Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2021 i Men's Fitness UK

As we wave good riddance to a devastating year and attempt to expunge the word ‘unprecedented’ from the human vocabulary, take a moment to consider the wise words of 90s pop rock powerhouse D:Ream: things can only get better. If 2020 dealt a blow to your fitness ambitions – if you gained some unwanted pandemic pounds, or sacrificed some hard-earned muscle – firstly, cut yourself a generous amount of slack; secondly, utilise New Year motivation to cement a shiny new set of goals for 2021. In this issue, we’ve collated the best advice from experts across fitness, food, tech and sports psychology to provide you with the tools you need to turn early-year ambitions into reality. From how to put together a movement-focused strength-training programme for more efficient – and…

BREAKING BARRIERS Chris Nikic proved anything is possible in November, when he became the first person with Down’s syndrome to complete an Ironman. The 21-year-old finished 14 minutes before the official cut-off time, completing the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile cycle and 26.2-mile marathon in 16 hours 46 minutes. Nikic was supported throughout by his race guide, Dan Grieb, and his father, Nik, who spoke to the BBC after the race: “To Chris, this race was more than just a finish line and celebration of victory. Ironman has served as his platform to become one step closer to his goal of living a life of inclusion, normalcy, and leadership. It’s about being an example to other kids and families that face similar barriers, proving no dream or goal is too high.” OUT…

1. CREATE A PLAYLIST “Everything in our world vibrates to different frequencies and we are no exception,” says wellness expert Priyanka Lugani. “The music we listen to influences our thoughts, emotions and energy, so pick mindfully – I recommend a soft frequency such as classical music.” 2. EAT CONSCIOUSLY “The gut is so important to overall wellbeing, so nourish it wisely,” says Lugani. “Smoothies are a great way to boost immunity, with adaptogens like ashwaghanda and ginseng widely available in powder form.” 3. PRACTICE GRATITUDE What are you thankful for today? “When we express gratitude our brain releases dopamine and serotonin,” says Lugani, “the neurotransmitters responsible for our mood and emotions, making us feel happy.”…

Across this two-week workout, you’ll perform each of the movements your body is capable of. The plan is to use a variety of different weights, sets and rep ranges. You’ll also be performing cardio work to keep your engine going and ensure a high calorie burn. Each workout has a focus, such as strength, conditioning or volume, and you’ll only be using a maximum of three items of kit per session. WEEK 1 DAY 1: BARBELL STRENGTH 1. FRONT SQUAT 6-8 reps / 5 sets / 90 secs rest 2. BENT-OVER ROW 6-8 reps / 5 sets / 90 secs rest 3. ROMANIAN DEADLIFT 6-8 reps / 5 sets / 90 secs rest 4. CHEST PRESS 6-8 reps / 5 sets / 90 secs rest DAY 2: CONDITIONING…

FAKE NEWS Artificially sweetened drinks may not be the healthy alternative they’re often claimed to be. Although they may help reduce calorie intake compared to sugary drinks, evidence suggests they still increase risk of cardiovascular disease. In a large ten-year cohort of over 100,000 people, sweetener-laden drinks led to significantly higher risk of heart disease and stroke.1 ON ROOT Ginger is a flowering plant that originates from South-East Asia. It has a long history of use in various forms of traditional medicine to aid digestion, reduce nausea, and help fight infections. In recent years, these health benefits have been backed up by scientific research. Studies have even shown that regular ginger consumption can reduce muscle pain caused by exercise by around 25 per cent.3 That’s likely due to gingerol, a powerful…

PLANTY From £4.95 per meal, planty.uk Pick Planty if you’re a plant-based sceptic unconvinced about the quality of vegan cooking. The meals are delicious, packed full of protein, and there’s enough variety to eat a different type of cuisine every day of the week. You can build your box from either six, eight or ten meals from the nutritionist-approved menu, and receive as a one-off or subscribe for more regular deliveries. Nothing but fresh ingredients go into the meals, which are flash-frozen as soon as they’re cooked to lock in flavour and nutrients. VIBRANT VEGAN £36 for 6 meals, vibrantvegan.co.uk Working with a ‘good for you, good for the planet’ premise, Vibrant Vegan’s meals are delivered using a carbon neutral service, in sustainable packaging. The food tastes great and the…

For an optimum blend of fat burn and muscle gain, full-body training is about as effective as it gets. This session, from groundbreaking AI-led fitness app Trion, loads up your legs before hitting your chest, back and shoulders. The result is a total-body pump that tests muscles you didn’t even knew existed. Perform the movements with a controlled tempo for perfect execution and maximum growth. WARM-UP 1. SPIDER LUNGE WITH ROTATION REPS: 12 each side REST: 30 secs SETS: 2 This is one of the most effective dynamic warm-up stretches you can perform. It opens the hip, stretches out the hamstrings and mobilises the T-spine – all in one simple movement. 2. COSSACK SQUAT REPS: 12 each side REST: 30 secs SETS: 2 This is a challenging exercise,…

THINGS ARE GETTING PERSONAL The increased accuracy and availability of DNA testing means personalisation will play an increasingly central role to the way we manage our health. Nutri-Genetix gets a mention later in the mag, but another company, Bio-Synergy, has just announced the world’s first ‘Epigenetic’ tracking test, combining DNA and epigenetic profiling for a new level of insight. “This test kit is the ultimate DNA blueprint to health, performance and longevity,” says Bio-Synergy CEO Daniel Herman. “It uses algorithms to provide you with the knowledge to make life-changing health improvements and reduce potential genetic health risks.” FRONT-ROOM FITNESS LIVES ON While gyms are likely to be back in business for most of 2021, last year forced us to adapt and improvise – and for some this new way of…

MUSCLE MAKE›UP WHAT ARE YOU MADE OF?  Muscles contain bundles of fibres within protective sheaths called fascia, which are themselves bundled together. The biggest bundle is the muscle itself. The next biggest is the fascicles, containing the long, single-celled muscle fibres. These are then divided into myofibrils, which are divided again into myofilaments, made up from chains of sarcomeres. 10 HOURS The amount of time the average UK worker spends sitting down – bad news for your muscles, heart, and general health. Try not to stay in the same position for more than half an hour at a time: stand up, have a stretch, do a few press-ups. Regular movement is essential to keeping your metabolism ticking over. DRESS TO COMPRESS COMPRESSION KIT COULD REDUCE STRENGTH LOSS AFTER A STRENUOUS…

BURN PELETON TREAD £2,295 or £59 per month, onepeleton.com Having transformed the spin-bike experience, Peloton Tread now wants to rehab the reputation of the ‘dreadmill’. The equipment is different, but the concept is the same: a piece of high-quality cardio equipment backed up by high-energy, studio-style live and on-demand workouts. A motivational mix of pure cardio and strength combination sessions, all beamed straight to your home, to torch more body fat. But if you like the idea of joining this revolution, you’ll need two things: money and space. The treadmill is far from cheap and there’s a £40 monthly fee to access the classes (at 173cm x 84cm x 157cm and 131kg, it also has a larger footprint than some rival treads). However, you get a decent 150cm running space,…

‘WORLD’S GREATEST STRETCH’ To open the hips, mobilise the thoracic spine and improve range of motion. • Step your left foot towards the outside of your left hand. • Move your left elbow inside towards your left foot, then continue the movement by moving your left hand outside of your left foot. • Rotate and reach towards the ceiling. • Return to the start and switch sides. PIGEON STRETCH For opening the hips and improving flexibility. • Lie on a mat, with one leg bent and flat in front of you and the other leg stretched out straight behind you. • Once stable, bring the weight of your body down on your front leg and try to keep your hips square. • Relax, and breathe into the stretch. • Once…

Although most health clubs took the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic, many refused to back down, finding creative solutions to stay afloat and proving where there’s a will to workout, there’s a way. Fitness became digitised, and gyms and studios were empowered with the tools to provide members with streamed workouts, while on-demand and live training platforms boomed. Thanks to tech, we’ve been able to virtually attend our favourite studio workouts with our usual teachers, any time and any place. PTs have been accessible from our living rooms or local parks, and we’ve even retained the interactive and sometimes competitive nature of group fitness with apps like Fiit, which integrates heart-rate monitoring and real-time workouts with live leaderboards beamed directly to your front room. While 2020 taught us that the…

If you’re looking for a whole-body, functional workout that gets your adrenaline pumping and gives you physical challenges to solve, indoor climbing is as good as it gets. Whether you prefer bouldering on low-rise problems, or roping up and scaling 12m walls, climbing is a versatile workout that can help you achieve any number of body goals. “As an all-round functional body movement that works strength and flexibility, climbing is the perfect exercise,” says Robbie Phillips, a professional climber and former Team GB coach from Edinburgh. “You can train aerobically by running around circuits of easier climbs,” Phillips continues, “or you can work maximum power by choosing boulder problems on steep overhangs, which work your shoulders, biceps and triceps. You can make it as intense as you want.” Climbing is…

SPLIT YOUR COMMUTE If you travel by public transport, look at whether there’s an opportunity to get off at an earlier stop and run or ride the rest of the way. This can be particularly good for introducing workouts to commutes, or other regular journeys, that are too long entirely to replace. PREP AHEAD If you run or cycle to work, but need uniform or smart clothes during the day, a useful trick can be to drive in on Monday and take four spare outfits with you for the rest of the week. GET CREATIVE A tip from national mountain bike champion Matt Jones is to think flexibly about how you can combine long training sessions with social events. Matt sometimes rides across the country to visit relatives with only…

IN A DECADE, WE’LL ALL BE EATING INSECTS There’s something missing from your diet. It’s not a rare berry native to a remote corner of the Amazon, or a recently discovered super-leaf with 60 times the antioxidants of green tea. No, it’s something far more primal. It’s a foodstuff that our ancestors have been consuming for aeons. And it represents the second largest biomass on earth. It’s insects. Before you balk, hear me out. Almost every culture around the world has a bias against certain food groups. The Chinese view cheddar cheese the same way the UK views a scorpion on a stick – that’s to say, with revulsion. Haggis is banned in the US. In India, they won’t touch beef. What’s interesting, however, is that none of these biases…

TENNENT’S LIGHT £13.75 (12 x 300ml), tennents.co.uk Made from Scottish-grown cereals and fresh highland water from Loch Katrine, Tennent’s Light is bright and balanced, with a nice blend of bitter sweetness – and there’s just 60 calories per bottle. We’ll have five. SKINNYBRANDS PREMIUM LAGER £4.60 (4 x 330ml), groceries.asda.com A rising star in the world of low-calorie beer, SkinnyBrands Lager tastes as good as any regular beer – the only thing missing is the triple-figure calorie count. Clean, crisp and refreshing, it’s also vegan and gluten-free. THE ORIGINAL SMALL BEER SESSION PALE £52 (24 x 350ml), theoriginalsmallbeer.com A rare pale ale entry – brewed using the historic ‘small beer’ method that was once a staple of British life – the Session Pale comes in at an impressive 85 calories…

Gracing the cover this issue is fitness model and personal trainer Alex Crockford. The 30-year-old believes in sustainable gains: lifestyle and training changes that can create fitness for life, rather than flash-in-the-pan diets and workout programmes that foster a boom-and-bust mindset. In 2016, Crockford set up the CrockFit app – which has grown to include gym, home, bodyweight and nutrition plans – and you can access a load of free training tips and workouts on his Instagram (@alexcrockford) and YouTube. ALEX, EVERYONE’S HAD TO ADAPT AND IMPROVISE AS BEST THEY CAN THIS YEAR – HAS YOUR FITNESS ROUTINE CHANGED MUCH AS A RESULT OF THE VARIOUS RESTRICTIONS? Yeah completely. My method of training is always a mixture of weightlifting and gym training, along with some bodyweight stuff and running. It’s…

One in three people suffer from SAD, a type of depression that's related to changes in seasons. And with 2020’s lockdowns and restrictions, some of us have been getting even less outdoor exposure than usual. People with seasonal affective disorder have difficulty regulating the neurotransmitter serotonin, which is thought to be linked to SERT – a protein that carries serotonin (higher SERT levels lead to lower serotonin activity). SERT is inhibited by the sunlight, which means it’s lower during summer – so serotonin levels are higher. Conversely, higher levels of SERT during the winter months are believed to reduce the available serotonin. On top of that, people with SAD may also produce less vitamin D – shown to affect serotonin levels – with less outdoor exposure to sunlight in winter.…

Plant-based cooking can be so much more than bland tofu and rubbery fake cheese. Part cookbook, part veggie guidebook, How to be Vegan in 28 Days shows you all you need to know to thrive on a colourful, tasty and nutritious plant-based diet. Who said vegan cooking was boring? TENDERSTEM BROCCOLI AND TOFU IN BLACK BEAN SAUCE INGREDIENTS (SERVES 2) - 400g firm tofu - 1tbsp rapeseed oil - 200g tenderstem broccoli - 12–15 red cherry tomatoes, cut in half - 4tbsp black bean sauce - 2tbsp water - Juice of 1 lime - 2tbsp white sesame seeds, toasted METHOD Cut the tofu into cubes. Heat a little rapeseed oil in a pan over a medium heat and fry the tofu for five minutes, or until golden. Carefully remove from…

1. FULLER FOR LONGER “Protein has a high satiety rate,” says Tucker, “so it makes you feel fuller for longer, meaning you’re less likely to experience excess calorie consumption.” 2. FUEL FOR THE FIRE “Protein’s high ‘thermic effect’,” says Tucker, means your body uses more calories to digest any protein, helping you to achieve the negative energy balance which leads to weight loss.” 3. MUSCLE MASS Protein’s well-known role in muscle growth and maintenance is also a critical factor in the weight-loss equation. “Even when in a weight-loss phase,” says Tucker, “you want to increase protein intake in combination with your training to support the preservation of muscle mass. If you do that, you will know that any loss in weight is definitely coming from burned fat, not muscle.”…

BANDY WORLDBANDY.COM A cross between ice hockey and field hockey, bandy is played on an ice rink with a curved stick and small ball. It also has influences from football – teams are 11-a-side and the game is made up of two 45-minute halves. For many years, the only countries that participated in the World Championships were Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia, but since 2014 at least 16 nations have been involved. BUZKASHI TRADITIONALSPORTS.ORG If you’re vegetarian or the slightest bit squeamish, jump to the next sport – this is a game even the Taliban decided to ban…Still here? Traditionally, two teams on horseback compete to pick up the carcass of a headless goat and drop it into a pit, known as the ‘tai kazan’, in the middle of the…

All you need is a pair of dumbbells, six square-feet of floor space, and the following six-exercise circuit to start building the body of a champion. Hunter McIntyre, four-time Tough Mudder X champ and creator of at-home fitness app Openfit’s T-MINUS 30 programme, has created a body-sculpting circuit from the obstacle race’s training programme. HOW TO: Perform the exercises as a circuit, doing each one for 45 secs, moving from one to the next without rest. Once you complete all 6 exercises, rest for 1 minute. Repeat the circuit 3 to 4 times in total. 1A. PLYO LUNGE • Assume a staggered stance, with your left foot about three feet in front of your right. • Keeping your chest up, back straight, and core engaged, lower yourself into a lunge…