22 kaia health app

BACK PAIN APP

First medically approved back pain app in EU and UK aims to end the nationwide epidemic of back pain in UK offices

London, UK - Bad posture among UK office employees is a nationwide epidemic. Sitting at desks all day, slouching over computers and a general sedentary lifestyle has led one in five Brits to give up their job or reduce hours because of their condition. Experts behind Kaia, the first and only medically approved back pain app in the EU and UK, want to end the nationwide epidemic of back pain in UK offices, and claim that a few simple changes in the workplace can help to reduce the risk.

‘Epidemic levels‘ According to WHO, back pain is the leading global cause of disability worldwide. Meanwhile, in the UK, an estimated onethird of the adult population are affected by back issues each year. And according to the Office for National Statistics, back pain accounts for almost 31 million days of work lost annually costing the UK economy £14 billion a year. In another study, 63% in higher managerial jobs attributed their back pain to bad posture, and took more days off sick for back pain than any other type of employee.

The Kaia back pain app was developed

by digital therapy company Kaia Health in conjunction with physiotherapists, orthopaedic surgeons and clinical psychologists. The app offers video exercises with education, physiotherapy and psychological strategies. Users can chat online with a physiotherapist or sports scientist for motivation and exerciserelated questions.

Sedentary office occupations can cause back pain as a result of inactivity between back muscles and the spine - but this is not the only factor. A combination of high workload, posture, job dissatisfaction or fear over termination can increase the occurrence of back pain at work.

In an independent clinical study published recently in NPJ Digital Medicine, patients using Kaia reported significantly lower pain levels compared to the control group treated with physiotherapy and online education.

A few simple changes can help to reduce the risk of back pain in the workplace. These include:

Walk and talk during phone calls Take a break from the screen every 30 minutes for at least two minutes Exercise regularly at your desk including arm stretches and neck rolls Walk over to and talk with a colleague rather than emailing them Arrange a workplace assessment to optimise the seating position and workstation Meditate for 10 minutes. Be mindful of the influence workplace stress and strain has Sit correctly with your thighs at right angles to your body or sloping slightly down

Stephan Huber, Chief Medical Officer at Kaia Health, says: at Kaia says: “The core problem is our modern, sedentary working life. We’re hunched at desks all day and this puts a strain on our back. We’re encouraging UK employers to adopt a holistic approach to tackling back pain in and out of the workplace - this could include increased access to exercise and relaxation like the Kaia app offers. Implementing these measures systematically for workers could lead to a more active way of dealing with the condition - and this will help to alleviate back pain and reduce the strain on the NHS.”

Kaia can be downloaded via the App Store and Google Play with a 7-day free-trial. @KaiaHealth Facebook.com/KaiaHealth #kaiahealth

PERSONAL TRAINER

World’s first virtual personal trainer counts reps and provides feedback using just a smartphone.

Leveraging years of building health and fitness applications, including the world’s leading back pain app, digital therapeutics pioneer Kaia Health is now launching Kaia Personal Trainer, the world’s first fullbody virtual personal trainer which tracks exercises, creates personalised fitness plans, counts reps and provides real-time audio feedback.

The app is powered by patent pending AI-powered motion tracking technology and uses just a smartphone (no additional hardware is required). It is like having a personal trainer at home - without having to go to the gym - and is democratising access to professional physical training and wellness feedback worldwide.

The Kaia Personal Trainer app has been developed with physiotherapists and fitness experts. It combines AI-powered motion tracking technology and personalised training to offer a customised full-body workout featuring a variety of exercises, including the side plank, bridge and reverse crunch.

To activate Kaia Personal Trainer, users stand seven feet away from their smartphone camera and begin exercising with video instructions. The app tracks physical activity with a 16-point system that compares the metrics of actual movement against ideal movement, including the relative positions of limbs and joints, and the angles between them. Kaia Personal Trainer counts the number of reps and provides users with instant, personalised real-time audio feedback, advice and encouragement to improve fitness and performance.

Kaia Personal Trainer covers all relevant body parts and muscle groups, including the lower back, core, glutes and hamstrings. The AI-powered motion tracking technology adjusts the difficulty level and exercise based on the user’s feedback - and is particularly suited to those with little experience or training who want to integrate exercise into their lives in a mindful way. connections, establishing a relationship by becoming a part of their everyday routine and integrating with their fitness goals. We’re incredibly excited by our patent pending AI-powered motion tracking technology and virtual personal trainer as it has the potential to democratise access to a sustainable wellness feedback and fitness training worldwide.”

Commenting on the unique technology behind the Kaia Personal Trainer, Achilleas Georgiadis, Principle Deep Learning Engineer at Kaia Health, says: “Up until now, specialised hardware like a Microsoft Kinect was required to track the human body. We remove the need for costly hardware using advanced Deep Learning and Machine Learning algorithms and optimised them for mobile. This enables us to track the human body in real time using only the hardware of the smartphone - hence democratising access at no additional cost.”

Maximilian Strobel, Head of AI Lab at Kaia Health says: “Kaia Personal Trainer is a fullbody workout in your pocket. It uses tech to offer you the experience of a personal trainer anywhere, with real-time performance metrics - without the expensive personal trainer fees. The app puts users in control of their exercise performance with a virtual personal trainer which accompanies their every step. This fosters more intimate

Kaia Personal Trainer is available on smartphones and tablets (iOS 12 only) and can be downloaded via the Apple App Store. The first 7 days of the program are available free within the free trial offer.

@KaiaHealth Facebook.com/KaiaHealth #kaiahealth

SUFFOLK PUNCH BOXING CLUB

The team at PT Today recently visited the Suffolk Punch Boxing Club at Grange Fitness in Ipswich to experience the mixed-level boxing class. What can we say - it was a fantastic experience! We felt at home straight away by the lovely team and also the other members of the class. It felt like we had been going for weeks already.

We were off to a great start to the fitness warm up before starting boxing, but unfortunately our team member, Niamh, sprained her ankle. Despite the pain of it, her spirits were not dampened due to the helpfulness of the GFP team which has not gone unnoticed!

The fitness warm up included skipping, jogging, jumping jacks, hip twists, press ups and straight-leg sit ups. It was challenging for the beginners amongst us, but not so hard that we were too exhausted for the rest of the class. We then got our gloves on, and started with basic moves on the bags. After that, moving on to leg work without gloves - giving us a bit of a rest!

We learnt 6 different moves using the pads and a partner. This was the most fun part for me; coordinating each move with its number got my brain and body working at the same time. I was partnered with Rob, who is a GFP team member, and this was great fun because he motivated me to get the moves just right as well as helping me with them. This was especially helpful in my first ever boxing class.

Keeping that in mind, the dynamic of the class meant that it was so straightforward to learn and understand. With Rob, the instructor, walking around to each person in the class, and tailoring his comments to our abilities; we really felt that personal touch.

I left the class feeling inspired, motivated and definitely worn out! While I was having a great time in the class, Niamh had her ankle up and had a chat with Matt Brennan, owner of Grange Fitness. Matt has been in the fitness industry for 18 years, and started out as a sports therapist. Grange Fitness has been an established business for 6 years now, and they haven’t stopped growing.

With 75% of the members going to box, and 25% for the recreational gym; Grange Fitness are one of the only establishments that do crossfit and boxing in the UK, with there being only 3-4 all together. This isn’t their only unique selling point - Suffolk Punch Boxing Club host 4 charity ‘crossfit-boxing’ events per year, and anyone that participates receives 12 months training at the club for free. How cool is that? The next competition is at Trinity Park in Ipswich March 7th 2020 - which we definitely will be attending.

On top of that, they offer everyone a free first week. This is great if you are anxious to start boxing, but curious to see what it’s all about. The free first week gives you an opportunity to dip your toes into the world of crossfit-boxing, and also to meet the lovely team who will wash away your anxieties about the gym right away.

Grange Fitness are keen to show people that they are not like other gyms by accommodating everyone without making them feel patronised or judged. Especially for anxious, overweight, females, who find it the hardest to get started with things like an exercise class. The club works with children too, with currently 80 kids on board. Boxing helps children (and adults) with anxiety or stress; and this is something to think about if you are not sold by the fitness side of it alone. Rebecca Gilchrist, Editorial Assistant

Book online at www.grangefitness. com Facebook: @grangefitness Twitter: @grangefitness Instagram: @gfpsuffolkpunch

FIREDANCE TOUR WITH KAREN HAUER AND GORKA MARQUEZ

PT Today caught up with Karen Hauer during her break in her rehearsals for the Strictly Come Dancing quarter-finals back in 2019. We asked her general questions on her personal training experience and about her and Gorka’s Firedance Tour this 2020. Firedance Tour 2020 - 6th March to 5th April Where did your career in dancing all begin? When I first moved to New York from Venezuela my childhood pretty much started with dancing, in specific from the age of eight years old. I

studied at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and then went on to study Ballroom and Latin at the age of 19, and since then continued to improve even further. How long has it taken you to get where you are today? It has taken 28 years of hard work and consistency. I was a personal trainer before I became a dancer so had enough chance to really improve my fitness to prepare myself for such extreme dances. Do you have any advice for people wanting to become professional dancers? Train hard and keep up with it. It isn’t easy but it is worth it in the end. What are your top tips for training for Strictly Come Dancing? Get enough sleep and make sure you have a healthy diet. As it is such an intense process, you need to have enough energy to keep you going. As this issue is all about ‘New Year, New You’, do you have a new year’s resolution for 2020? I want to continue to learn. It is so important to learn new things and really push yourself to your limits. Even if I have been in the industry for 28 years, I am always learning new ways to improve. Are you excited about the Firedance tour? Yes I cannot wait for it. It’s going to be different to anything I’ve ever done before and I’m going to be with Gorka whom I get on with so well. As well as knowing we will have amazing support dancers alongside us and getting the opportunity to travel the UK and visit amazing new venues is also very exciting. Can you tell us a bit about what ticket holders can expect from the show? Expect lots of bright colours, eccentricity, passion and hip movements!

Have you ever done a tour like this before? Yes I have been on a few different dance tours previously but this will be slightly different because of the passion that will come through from the many different types of dances involved. As well as working with Gorka whom I have never been on tour with just him before so I am really looking forward to doing something new. Out of Tango, Flamenco or Samba - which one do you like performing the most? The Charleston haha! Because of the amount of time I have been dancing for, I prefer a mixture of dances. Some of them being more serious of course but with this Firedance tour, we can really showcase the ‘quirkiness’ of some of the dances out there. As the tour just runs over a month, do you have any tips of training to make sure you are keeping fit & active for this duration? The same sort of training that I have had with Strictly. However, I will have Gorka who also has a lot of personal training experience and he will always keep me active and motivated when needed. Tell us more about relationship with Gorka Marquez, what are you looking forward to the most about doing the Firedance tour with him? I have known him for years now and we have such a great relationship. We will both motivate each other to not give up and keep going and the best thing is, he always carries food around with him like I do! Last question, do you prefer sparkly or satin gowns? *Karen laughs*. Well as most of my style of dancing and previous shows have been sparkly gowns, so I am going to say satin! *laughs again*

PT Today also caught up with Gorka Marquez on his way to rehearsals. We also asked general questions on his personal training experience and about the Firedance Tour this 2020. What made you want to start a career in dancing? I started dancing when I was 11 and at the same time I used to play football, I was always involved in sports and theatre at school. My dad and mum used to have ballroom lessons together, so I used to go with them, and one day I stood up and started to do the routine. I stopped playing football and got into the competition world. What did you do to get this far? Every career you have to be very focused on it. And I remember my friends used to go out on the weekend or go on holidays, and I didn’t do any of that because all the money that I used to save would go to lessons or for travelling around the world to compete. For every ballroom dancer, it’s a dream job. How do you train for Strictly? What’s your go to workout? When I used to compete on the national team, I had a personal trainer for ballroom. So I like a lot of functional workouts, because sometimes when you just do weights, you can get very stiff with less mobility. I do like doing weight training, but not the classic bench press, I like to keep it more

fun and dynamic. Not 100% crossfit you know, more athletic, more functional. When did you become a personal trainer? In 2016. I was always into fitness, and I thought I don’t want to be dancing forever. Fitness is one of my other passions. I love to train, not only in the gym, but I love to go out for a run, or even for a walk for fresh air. When I’m not dancing, I always have like half an hour to train. Would you say training is good for mental health as well as physical health? Yeah, when you do exercise you release endorphins, you know, and endorphins make everyone happy. It doesn’t mean you have to go to the gym, or lift weights. It can be just a simple thing, like sometimes me and Gemma go out with the dogs for a walk for like 20 minutes, get some fresh air, go to the park; it’s really beautiful. Do you have any tips for PTs or anyone that wants to become a PT? Yeah, I would say find a place where you can get the best knowledge, don’t just go anywhere. Obviously there are so many, so find the best one with the best quality of information they can give you. If you’re going to be treating people’s bodies and people’s health, you want to do it right. Karen says you always carry food for training. What’s your favourite snack before training? I love to make my overnight oats, with like protein, milk, peanut butter. It gives me energy on the long runs. Sometimes we don’t get a lot of time to eat so I will have a nice porridge with whey, almond milk, peanut butter; or a quick bagel with peanut butter - I love that. What can we expect from the Firedance tour? Are you excited? Yeah I am very excited, it’s gonna be a great show! It’s something different to all the shows done before. This time we are focusing on the Latin side you know, we want to bring the fire and passion of dance with a modern side, rather than classic ballroom. You have known Karen for years, but this is the first time you are pairing together; are you excited to be working in this way with her? Yeah last year we started to do some shows together, and we were like oh we are having so much fun together. It’s so easy to work with her, we are both very chilled, we are on the same page, and it is so much fun. So I am so excited for that! Finally, what are your new year’s resolutions for 2020? Have health, have love, spend time with my family, Gemma and my little princess. Lots of love.

featureson the cover GORKA MARQUEZ KAREN HAUER RAYMOND GUBBAY and present

UK TOUR 2020 TANGO - FLAMENCO - CONTEMPORARY - PASO DOBLE - SAMBA - SALSA HIGH WYCOMBE SWAN - 7.30pm GUILDFORD G LIVE - 7.30pm MANCHESTER THE BRIDGEWATER HALL - 3pm IPSWICH REGENT THEATRE - 7.30pm SHEFFIELD CITY HALL - 7.30pm BASINGSTOKE THE ANVIL - 7pm BROMLEY CHURCHILL THEATRE - 7.30pm SCUNTHORPE THE BATHS HALL - 7.30pm GRIMSBY AUDITORIUM - 7.30pm DARTFORD ORCHARD THEATRE - 7.30pm BOURNEMOUTH PAVILION - 3pm NORTHAMPTON ROYAL & DERNGATE - 7.30pm PETERBOROUGH NEW THEATRE - 7.30pm CHATHAM CENTRAL THEATRE - 7.30pm GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL - 7.30pm DUNFERMLINE ALHAMBRA - 7.30pm CAMBRIDGE CORN EXCHANGE - 7.30pm SOUTHEND CLIFFS PAVILION - 3pm MARCH FRIDAY 6 SATURDAY 7 SUNDAY 8 TUESDAY 10 THURSDAY 12 SUNDAY 15 MONDAY 16 THURSDAY 19 FRIDAY 20 SATURDAY 21 SUNDAY 22 MONDAY 23 WEDNESDAY 25 THURSDAY 26 FRIDAY 27 SATURDAY 28 APRIL SATURDAY 4 SUNDAY 5

GET THE BEST FIT

a conversation about my previous ski boot experience and my skiing ability. He looked at the biomechanics of my feet as well as my ankle flex and stability (apparently I have very flexible ankles). WITH SUREFIT

Finding the perfect ski boots with a personalised customisation at Ellis Brigham’s Boot Labs

Despite having been a keen skier for most of my life, I had never made the jump to get my very own ski boots fitted. Those in the know described it as an absolute game-changer. Gone would be the days of cramming my poor feet into smelly overworn hired boots that would somehow manage to be both too small and too big at the same time. Thomas measures me up as a 26 in one foot and a 26.5 in the other. I explained to him that shockingly during my last ski trip I had worn a size 29 in ski boots. This was simply because my reasonably wide feet had meant that I was having to get longer ski boots in order to compensate and reduce the pain. Getting my very own boots, that could include custom insoles, and could be specially moulded to my own slightly awkwardly shaped feet would mean that I could finally wear boots of the correct size!

Thomas then performed what was called a ‘shell check’, where my bare foot was placed into the shell of the boot with the liner taken out, and a long wooden pole known as a fitstick is slid down in order to determine if there is the required space between the shell and foot. The 26/26.5 were almost perfect but ever so slightly small on one foot - this was no problem though because Thomas explained that the customisation process would give them the perfect fit, whilst retaining the control and precision that came with skiing in well-fitting boots.

insoles. As these cooled down they became solid and were then ground down in the workshop to build insoles that will support my feet perfectly.

The S/PRO 90 Ws had Salomon’s custom shell made of thermo-mouldable plastic which can be heated in an oven, along with the liner. Thomas heats them for about 8 minutes and after slipping my feet into the boots, ice packs are wrapped around to speed up the cooling process, whilst I remain in a neutral ski position. As the minutes passed the boots stretched, cooled and got more and more comfortable and I’m instantly impressed with the results. Short of wearing them in by pottering around at home with them the real test will come when they are tested on the piste! By Annabel Young, Sales Manager

I was lucky enough to have my first pair fitted by the lovely Thomas in Ellis Brigham in Westfield Stratford. Over 50 years of fitting ski boots has led Ellis Brigham to be confident in their SUREfit guarantee. The fitting itself is composed of 5 stages - assessment, selection, trying on, stabilising and free customisation under the SUREfit guarantee for any problems the boots may have during their lifetime.

Thomas started by assessing my ski boot requirements. This consisted of I had to spend the next 15 minutes in a neutral position that mimicked a relaxed skiing stance, whilst lightly flexing that the line had some time to heat up and soften. At this point, the boots still felt quite uncomfortable - but this all changed after my custom insoles! These footbeds help to make your feet as stable as possible to help the boots to be as comfortable as possible so that the boot can help you perform the best on the slopes. The process to make these insoles was simple. I stood on a gel pad whilst my feet were pushed down in order to make an impression on heated