9 minute read
Health, Beauty, Fitness
Fitness Matters Menopause Madness
Ahh, the time in a woman’s life when she doesn’t know if she’s coming or going, on fire or freezing, happy or sad, wants to diet or eat everything in sight. One thing’s for sure, all women will reach this point.
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Some women will sail through the menopause with little or no symptoms, whereas some will feel like they have been hit by a tsunami. But we would all benefit from educating ourselves and finding out about what is available and what works for us.
Perimenopause: Our hormones start to change, and symptoms may begin to appear, these are just a few: hot flushes, changes to periods, night sweats, joint pain, muscle ache, loss of sexual desire, brain fog, migraines, vaginal and urinary symptoms, hair and skin changes, mood swings, fatigue, struggling to sleep. This can last for months and, for some women, years. After your periods have stopped for a year, you’re then classed as being in the menopause, but unfortunately the symptoms can continue.
Treatment: Do your research into what you think you’d like to try, ask to speak to a menopause specialist doctor, and don’t be fobbed off with anti-depressants. Unfortunately these are often prescribed but a lot of women aren’t depressed, we’re menopausal! Don’t be scared to go down the HRT route if you need to; there are different patches depending on where you are in this journey.
Other ways to minimise the negative impact this is having on your life is:
• Stop smoking • Minimise drinking • Keep fit especially using weights • Eat a well-balanced diet • Meditation/relaxation • Educate yourself • Talk to friends/others
As women we’re almost ashamed by how we feel, especially if you have always been seen as a strong woman, but this can not only turn your life upside down but also your family’s lives. Over the next few months I will be putting together a menopause programme, please contact me if you’d like to go on the mailing list to hear about it.
By Alex Robinson
Level 4 Personal Trainer with additional qualifications in GP referrals – Pre- & post-natal exercise. Personal Trainer for over 15 years, supporting and helping people to meet their goals in fitness and lifestyle changes, from losing weight to running marathons. 01773 512410 • 07817 337861
Online timetable including Boxing for fitness Boxing circuits Cardio classes Body conditioning Fitness pilates Yoga Personal Training can be carried out online in addition to the studio All without leaving the comfort of your home ARR - Personal Training ARR-Training Alex Robinson PT
‘If you have been thinking about improving your fitness or want to lose weight, I can help’. • I have been a Personal Trainer for over 15 years, supporting and helping people to meet their goals in fitness and lifestyle changes, from losing weight to running marathons. • Over the years I have competed in various amateur sports to a high standard, including 24 hour endurance running to cross training events. • I am a Level 4 Personal Trainer with additional qualifications in
GP referrals - Pre & post natal exercise
Master Trainer in corrective exercise
Hatton Boxing for Fitness - Boxercise Master Trainer
CIMPSA & NRPT registered.
Call me on 07817 337861 I can help you change for the better! alex.robinson.pt@gmail.com
Level 4 obesity and diabetes specialist
MEMBER FOCUSED real people - real results Get strong, burn fat, feel amazing Coached by experts, delivered with care, designed for everyone
“Since joining BLF I have lost 3 dress sizes and a total of 23Kgs” Paula, Duffield
Choose to make a change | Start at ANY tness level Join us for a 30-day trial for just £89 15 PT sessions in a small group environment
Please call us for more information or to book 01332 833848
Studio at Duffield Road, Little Eaton DE21 5DR hello@bottomlinetness.co.uk | www.bottomlinetness.co.uk
Footnotes: Itchy Feet
Many people suffer from itchy feet from time to time and I don’t mean the urge to travel or move on to a new situation.
Most cases of itchy feet turn out to be a fungal infection, normally referred to as Athlete’s Foot. However, this isn’t always the case as there are other conditions which can cause intense itching. Perhaps the most common of these is dermatitis in one form or another.
An increasingly common type that we come across is footwear dermatitis caused by the patient becoming sensitive to chemicals used in the manufacture of shoes. The sensitivity can be to many things ranging from the adhesives used by the manufacturer to Chromium used in the tanning of leather, or even the dyes used. The only way to deal with this is by avoiding your normal footwear for a while to see if the symptoms decrease. If it turns out that the patient is indeed allergic to a particular pair of shoes then the only sensible thing to do is throw them away.
Another condition which arises from time to time is Pompholyx – a type of dermatitis which is easily recognisable due to there being tiny fluid filled spots resembling individual grains of tapioca. These are treated by soaking the feet with a very weak solution of potassium permanganate and, in severe cases, the use of steroid creams.
Whatever the cause, itchy feet don’t have to be endured – they can be cured.
By Peter Waugh, Amber Feet
Derbyshire Walking:
Cromford Canal & Black Rocks from High Peak Junction
Distance: 6.8 miles / 11 km Ascent: 1300 feet /394 metres Time: 4 hours 40 minutes Grade: Easy/moderate Author: Angela Clarke Start: OS grid reference SK314560 Postcode DE4 5AA (approx. location only) what3words start: dare.locate.spreading
A walk that explores parts of Derbyshire’s Industrial Heritage whilst also giving stunning and wide-ranging views that include Crich Stand, Carsington Reservoir and the Derwent Valley. Generally good paths which can be muddy in places with one very short, stepped, steep section. It is worth noting that if you reversed the route there would be a long and steep climb at the start to the top of Sheep Pasture Incline.
The Route
1. From the back of the car park (grid ref. SK 3148 5609) turn right over the bridge, cross the River Derwent to reach Cromford Canal and High Peak Junction. At High Peak Junction it is still possible to visit the old workshops where the chains and haulage equipment used on the old High Peak Railway were maintained. 2. Turn left to walk along the canal, past the steam operated Leawood Pumphouse. Shortly after, at an old canal lock gate, cross the canal and continue along the opposite side of the canal. This stretch of the Cromford Canal is now a nature reserve which, in recent years, has seen the return of water voles to its banks.
3. Just before Leawood Tunnel leave the canal path, taking the footpath on the right, signed for Homesford Cottage. Cross the bridge over the Derwent, go under the tunnel and follow the track to the A6. Cross the A6 and follow the track opposite behind the houses.
4. As you approach a metal gate, take the track which heads uphill but look for a gap in the fence, almost immediately on your right, to follow a clear footpath uphill through Birch Wood. As you walk along the top of the wood you will reach a tarmac track; continue straight ahead along this to re-enter the wood by the entrance to Birch Wood campsite.
5. At the end of the campsite’s first field take the footpath into its second field and follow the path to the barn opposite. It is from this point that the views open
up to extend from Crich Stand to Alport Heights. Cross a track, the Midshires Way, to follow the signed footpath straight ahead across four fields. In the fourth field don’t take the stone stile directly opposite out of the field, instead take the footpath, through the gap, on the right of the field.
6. Continue straight ahead across three fields to emerge at a track lined with gorse bushes; follow this to a farm track. Continuing straight ahead, follow the track past the farm to the road. Turn right downhill towards Bolehill.
7. Just before the first house in Bolehill, take the footpath on the right, uphill. When the steps end, continue straight ahead, uphill. As the ascent eases look out for the stile into the wood on your left. Continue along the path, uphill, through the wood to emerge, via a gate, at Bolehill’s summit trig point. From here Carsington Reservoir and Middleton Moor come into view.
8. From the summit, take the path on the left heading downhill next to the fence. Ignore the first gate in the fence but take the second gate through the fence to follow the stepped path down to a post with green and blue circles. 9. Bear left, then right, to a track leading downhill to Black Rocks. If you wish to explore Black Rocks there is clear path at the back of the rocks that takes you onto the top of the rocks. Although this involves a bit of scrambling and it is exposed on the top of the rocks the views across the Derwent Valley are stunning.
10. After passing Black Rocks, turn right onto the High Peak Trail, which follows the route of the old High Peak railway line. Follow the trail back to High Peak Junction first passing the old Engine House at the top of Sheep Pasture Incline and then the ‘Catch Pit’ at the foot of the incline. Cross the canal and return to the car park via the bridge over the River Derwent.
Please maintain social distancing – keep at least 2 metres away from other walkers.
Walk supplied by Walking Britain (walk no. 2899). For more walks, or to download a GPS file for this walk, visit www.walkingbritain.co.uk
