOSEE ' VtiM^fOCLITHAbVERTISERS F jFACEBOOK.COM/ADVERTOERTIMES%ffl


- - '’f'v*-*' -> ^ Q & A a haven for winter wildlife WRITTEN BY


JOHN FOLEY


help and encourage them to liven up our gardens - along with getting them to do a few jobs to help us out !


A ' One obvious way to attract


our feathered friends into the garden is to give them some­ thing to eat. This can either, be in the form.of berries on shrubs, like Holly and Pyra- cantha, or by leaving out fat balls and nuts in birdfeeders. It always pays off to encour­


age birds as they will hunt down pests like slugs and snails along with other creepy crawlies that can damage our plants. . Conifersmakegreathomes


for birds as they like to nest in their dense branches and get protection from the win­


Spotlight


t this time ofyear, when most plants are dormant, it’s time to spare a’ thought for the wildlife outside and how to


ter weather. Having conifers and other large evergreens in the garden is always a good thought because i f birds ran live in your garden, rather than just feeding there, they will help bring it to life along with making your life a lot easier..


Other wildlife to look after


through thewinter includela- dybirds and beetles. To help these insects hibernate it is always best to leave areas where plant debris is left to rot down through the winter. Maybe leave a flower bed un­ touched until spring, or heap up leaves and twigs out of the way in the corner of the gar­ den, making an ideal place for them to spend the winter. Again it will pay dividends


as insects like these help fight the battle against airborne pests, including greenfly and whiteflies, and will help re­ duce damage on plants such as Viburnums and Roses, and other shrubs. You can tell because when


the leaves are young they be­ come distorted and crinkly, due to the greenflies piercing


and sucking on the new leaves causing this distortion. Always remember to check


heaps of debris which may be ready for burning, as hedge­ hogs and other animals might have moved in for the winter. Movetheheapandleaveitfora day or two before lighting, this


Jobstodo.... 1 -


way it will have scared off any creatures. If the weather happens to


take on a wintry chill these next few weeks, make sure in hard frosts to melt a hole in the ice of any ponds by placing a saucepan withboilingwaterin to melt a hole. Also make sure


there is some source of water for animals and birds to feed off in a little bowl or dish. Finally I wish everyone a


Happoy New Year and I hope that you all enjoyed the fes­ tive period and sat back and relaxed, as well as over indulg­ ing a bit - 1 know I did!


HERE YOU CAN SEND IN AND FIND OUTTHE ANSWERS TO ANY GARDENING PROBLEMS


How do I keep my Pansies look- - ing good? Pansies will flower well through­ out the winter ifyou follow a couple of steps. First always deadhead them, by removing any finished flowers.This stops the plant putting energy into produc- ingseedandwill reward you with larger flowers. Also give them a regular feed with tomato food as this encourages flowering and will also help the plant to produce more and larger flowers.


What’s good for winter colour intubs? There isa range of winter betiding including Pansies, Primroses etc., oryou could choose something which will last longer. Heucheras are great and you can keep these in a tub for a couple of years before planting out, or choose plants like winterfloweringheathersand- some varieties will give you colour­ ful flowers, as well as colourfulfoli­ age, as some varieties have golden leaves turning bronze in winter ; with the frosts. If it’s a large tub choose an evergreen shrub, for ex­ ample a Skimmia ora Conifer,to go in the middle to give some height, and again in a few months time it can be planted out in the garden.


Checkgreenhouse Keep an eye on any plants that you


may be overwintering in the green­ house for pest damage or drying out. When mice get hungry it’s amazing whatthey will eat! 2-


Top up bird feeders With a lack of berries on the trees


this year make sure to keep your bird feeders full up as they will enjoy com­ ing to your garden and help fight your slug population this coming year. 3 - Recycle your Christmas tree. If your Christmas tree is in a pot


look at planting it out in the garden for the coming year, making sure to give it some shrub fertilizer in Spring. Other­ wise make sure to let the council pick up your old tree as it will be shredded


IT'S TIME TO GET


OUTINTHEGARDEN AND GET CRACKING WITH THOSE MUST- DO JOBS... BUT


WHICH ONES? HERE JOHN FOLEY SETS OUTWHAT NEEDS


DOING AND WHEN, AND HOWTO GO ABOUT IT


up and used for making mulch. 4-Clean old pots Use Jeyes fluid to clean old plant


pots and seed trays ready for germi­ nating vegetables and other seeds in this Spring. Cleaning them helps to get rid of weed seeds and keeps your young plants weed-free 5 - Hardwood Cuttings Take hardwood cuttings eight


inches long of plants such as Cornus and Sambucus. Stick them into the soil and watch them sprout next Spring and it will give you lots of free plants foryour garden. 6 - Final clear of leaves Now all leaves have fallen get out


there and gather up the last remaining few. If you have gravel look at getting a leaf blower to blow them off the gravel rather than trying to rake them off and raking them into the gravel.


Can I plant a fruit tree now? Throughout the winter is the ideal time to plant fruit trees. This al­ lows them to settle in before spring and ifyou buy bare root trees you getmorevalueformoney. Feed well in the spring with a high pot­ ash feed to encourage lots of fruit for the following year.


+HOLDEN CLOUGH NURSERY, HOLDEN,BOLTON-BY-BOWLAND, BB74PF


TeL01200447615 (7days) +EMAIL INF0@H0LDENCL0UGH- NURSERY.CO.UK


wwwiholdeflcloughnursery.coa 01200 447615


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