Healthy Beast

Martial arts: when can we start training again?

Fight fans can now watch the UFC every weekend, but as martial arts practitioners we are all stuck in limbo. The gyms are still closed and there is no clear information on when they can reopen, and under what conditions they may be able to get back to business.

The owner of Elevate Martial Arts & Strength - an affiliate of Brazilian jiu-jitsu legend Roger Gracie - gives us the lowdown on the Covid body blow that has been dealt to the fitness industry and when we might be able to get back to training in the disciplines we love. 

Lockdown physio advice: ‘Injuries will happen, but most are avoidable’

Whether you are a professional athlete, or haven't done a day of exercise since you left school, at some point everyone gets injured. 

Physiotherapist and mobility specialist Lawrence Fenton is in the socially distanced Healthy Beast studio to talk about reducing the risk of injuries happening in the first place, and how you can recover from the inevitable niggles as we start to get back to something like a normal life after the lockdown. 

Find out more about Lawrence's work here: @rollsandrehab.

MMA fighter and youth worker Nathan 'Mr Bag & Tag' Jones

Welcoming fighter and brand-new father Nathan Jones to our makeshift lockdown studio. 

Probably the hardest-working fighter in London, Nathan talks about the mixture of fear and determination that brought him into the mixed martial arts cage.

Fans who watch him compete in organisations like Cage Warriors and Bellator know him as Mr Bag & Tag. Nathan, who unbelievably made a late start to martial arts, is also a dedicated youth worker and personal trainer with a mission to help others find peace through the delicate art of fighting.

'Young people shouldn't have to pay the price of lockdown'

Psychiatrist Dr Donald Holt talks about the psychological effects of lockdown and the need to make sure the younger generation doesn't suffer unnecessarily. 

Adventurer Jordan Wylie: sometimes all you can do is keep running

Former soldier and security adviser Jordan Wylie has run and rowed across some of the most dangerous parts of the world to raise money for children in areas devastated by war. In his book Running For My Life, he talks about his treks across Afghanistan and Somalia, as well as his own struggles with mental health. 

Whether or not you are in a war zone, sometimes the best plan is just to put your head down and keep going. 

Great talking to Jordan, a very inspirational man. His charity Frontline Children is halfway through building a school on the Horn of Africa, with a few thousand pounds more they can get it finished. 

Jordan is also an ambassador for the Army Cadets and for the luxury watch brand Bremont.

 

 

'Cannabis is a social and economic good' - Dr Henry Fisher

Medicinal cannabis is legal "in name only" in the UK, as doctors continue to prescribe opioids and anti-depressants in industrial quantities. 

Dr Fisher is one of the founders of Hanway Associates, a consultancy that specialises in cannabis research, and is working towards a future where all cannabis prohibition is lifted. 

 

The jiu-jitsu doctor returns

How to deal with injury and train to the best of your ability, with qualified doctor and Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Marc Barton.

Marc is head instructor at Kingston Jiu-Jitsu. 

Find out more about Marvin Reid's yoga for BJJ at chillwinstonuk.com.

From chronic fatigue to great shape for a man of 50

A very warm welcome back to the author and journalist Nick Duerden. He spent years practically housebound with chronic fatigue and wrote a book called Get Well Soon about his attempts to cure the condition with alternative therapy. Well something must have worked, because for a man who has just passed his half century he is looking great. 

Find out more about all of his good work at nickduerden.co.uk. 

Vinny Shoreman cured my sweating problem in half an hour

Welcome to the amazing mind coach, hypnotist and NLP practitioner Vinny Shoreman. Vinny has prepared legendary UFC fighters like Eddie Alvarez and Cody Garbrandt for battle. And now he has given me the gift of not worrying about getting an embarrassingly sweaty head when I'm under pressure. 

Anyone interested in clearing out whatever bullshit might be cluttering up your head, have a listen. You can find out more at vinnyshoreman.com. 

Mindfulness: feel your stress melt away

I was never sure about mindfulness - always suspected it was hippie nonsense. Turns out I was completely wrong. Please have a listen to the brilliant clinical psychologist Dr Cinzia Pezzolesi.

We all feel pressure of work, family, money - perhaps a killer combo of all three. But whether or not this pressure becomes stress that can affect our happiness and long-term health is entirely up to us. I spent less than an hour talking to Dr Pezzolesi and it has already made a massive difference to how I view stress. Can't argue with that.

Find out more about her work at The Mindfulness Project.