Women's Fitness

As we wave goodbye to 2021, a year that had so much hope heaped on it, I doubt I’m the only one who is looking back on the past two years as those that have provided plenty of turbulent times. And as I write this, there’s still a lot of uncertainty a

I definitely like the thought of mood-boosting workout tips and so enjoyed finding more about the exercises that can help beat the winter blues in your excellent article, Mind matters (December issue). Your exercises, I am sure, will help lift my spi

For quality activewear that will see you through the toughest workouts, look no further than the new Morisot collection from Pocket Sport, which comes complete with go-faster stripes for a super-sporty feel. The long-lined Morisot Sports Bra, £48, bo

Brighten up your runs wearing Sweaty Betty’s Power Boost Reflective Workout Zip Through, £110, Power High-Waisted Reflective Gym Leggings, £75, and Power Reflective Headband, £10; sweatybetty.com These Saucony Vizipro Endorphin Pro 2 Shoes, £190, mi

Dutch Paralympic athlete Fleur Jong won two gold medals at the World Para Athletics European Championships in June 2021 by setting two new world records in both the women’s 100m T64 and women’s long jump T64 events. She went on to win gold in the wom

‘What are my tips for getting fit and healthy in 2022? I’m tempted to ask what was missing in 2021! Since early spring 2020 we’ve lost a lot of privileges, so my 2022 tips are about finding equilibrium in your overall prosperity. ‘Put the emphasis on

As we wave goodbye to the damp squib that was 2021, many of us are feeling more than ready to embrace change, set new challenges and make 2022 the year we finally hit our fitness goals. And if there’s one woman on the planet who knows all the secrets

Looking for an extra push to help you lift another rep or run a faster time? A bank of research already shows that music can boost performance. Indeed, one 2019 study in Psychology of Sport & Exercise reports that exercisers’ heart rates and peak pow

Animal flow, paleo fitness… chances are, you’ve heard of primal exercise. It’s the term given to a collection of moves that work your body in different planes – push, pull, squat, lunge, bend, twist and travel. This is important because we spend so m

‘Motivation is short lived. It comes and goes and is different for everyone. You cannot rely on it to keep you going. How do I stay motivated? I don’t, but I keep going anyway. How? Here are my most successful tips. ‘A habit is a second-nature actio

Gyms reopened, races restarted and group exercise numbers rebooted – keeping fit returned to some semblance of normality in the middle of 2021. But while we can hit the weights room and exercise with friends again, the global pandemic will still play

If 2022 has arrived and you’re ready to turn up the burn, we’re here to help. Every January, gym membership sign-ups spike, but data shows that by February 48 per cent of us have given up on our new year goals. What we need is a training method that

The pandemic relegated workouts to our homes. We transformed living rooms into gyms and invested in exercise kit for our garages. And, while many of us have now returned to fitness studios, there’s no doubt that lockdown has piqued our interest in ho

Here are the components of your hybrid training sessions… This is a compound (multi-muscle) lift that will improve your strength. Rest for 90-120 seconds after each set of this move. This part focuses on high volume and high intensity over 15 to 25

January is the busiest time for gym memberships. If you’re part of the new gym gang but feel a little confused about what to do with that weird piece of kit sitting in the corner, we’re here to help. Read on to decode all the kit and gym jargon, so y

Mushrooms have long been treasured for their health benefits, with previous studies reporting on their antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and cardiovascular-protective qualities. Now new research from Penn State College of Medicine in the US shows that

Diet and fitness are so closely interlinked – what you eat fuels your body with the energy you need to train, it helps your body to heal effectively post workout and it regulates your mood and motivation levels. As you slip into the new year and star

When giving up meat and dairy, you might wonder what you’re missing out on. Ensuring adequate protein intake is a concern but, according to the Dietary Reference Intake report for macronutrients, adults should consume 0.8g of protein per kilogram of

There’s no doubt that heavy drinking is bad for your health. According to the Office for National Statistics, there were 7,423 deaths from alcohol misuse in 2020 – a rise of 20 per cent on the previous year. Even moderate-to-heavy drinking can have d

Fancy a booze-free tipple? Thankfully, there are a great range of alcohol-free wines and spirits. Here are a couple of our favourite mocktails to try: The traditional recipe combines gin, lime juice, cherry syrup and a splash of lemonade. Swapping t

Been tripping over your own feet lately? Perhaps you’re not getting enough sleep. We already know that sleep deprivation can impede on our ability to do cognitive tasks such as solve a sudoku, but new data shows that skimping on zzz’s could influence

We can’t see infrared light, but we do feel its effects – when you’re basking in the heat on a summer’s day, the warmth you feel comes from infrared radiation emitted from the sun. But to understand far infrared (FIR) properly, we need to get a littl

We were lucky enough to be the first in the UK to trial this meditation training device from the US, and we can’t speak highly enough of it… If you’ve ever struggled to meditate, you might find the Hyperice Core Meditation Trainer a valuable way to

Compact and ergonomic, FlexBeam is a recovery device designed to use red and near-infrared light to treat difficult-to-reach areas (think, the shoulders or knee joint). It comes with three preset programmes that penetrate the body at different levels

I get lower back pain when I run. Can a pre-run yoga session help? It’s not uncommon for runners to experience lower back pain. You need to establish the reason first (A weak core? Tight hamstrings?), but releasing your back before you head off will

Immunity has been on everyone’s lips these past couple of years, but it’s not just vitamins C and D that can help reduce your susceptibility to infection. Yoga is a useful way to stave off illness. In a review of studies undertaken between 2005 and 2

£27; espaskincare.com Infused with soothing clove bud and lavender, this workout-ready shower gel eases aching muscles after exercise. Take it to the gym to turn a post-workout shower into a spa-like experience! £16; skininmotion.com Made for t

Team GB weightlifter Jenny Tong uses it to recover from gruelling training sessions, US soccer star Megan Rapinoe swears by it to improve her sleep, and triathlete Rachel Rutherford takes it to calm anxiety. What’s their secret remedy? These sportswo

‘I’ve been living in pain since December 2010, when I had an 80mph ski crash that shattered my right leg. I tried nerve blockers and huge amounts of painkillers but I felt my judgement getting cloudy and, as a downhill skier going 92 miles an hour, t

Trying to conceive can be an emotional affair – the initial excitement of deciding to start or increase your family, the increased intimacy of sex with a purpose and, of course, the joy of a positive test result. But sometimes things don’t go so smoo

Did you know that there’s more to strong glutes than a great looking butt? Your glutes are a huge muscle group that deserve some attention. Why? Because dedicating some time to training them will have a positive impact on your posture, strength and p

It fits around working from home and saves time, so it’s no wonder that many of us still enjoy exercising at home. Indeed, data reveals that 66 per cent of people who tried home exercise during the pandemic preferred it to other forms of working out.

WORDS: Eve Boggenpoel From power beats that motivate your workout to fitness apps telling you when to change pace, earphones have never been a more useful training buddy. But with so many models on the market, how do you know which to buy? We asked

What inspired your health transformation? ‘I was always hoping I would wake up one day and not have depression – that I’d get better with the help of external things that would make me happy. I’ve had such a wonderful career and I have wonderful chi