A new report has highlighted that today’s children are not active enough. Children as young as two spend much more time playing with ipads, computers and similar gadgets than exercising. UK guidelines recommend that children under 5 years of age should be physically active for a minimum of 3 hours a day. Those between 5 and 15 should be active for a minimum of one hour each day.

The report notes that over 80% of pre-school children do not exercise for  even an hour a day. Some of the reasons for the lack of activity include parents using ipads as modern-day dummies (to keep children entertained).  Children also do less walking and are more likely to be driven between locations. 

The health implications linked with low physical activity in children are numerous. It can affect brain, bone and muscle development. It is also associated with higher rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes.  Children who develop good exercise habits are more likely to maintain these into adulthood and therefore reduce their risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes. This is of particular importance to people of African and African-Caribbean descent who already exhibit high rates of these conditions.  

Parents can encourage physical activity in their children in a variety of ways including short walks and playing traditional physical games.

You can read more about this report and gain tips for increasing physical activity in children here.

Following our successful short bikeability summer courses with The Cycling Instructor we’re delighted to be launching a new cycling club starting next month.   As part of this project we’re looking for a friendly, outgoing person to take on the role of a part-time cycling club coordinator.

As a cycling coordinator you will be the main point of contact for our cycling club liaising with both the instructors and club members. You’ll be responsible for helping the instructors organise each cycling session and keeping everyone well-informed about the club’s activities. You can also get involved in the creative marketing side by promoting the group on social media and in the local area and you’ll be responsible for evaluating the impact of the project.

To find out more about this role please download the job description below or email info@thelakefoundation.com

The Lake Foundation is delighted to announce that we have received a grant from Sport England, an organisation committed to helping people and their communities create sporting habits for life.  

This grant will support the full cost of running our new cycling club for a year which aims to encourage people in our local community to get more active. The club will be open to everyone but will focus on encouraging more African Caribbean people and women to cycle.

We are very grateful to Sport England for supporting us and believing in our project and look forward to our club members not only getting some great exercise but discovering the beauty of South London as we cycle through the lovely green spaces of Croydon and the surrounding area.

Our cycling club begins on Saturday 13^th February  at 10am, for more information please email events@thelakefoundation.com or keep an eye on our website.

From 7^th November 2015 a new fun, holistic fitness classes will be held at the Salvation Army every Saturday morning at 7:15am and 9am.

During each session not only will you take part in a group fitness session but you’ll be given nutritional advice, a health assessment and 1 on 1 personal training.
All fitness levels and age groups are welcome.

For more information and to book your place please contact Eunice Adu Appiah (euniceaduappiah@yahoo.co.uk, 07943 460 522)

All details can be found on the flyer which you can download below.

May is National Walking Month and organisers, Living Streets, are encouraging the general public to get out of their car, get off public transport and walk everywhere in an effort to get more active this month.

You can get involved in this fun campaign by taking part in the many activities that are planned for this month such asWalk to School Week from 18^th to 22^nd May and Walk to Work Week from 11^th to 15^th May. They have lot of resources to get you started such as a carbon buster calculator, walking report cards, walking tips, posters, flyers and an events calendar. Visit their website for more information.

Get involved for a fun way to get some exercise and improve your health. #WalkThisMay!

A study published this week in JAMA has shown that vigorous physical activity is better for our health and enables us to outlive those that just take part in gentle or moderate exercise.

This was a large study including 204,542 people who were followed for just over six years. Researchers compared participants who took part in moderate exercise such as gentle swimming, housework and social tennis to participants who engaged in some vigorous activity such as jogging or aerobics. They found that the risk of premature death was 9 to 13 percent lower in those taking part in vigorous exercise.

As a result of their findings researchers concluded that “vigorous activities should be endorsed in clinical and public health activity guidelines to maximize the population benefits of physical activity.”

This study is useful as it helps us understand the type of exercise that we need to take part in to reap the maximum benefit. We encourage everyone to introduce some vigorous activity into their exercise plan.

Macmillan Cancer Support has commissioned TNS BMRB, an independent research company, to explore the barriers and motivations for physical activity for those living with and beyond cancer. This research will help inform the development of interventions to help those living with and beyond cancer engage with the benefits of physical activity. TNS BMRB is an independent research agency which conducts work for a range of government departments and charities.

In April, TNS BMRB will be conducting one hour face-to-face home interviews with people living with and beyond cancer. This can be at a date and time most convenient for the individual.  TNS BMRB will be conducting additional research online later in May, which will be conducted through a smartphone app and online. This may be more appropriate for those who do not wish to have a face to face interview, or prefer to participate remotely.

In the interview participants will be asked about their attitudes towards physical activity, after treatment and at other times.  Participation in interviews is flexible – we can pause or stop the interview at any time for any reason. Taking part in this research is  completely confidential and anonymous, and the information provided will be used for research purposes only. We offer all participants a £40 gift as a thank you for their time.

We wish to include a broad spectrum of people living with and beyond cancer as part of the research – so we are interested in speaking to everyone. However, we are also aiming to reach some particular groups:

• People aged 14-20
• Aged 75 and over
• People currently receiving treatment
• People post-treatment, who have a non-curable cancer, or an advanced cancer and are in palliative care
• Those who do not have very active lifestyles

If you are interested in taking part or would like more information please contact Rebecca Paton (Rebecca.paton@tns-bmrb.co.uk, +44 7831 702513)

Between the 2nd and 13th of March 2015, UK Active, Public Health England (PHE), the County Sports Partnership Network (CSP Network) and the Local Government Association (LGA) will deliver the second round of the Moving More Living More Physical Activity Fora.

Physical inactivity is the fourth largest cause of disease and disability in the UK and action is required by a collaboration of partners at a national and local level in order to address the problem and create a more active nation.

The Moving More, Living More regional physical activity fora were established to provide national insight into what can be done to tackle physical inactivity from a national level, as well as fostering conversations and producing partnerships at a local level to make an impact on local outcomes.

The second round of Moving More, Living More regional fora will present the most recent developments in the national movement for a more active England  and develop tangible actions that will make a difference at a local level.

The events will move the local agenda for physical activity forward and drive down into the details of how we can begin to tackle inactivity and create happier, healthier societies.

They will explore the evidence behind physical activity interventions from across the country – as well as giving a more localised focus to individual initiatives – and begin to assess the next steps for how local partners can work together collaboratively to combat physical inactivity.

Events news you:

Taunton: Monday 2nd March
Somerset County Cricket Club,
The County Ground,
Taunton,
Somerset,
TA1 1JT
South East Region: Wednesday 4th March
Etc venues (The Hatton),
51-53 Hatton Garden,
London,
EC1N 8HN
London: Friday 6th March
The Grange St Pauls,
10 Godliman Street,
London,
EC4V 5AJ
Blackpool: Wednesday 11th March
Winter Gardens
97 Church Street,
Blackpool,
Lancashire,
FY1 1HL
Birmingham: Friday 13th March
The Studio,
7 Cannon Street,
Birmingham,
B2 5EP
For more information and to book a place please visit  UK Active’s website. The Lake Foundation will be attending and we hope to see you there!

A brisk 20 minute walk each day could be enough to reduce an individual’s risk of early death, according to new research. The study of over 334,000 European men and women found that twice as many deaths may be attributable to lack of physical activity compared with the number of deaths attributable to obesity, but that just a modest increase in physical activity could have significant health benefits. – See more at http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/lack-of-exercise-responsible-for-twice-as-many-deaths-as-obesity#sthash.hSDv1MLp.dpuf

Physical inactivity has been consistently associated with an increased risk of early death, as well as being associated with a greater risk of diseases such as heart disease and cancer. Although it may also contribute to an increased body mass index (BMI) and obesity, the association with early death is independent of an individual’s BMI.

To measure the link between physical inactivity and premature death, and its interaction with obesity, researchers analysed data from 334,161 men and women across Europe participating in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) Study. Between 1992 and 2000, the researchers measured height, weight and waist circumference, and used self-assessment to measure levels of physical activity. The participants were then followed up over 12 years, during which 21,438 participants died. The results are published today in the American Journal of Clinical Exercise.

The researchers found that the greatest reduction in risk of premature death occurred in the comparison between inactive and moderately inactive groups, judged by combining activity at work with recreational activity; just under a quarter (22.7%) of participants were categorised as inactive, reporting no recreational activity in combination with a sedentary occupation. The authors estimate that doing exercise equivalent to just a 20-minute brisk walk each day – burning between 90 and 110 kcal (‘calories’) – would take an individual from the inactive to the moderately inactive group and reduce their risk of premature death by between 16-30%. The impact was greatest amongst normal weight individuals, but even those with higher BMI saw a benefit.

Using the most recent available data on deaths in Europe the researchers estimate that 337,000 of the 9.2 million deaths amongst European men and women were attributable to obesity (classed as a BMI greater than 30): however, double this number of deaths (676,000) could be attributed to physical inactivity.

Professor Ulf Ekelund from the Medical Research Council (MRC) Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge, who led the study, says: “This is a simple message: just a small amount of physical activity each day could have substantial health benefits for people who are physically inactive. Although we found that just 20 minutes would make a difference, we should really be looking to do more than this – physical activity has many proven health benefits and should be an important part of our daily life.”

Professor Nick Wareham, Director of the MRC Unit, adds: “Helping people to lose weight can be a real challenge, and whilst we should continue to aim at reducing population levels of obesity, public health interventions that encourage people to make small but achievable changes in physical activity can have significant health benefits and may be easier to achieve and maintain.”

Reference

Ekelund, U et al. Activity and all-cause mortality across levels of overall and abdominal adiposity in European men and women: the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition Study (EPIC). American Journal of Clinical Nutrition; 14 Jan 2015

This article was written by Cambridge University and was first published on 14^th January 2015 here. We have used this content as stipulated by its Creative Commons Licence.