There was an interesting documentary on the BBC tonight, here in the UK, called Prof Regan’s Supermarket Secrets. It followed Professor Lesley Regan (not entirely sure what she’s a professor in) as she investigated whether the health claims made about expensive food and household products are actually scientifically proven. She looked at: cholesterol-lowering foods organic [...]

Check out this interview with John Berardi, nutrition expert, on Canadian TV. He is there to plug his books, but that’s not why the interview is interesting. I like it because he manages to boil down the essential concepts in a simple but palatable way. He explains why it is good to start and keep [...]

The dip is a staple of many a strength or bodybuilding programme and there are many ways to perform it. A classic bodyweight exercise, it is a good place to start to develop functional strength with no equipment needed. What is the dip? The dip is an upper body strength exercise where you lower and [...]

I came across this interesting tool on the Crossfit Seattle website: a programme of athletic skill levels. It covers four levels from well-rounded beginner through intermediate, advanced and finally elite. The programme lists, by type of strength or conditioning, an appropriate benchmark for each of the four levels What makes this ranking different from the [...]

This is the first article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting Out 6. Create your own programme Why lift weights? Women are often not encouraged to lift weights, or at least to lift heavy. [...]

This is the second article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting out 6. Create your own programme Most commercial gyms have a combination of free weights and resistance machines. This guide deals with free [...]

This is the third article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting out 6. Create your own programme Starting Out Most people structure their routines around some or all of the big lifts from powerlifting [...]

This is the fourth article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting out 6. Create your own programme Exercise Technique To maximise the benefits from weight training and stay injury-free, it is important to use [...]

This is the fifth article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting out 6. Create your own programme Training programmes A training programme arranges exercises into individual gym sessions or routines, so that you know [...]

This is the sixth article in the series Getting into weight training: a female-friendly guide. 1. Why lift weights? 4. Exercise technique 2. Types of weight training 5. Training programmes 3. Starting out 6. Create your own programme Create your own programme Creating your own programme is very do-able even if you are new to [...]