Free swimming classes plan for East Lancashire

7:00pm Saturday 3rd May 2014 in News

COUNTY bosses will consider offering free swimming and excercise classes to some residents in East Lancashire, as part of scheme to encourage healthy living.

Lancashire County Council (LCC) has looked at the success of the Re:fresh programme in Blackburn with Darwen, and are planning to introduce similar projects in Hyndburn, Rossendale, Burnley and Pendle.

Re:fresh offers all Blackburn with Darwen residents free access to dozens of swimming sessions and excercise classes at the boroughs leisure centres, with badminton courts also available for free with a Beez Card, which helps the council monitor the scheme.

Azhar Ali, health boss at LCC, said Rossendale and Pendle would each be given about 100,000 to launch pilot schemes, with more funding to be sought for the other boroughs, but the details are yet to be decided.

He added: It wont be as comprehensive as the Blackburn scheme at this stage, as its not going to be offered to everyone. They will look to target the most deprived areas.

A spokesman for LCC said: "The Re:fresh programme has run successfully in Blackburn with Darwen and we're working closely with our district councils to learn from Blackburn with Darwen's experience.

This will enable us to join up and build on all the valuable activity that is already taking place across East Lancashire.

"For example, exercise has many benefits for people's physical and mental health, and we feel that this programme should focus on encouraging people who are currently inactive to start taking more exercise earlier in life so they stay well for longer in the future.

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Free swimming classes plan for East Lancashire

START TODAY: It is never too late to start exercising, experts say [GETTY]

Just getting off the sofa and walking around during the TV commercials can make a huge difference to your health.

You dont have to do anything strenuous and, for the elderly in particular, its never too late to start.

Professor Dorothy Dunlop, of Northwestern University, Chicago, who studied nearly 2,000 patients with arthritis in their knees, said: It is known that the more time people spend in moderate or vigorous activities, the less likely they are to develop disability.

But this is the first study to show that spending more time in light activities can help prevent disability too.

Her research, published in the British Medical Journal, is important because it means people who are too unwell to undertake any intense physical activity can still benefit simply by moving around.

Doing an extra hours gentle walking or light housework a day can cut your risk of becoming disabled by osteoarthritis by nearly a third.

The researchers defined disability as limitations in performing basic daily activities such as walking across a room, dressing, bathing, eating, using the toilet, getting into bed and more complicated tasks such as cooking, shopping, making phone calls, taking medication and managing money.

Professor Dunlop said: We were delighted to see that more time spent during the day simply moving your body, even at a light intensity, may reduce disability.

Now people with health problems or physical limitations who cannot increase the intensity of their activity have a starting place in the effort to stay independent.

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Keeping fit does beat arthritis: Hour's gentle excercise a day is all you need

In this public service ad, the most powerful men in Washington D.C. and Hollywood speak up against sexual assault

WebHits is Rappler's choice video for the day. Tweet us your suggestions for Webhits at @rapplerdotcom using the hashtag #WebHits.

MANILA, Philippines It is the 21st century, and women have come far. From the days when they were forced to keep silent and stay in the kitchen, women can now wear trousers, hold public office, excercise the right to suffrage, and enter the military.

But have they come far enough?

The White House releases a minute-long video, with seven of the most powerful men in Washington D.C. and Hollywood condemning the gruesome fact that women continue to deal with: sexual assault.

Called the 1 is 2 Many campaign, US President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden, along with actors Benicio del Toro, Daniel Craig, Steve Carell, Dul Hill, and Seth Meyers speak up against sexual assault and encourage other men to do the same.

Rappler.com

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Webhits: Obama, Biden, Hollywood stars speak up in anti-rape campaign

May Day in a changing world

By Nikos Konstandaras

Like glaciers melting after ages of stability, the global political system is undergoing great change. Alliances are loosened or reinforced, old enmities are revived and the whole system of global governance is being tested. It is impossible to predict where this will lead.

On Thursday, there was a major May Day rally by workers in Moscows Red Square the first since 1991 and the collapse of the Soviet Union. Many of the banners did not express the demands and wishes of Russian workers, instead they praised President Vladimir Putin for his dynamic intervention in Ukraines domestic affairs and for the annexation of Crimea. On May 9, a major military parade in Red Square will commemorate the day in which the Allies defeated Nazi Germany. The revival of this Soviet tradition was Putins project. More recently, Russia adopted laws which make it easier to annex parts of countries that were in the Soviet Union; they also allow citizens of such territories to gain Russian citizenship. It is clear that Russia is on an irredentist march.

Putin is unfazed by the economic sanctions announced by the United States and the European Union, and it is clear that he will continue to challenge the US. It cannot be a coincidence that on Thursday Chinas Defense Ministry announced a joint naval excercise with Russia in the East China Sea later this month. On his recent visit to the area, US President Barack Obama made clear his countrys support for Japan in its dispute with China over a group of uninhabited islets which Japan controls. Russia, on its part, is involved in a dispute with Japan over a group of islands that the Soviet Union seized at the end of World War II. This is likely to draw the US even further into the area.

On Russias western front, the United States and NATO have said they will support Ukraine if it is attacked, and that the alliances members will stand together if any of them is threatened. On the eastern front, Russia has taken a clear stand in support of China.

This flurry of action on the international chessboard assumes greater importance because the US and the EU appear to be in a weak position: even as they are obliged to use threats to force Russia to back down, it is clear hey are in no mood for war; at the same time, they are losing ground in the most critical area the economy. On Wednesday, the World Bank published a study measuring the real output of countries. On the basis of 2011 figures, it concluded that Chinas economy may overtake that of the US before the end of 2014. Also, India is in third place, leapfrogging over Japan and Germany. Sooner rather than later, the American and European dominance of the global system of governance will become untenable. How this issue changes the system or destroys it will determine the fate of the world and each country.

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May Day in a changing world

Canine Aqua Exercise

The benefits of aqua-exercise are quite amazing. After a dog has had surgery to repair a broken bone or torn ligament he will often be reluctant weeks later to use the affected leg. Over a number of swim sessions the dog will begin to use the affected joint more readily, improve mobility, regain muscle tone and return to pre-operative fitness levels and normal use of the leg.

Canine Acupuncture

Acupuncture has probably been used to treat animals since the origin of this mode of treatment. There are very old engravings of cows and horses on which the acupuncture points of these animals are pinpointed.

Because the build of man and of animal differ, the location of the acupuncture points and the path of the meridians are also different. But the technique and the effect are the same as in man, and so veterinary acupuncture can be a very valuable kind of treatment.

Underwater Treadmill

The Canine Fitness Center features the Ferno AquaPaws underwater treadmill system. This cutting edge equipment utilizes the water to optimize conditioning sessions based on the individual needs of the dog.

Variables can be adjusted to emphasize protected weight bearing and use of a limb, or to focus on strengthening, range of motion, or cardiovascular endurance.

Watch Otto while he learns to use the underwater treadmill!

Canine Massage

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Services Offered - Canine Fitness Center