Do you roll with it?

Exercise regularly? Got a marathon or half marathon race coming up? Keen cyclist or gym goer? If you have not been using a foam roller as part of your daily cool down/recovery routine your really are missing out.  

Not just for the elite athletes, foam rolling aka Self-myofascial release, is a form of self-message to release tight muscles  or trigger points (specific "knots" that form in muscles) as you put targeted pressure on your fascia.  The fascia is a fibrous layer of connective tissue that surrounds all of the muscles in your body.  If this layer becomes sore and restricted post exercise, muscles will also become restricted in their movement and this is not conducive to great performance and may ultimately lead to injury. This is where foam rolling can help. 

Once just popular among elite athletes due to the immediate and strong impact rolling has on their performance and overall recovery, many people have now discovered the fantastic benefits including:

1. Improved Circulation

2. Injury Prevention

3. Enhanced Recover

4. Reduced exercise related soreness

A foam roller will set you back between (£8-£35) depending on quality so a relatively inexpensive piece of kit to have at home. If you regularly suffer soreness after exercising, or exercise and want to reduce the chances of injury it is a must buy!!

Top tips on using a foam roller:

• Keep it slow (Roll over each area slowly and pause for 20 seconds on tight spots to relax the muscle and release any tension).

• Keep breathing as this helps facilitate the muscles to relax too.

• Avoid rolling the IT band, instead focus on the glutes for the stability they offer.

For further info and some great foam rolling exercises (especially runners) see this great Guardian article 

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/the-running-blog/2014/feb/28/foam-roller-runners-guide-muscles

Increase your energy and vitality today

Clients of Red Hot Personal Training often ask what are the things that they should focus on to increase their energy and vitality. The list below is by no means exhaustive but it’s a great starting point.  Remember unless you make the change nothing will change. 

Reduce your sugar intake.  Watch the sugar content of your food.  Keep a food diary and see how much sugar you actually consume throughout the day, it may just surprise you! Sugar can play havoc with your energy as you spike your insulin levels (that initial sugar hit soon followed by the slump) leave you feeling lethargic and can also lead to overeating. Learn to read labels for sugar content. Remember to look for "of which sugars" on food labels. (4kg = 1 teaspoon of sugar).  Aim to consume no more than 6 teaspoon of sugar daily. Especially limit fruit juice and fizzy drinks and also avoid drinks that look healthy but are secretly sky high in sugar.  Some so called "green smoothies/juices" have as much sugar as soft drinks. CHECK THE LABELS YOU MAY BE SURPRISED. Click on this link to read a blog we wrote last year about the sugar content in childrens packed lunches. https://www.redhotpersonaltraining.com/health-fitness-blog/2015/8/19/packed-lunch-ideas-for-kids-and-adults-alike?rq=sugar.

Make sure you take a brisk walk outside for at least 15 minutes a day.  A wood, forrest or green leafy park is best but a walk around your street will still count! Take time to appreciate the nature around you and focus on breathing deeply and calmly. This is great for boosting your circulation, working your muscles, fat loss, better sleep and a great mood booster too!

Top up your vitamin D levels with 20 minutes of sensible sun exposure to your arms and legs each day (not in the midday full sun).

Avoid blue light late at night.  Lots of interesting science is emerging on this topic and we think this is going to be a very important subject. This means turning off your mobile phones and tablets at least 1 hour before bed. 

Fill up on a rainbow of colors each day.  Fill your plates with a variety of vegetables as this allows us to gain a huge variety of vitamins and minerals that may be lacking in a bland “beige” coloured diet. Click on this link to read more on this subject. 

https://www.redhotpersonaltraining.com/health-fitness-blog/2016/4/18/eat-the-rainbow?rq=rain