1. Sport and leisure to benefit from new skills investment
Fitpro News
SkillsActive, the sector skills council for active leisure, learning and wellbeing, has received funding to continue its work delivering skills solutions for the sector. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills has appointed SkillsActive to deliver National Occupational Standards, Apprenticeships and Modern Apprenticeship frameworks, and qualification related products for three years from this April.
Fitpro News
2. LA Fitness renegotiates £63.4m debt pile to work off some of its annual loss
Daily Mail – This is Money
Latest figures for Britain’s third largest fitness group, seen by the Daily Mail, showed member numbers rose by 11,000 in the past nine months, taking the total to 200,000, while underlying sales for the busy January period rose 3 per cent.
3. IOC chief praises London’s Olympics legacy
Independent
It has not come cheaply, but this morning the president of the International Olympic Committee, Jacques Rogge, will hold up London’s Olympics as having provided a “legacy blueprint for future hosts.”
4. Over-drinking can be deadlier than dehydration
Telegraph
A marathon runner who fell ill during a race says that the dangers of drinking too much water should be better publicised.
5. 17st student who swapped junk-food binges for pumping iron is crowned Britain’s Strongest Woman
Daily Mail
Siobhan Hyland went from fat to fit after becoming hooked on pumping iron when she took up weight training in a bid to become healthier. She enjoyed the weight workouts so much that what started as a hobby quickly became something she took more seriously. As the fat fell off and her strength improved, she decided to compete in strong woman competitions – and has since won two national titles.
6. Is your workout a waste of time?
Irish Independent
A study by biology boffin James Timmons, a professor at the University of Birmingham, found that not only are the benefits of aerobic exercise determined by our genetic make-up, but that some of us are programmed to respond poorly to working out.
Irish Independent
7. Om in the City
Evening Standard
Yoga classes to suit the hours and requirements of overworked London professionals are springing up everywhere. Jasmine Gardner gets stretching.
8. Three golden girls who love to exercise reveal their fitness secrets
Daily Record
Studies have shown that older people who exercise are less prone to falls and are more agile and less likely to suffer from heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Exercise can also cut the chance of dementia and depression.