features
Lightweights:
Begging for a bow wow workout
A fitness club with a difference in Illinois, US, has two target customers – dogs and humans! The K9 Fit Club in Hinsdale has been opened to help pet owners and their pooches tackle weight problems.
The club, which has the motto ‘don’t sit, get fit’ was set up by veterinary nurse Tricia Montgomery, who lost a staggering nine stone after working out with her Basset hound Louie, who himself lost 22 per cent of his bodyweight. She teamed up with certified fitness trainers and dog trainers, with input from vets, to create exercise classes that involved more than just walking.
The classes, which cost around US$20 per session, include weight training (lifting the dogs) and ‘dogstacle’ courses alongside cardio and core training routines. While humans tend to work out harder, dogs still join in. In the case of Thi Chai Woof Style, the dogs also learn obedience – sitting and standing in time to t’ai chi moves of lowering and raising hands.
Details: www.k9fitclub.com
Women put on make-up for the gym
Seven women in 10 admit to wearing make-up at the gym, according to a survey by supermarket chain Asda.
While some could inadvertently be made up as a result of going for a workout straight from the office, a quarter of women said they preened themselves 15 minutes before taking to the treadmill.
Despite the risk of sweat ruining their look, 34 per cent of women said they wore foundation and 17 per cent even had a spray-on tan.
Other popular choices included wearing lip gloss (21 per cent) and lip balm (19 per cent) or making the eyes stand out with mascara (20 per cent).
Survey shows shocking sock stats
The hygiene of gym footwear has to be questioned following a survey which reveals that most men’s socks are more than three years old.
The survey, by Socked.co.uk, found that 82 per cent of men say they wear socks over three years old and that they will rarely – if ever – go shopping to buy new ones.
Seventy-three per cent of men admitted that people had commented on the distressed state of their socks. Yet despite this, 64 per cent said they only replaced their footwear when they were bought new ones as a gift, while 14 per cent never bothered to replace them at all.
Seventy-five per cent of the respondents also said they were guilty of wearing odd socks in public. Details: www.socked.co.uk
Wives vs sport – what do men pick?
Although women may feel their boyfriends or husbands put their love of sport first, research has found the opposite is true – men actually prefer their partners five times more than their beloved team.
In research by the University of Bristol, Newcastle United fans – reputedly some of the most loyal in the world – were asked to cut up pictures of their football team players as well as their wives or girlfriends. The men’s stress levels were measured and shown to be five times higher when slicing through photos of their partners.
Many fans had opted to stick pins in voodoo dolls of their partners rather than their favourite player – meaning they’d rather their partner be ill for a week than the footballer be injured for the next game – but when it came to the crunch in the photo test, their stress levels betrayed their true feelings.
