Tag: health

Darlington Table Tennis Academy: Reigniting The Sport

By on 30th October 2015in Have Your Say, Lifestyle, Local Biz, What's New?

Giulio Pontone, secretary of Darlington Table Tennis Academy, talks about the group’s history…

Darlington Table Tennis Academy was formed in 2013 to try and revitalise the sport in our area, and to stop the demise of the Table Tennis League.

Over the past thirty years, the Darlington Table Tennis League has seen a reduction from six divisions and seventy-two teams, to two divisions and twelve teams, which prompted a group of league players to get together and form the Academy, hoping to reverse this trend.

With the support and funding of the Darlington Sports Development Team, Sport England and Durham County Community Foundation, we were able to purchase equipment, cover our initial venue hire and coaching course fees, and eventually established the Academy at the Education Village in Darlington.

Within a very short time, interest and membership grew beyond all expectation, and in need of the flexibility to run more sessions, we moved to Longfield Sports Hall, and finally to our current venue at the Kings Centre Darlington.

When establishing the Academy, we agreed three main objectives:

  • To increase table tennis in Darlington and the surrounding areas.
  • To increase the number teams in the Darlington T/T league.
  • To ensure interest in table tennis is sustainable, and to promote and increase participation within schools.

These objectives are ongoing, and we have made significant progress in all these areas.

The Academy now has over a hundred members of all ages, and offer sessions on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursday evenings, and Friday mornings.

Along with these sessions, we’ve also set up satellite clubs at two secondary schools, offering further sessions on Wednesday and Friday evenings.

This year, we’ve entered eight teams into the Darlington League, representing the Kings Centre, which is a 50% increase over 2013.

We’re currently working with four secondary schools in Darlington, running weekly after-school clubs with average attendance of over a hundred students per week.

We firmly believe that inspiring youngsters within schools is key to sustaining interest in Darlo’s table tennis, and over the past two years – through taster sessions and demonstrations – we’ve involved over 1,500 children in the sport.

As the Academy has developed, so has the ability of our youngsters, who are now playing in the local league, entering local, regional and national events, and establishing themselves within the junior England rankings.

Because of costs and availability of volunteers and coaches, we were unable to offer more sessions at the Kings Centre to cope with the increase in membership, but with the support and funding of Tees Valley Sport, we were able to extend the influence of the Academy by setting up satellite clubs in Polam and Longfield secondary schools, offering more sessions to youngsters and the community.

 

Our partnership with the schools has resulted in the Academy receiving the award for the North East Regional Satellite Club of the Year 2015, recognising the hard work of our dedicated coaches and volunteers.

Our challenge for the future is to continue maintaining that impetus and achieve our core objectives. However, every successful sport organisation needs dedicated volunteers to make it happen, and we encourage you all to get in touch.

Interested in taking part or volunteering?

You can contact Giulio at giulio.pontone@yahoo.co.uk, visit the DTTA website, or call 01325 300942.

MEGA Motion Campaign Receives Royal Blessing

By on 23rd October 2015in Local Biz, What's New?

This year’s MEGA Motion campaign received royal blessing when it was kicked off by a Prince Bishop…

Pupils from schools across South Durham taking part in the competition came together at Auckland Castle to mark the start of this year’s scheme. As well as hearing all about the benefits of healthy and environmentally-friendly ways of getting to school, the children also enjoyed a tour of the castle and enjoyed trying lawn games and archery.

Throughout the academic year, ten competition winning pupils will get to lead their classmates to school in a fancy dress theme of their choice. The Durham County Council backed MEGA Motion scheme aims to encourage children to walk, scoot or ride to school, hoping to make them aware of the benefits from an early age.

As well as fun walks, pupils earn points every time they use sustainable travel to get to school, with those collecting the most points throughout the year being crowned MEGA heroes.

Cllr Neil Foster, Cabinet member for economic regeneration, said, “We’re delighted that MEGA Motion is underway again, and would like to wish the children good luck in this year’s competition. MEGA Motion is a brilliant scheme that encourages our children – in a fun way – to be healthier and more environmentally-friendly every day. As well as being great fun for the kids, it also cuts down traffic, meaning whole communities benefit from a greener, healthier environment.”

 

MEGA Motion comes under the wider Local Motion campaign promoting sustainable transport throughout South Durham.

5 Essential Tips For Healthy Eating

By on 12th October 2015in Food & Drink, Lifestyle, What's New?

When it comes to health and beauty, the old cliché is true: you are what you eat.

Developing a lifestyle and diet that encourages fitness is crucial to long term health and wellness, but breaking old habits can be challenging. To make a lasting change to your lifestyle, try following these five simple tips.

 

1. Eat More Vegetables

Let’s start off with a really obvious one, but for a less obvious reason.

Vegetables are always recommended because they’re healthy, but they’re also really great at keeping you full. If you’re feeling satiated, you won’t be reaching for snacks. You might want to add a few oils and sauces for flavour, but remember that the best diet is one filled with steamed and fresh veg… without artificial flavouring.

2. Don’t Overdo It On The Fruit

Nobody’s going to argue that fruit is another great addition to a healthy diet, but it’s easy to have too much. Fruit provide a good amount of natural sugar and fibre, but too much can push your carbohydrate intake through the roof.

Instead, stick to your five a day, and pair it with a few almonds, unsalted nuts, or viable source of lean protein.

3. Throw Protein Into The Mix

If your diet is leaving you feeling hungry, and you’re becoming prone to trips to the fridge, there’s a good chance that your diet is protein deficient.

Protein promotes increased satiety, and a serving of lean protein on the side of your meal can have you feeling full for much longer.

4. Avoid Protein Bars

This might seem to contradict the previous point, but beware of the protein bar that promises increased nutrition. A quick look at the ingredients will show you that most protein bars are packed full of preservatives, saturated fats, and simple carbohydrates (rather than the complex carbohydrates your body really needs).

A few bars here and there won’t hurt, but don’t make them a cornerstone of your diet.

5. Drink More Water

This final tip is another obvious one, yet goes completely ignored by so many people. Water is an essential fuel for the body, and is an essential part of any diet.

A glass of water before each meal can aid the digestive process and keep you from overeating. And besides, it helps to keep the skin young and hydrated, and who doesn’t want that?

Alzheimer’s Society: My Fight Against Dementia

By on 11th October 2015in Have Your Say, Local Biz, What's New?, What's On?

Rebecca Scott, Community Fundraiser for Alzheimer’s Society, explains why the charity’s work is so crucial to the North East…

Alzheimer’s Society is the UK’s leading dementia support and research charity, here for anyone affected by any form of dementia in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. We provide information and practical and emotional support to help people live well with dementia, and we invest in world-class research with the ultimate goal of defeating it.

We also campaign to improve public understanding of dementia and the devastating impact it can have, and make sure it’s taken seriously and acted on by our governments. At Alzheimer’s Society, we believe passionately that life doesn’t end when dementia begins. We are here for anyone affected by dementia, and we do everything we can to keep people with dementia connected to their lives and the people who matter most.

There are currently over 850,000 people living with dementia in the UK, with numbers set to rise to over 1 million by 2021. In the North East alone, there are over 35,000 people living with dementia, and shockingly, more than 1,125 of these people live in the North Durham constituency alone.

My role as a Community Fundraiser is vitally important, to raise funds in the North East region to help contribute to supporting as many families living with dementia as possible, as well as continue to fund vital research and campaigns across the country, and ultimately allow Alzheimer’s Society to continue to lead the fight against dementia.

I first became involved with Alzheimer’s Society after I lost my grandmother to Alzheimer’s disease in June 2011. Seeing first-hand what devastating effects the disease had on Nana and our family really spurred me on to give some time volunteering in our local fundraising group in early 2013. From this my interest in fundraising began to grow.

 

The difference we were able to make as a team was great, and I got a real boost from hearing what our total amounted to after every event! Our first big success was raising more than £5,000 at the Chester-Le-Street Memory Walk in 2013, an event that now, in its fifth year, we hope will raise more than £25,000.

I was successfully recruited into the Community Fundraiser role in September 2013, and it’s been so rewarding to watch our efforts go from strength to strength, and see the profile of dementia rise in the North East.

Our Christmas Fair, taking place on Saturday 14th November, has been held at the local Chester-Le-Street office for the last few years, and this festive season we wanted to take it to a bigger level. With the support of the brilliant volunteers across County Durham, we will be taking over the Upper Room of Cornerstones Centre for the Community in Chester-Le-Street from 10am-2pm, with all kinds of stalls and gift ideas to get people in the Christmas spirit.

On the day, attendees can expect to enjoy our special festive raffle, with prizes from Frazer Hart, Maften Hall and Newcastle Gateshead Marriott, in addition to tombolas, Christmas gifts and decorations, and cakes made especially by our volunteers. Plus, we have special guests hosting their own stalls, including Must Have Charms, Sand Art, Gill’s Floristry, The Hat Hut, Little T’s, Usborne Books, Handcrafted Wood, and even Santa will be popping in to say hello!

 

Events like this are so important to Alzheimer’s Society and to the local community. If we can raise £1,000 from the fair, we could help pay for an experienced Dementia Support Worker to spend an hour a week for an entire year with someone affected by dementia, helping them to build their own support network, and feel less isolated.

Services like this are absolutely vital to families, and we want to continue to be there for as many people affected by dementia as possible, as well as to help raise money to reach the ultimate goal: finding a cure.

For more information about Alzheimer’s Society, visit www.alzheimers.org.uk. To find out more about the Christmas Fair, visit the Facebook page.

For fundraising queries, you can contact Rebecca at rebecca.scott@alzheimers.org.uk.

Durham Pilates Instructor’s Inspiring Road To Recovery

By on 5th October 2015in Lifestyle, Local Biz, What's New?

Denise Ord is channelling her vibrant and positive mission into ‘CanDoPilates’, her
new business venture in Carrville, Durham.

A year ago, Denise was diagnosed with a brain tumour. Following a brief period of illness, she underwent surgery to have it removed, and believes that her swift post-operative recovery and rehabilitation is largely down to the practice of Pilates.

A qualified instructor since 2012, she firmly believes that Pilates can be practiced by anyone, regardless of age, gender or physical ability. Denise wants her journey to inspire those who believe that they are incapable of physical achievement due to health issues or injury.

“It strengthens core muscles and helps to protect the spine,” she says. “Anyone with health issues can do these exercises. If I can do it, anyone can.”

“As I lay in hospital recovering from the operation, I was determined to do everything I could to get back to full health. I couldn’t do anything for the first few months, but as soon as I was told by doctors that I could exercise, I drew up a plan to get fit through Pilates and Yoga. I’ve practised Pilates for over ten years, and knew it would be key to my recovery”.

Pilates can help to improve posture, muscle tone, balance and joint mobility. It increases flexibility, and relieves stress and tension. Many GPs, physiotherapists, chiropractors and osteopaths recommend Pilates to patients requiring support in their rehabilitation, or to improve posture and body alignment.

Denise says that the beauty of Pilates is that it can be individually tailored to wherever you are in your health and exercise journey. It is relevant to all ages, and is becoming more and more popular with both men and women.

 

Her CanDoPilates studio offers a range of Pilates, Yoga, stretch, tone, and relaxation classes to suit each client’s individual preference.

Group classes are run for those wanting to work out with others and benefit from the social aspect of working together. To make sure each client receives individual attention, the group sizes are kept to a maximum of eight. Clients wanting an exercise plan tailored to suit their own needs and fitness level can benefit from private one-to-one sessions.

The studio can be found on Front Street, Carrville, Durham, and Denise also runs classes from Framwellgate Moor (FWG) Community Centre on Friday mornings. She says, “When you join us, you will receive an individual assessment which provides a pilates health plan for you to follow, either in a class, one-to-one session at the studio, or at your home”.

To contact CanDoPilates, you can call 07939 538044, email denise.candopilates@gmail.com, or visit www.candopilates.com.

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