proactive may/april 2013
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Your Local Sport, Health and Fitness GuideTRANSCRIPT
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Welcome to our April & May edition of
ProActive. With the cold winter becoming
somewhat of a distant memory and spring
fast approaching, the City of Gloucester is
coming to life once again! In this edition
you will find fantastic offers in and around
the area, and don’t miss our brilliant
article with local Personal Trainer Luke
Kavanagh on page 12. Luke has shared
with us with some valuable advice for
those of you who are dusting off your
trainers ready for Spring!
If you have an interesting article about
your local sport then please get in touch.
We will be including more news about
different areas in our next edition.
So lots to keep you up to date with Spring
just around the corner!
If it happens in Gloucester…..you’ll find it
here!
Happy Reading!
Jessica
The Team
Editor Jessica Martin
Production Manager Mike
Squire
Advertising & Sales Jessica
Martin
Contributors
Luke Kavanagh
Dawn Adams
Advertisements:
If you would like to
advertise in this guide
please contact Jess Martin
on 0800 0234 963 or email
jessmartin@activeconnecti
ons.org
All rights reserved. The contents of
this guide are protected by
copyright and may not be
reproduced without permission.
Whilst we take care to ensure that
adverts and articles appear
accurate and correct, ProActive
cannot accept responsibility for any
loss or damage caused directly or
indirectly by the contents of the
publication. The views expressed in
this guide are not necessarily those
of its publisher or editor.
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Have You Tried Chess Boxing?
The first of its kind, Hybrid Sport! If you are looking for
something new to try, something to test you from every
angle , then look no further…
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Futsal
Futsal is a fantastic small sided version of football.
Find out who's doing what in Gloucester
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Sport Skills Start Young
A look at the new way of thinking in developing
sporting stars of the future. An interesting short article
on the development of senses related to physical
development
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StreetGames is Back
A look at the work StreetGames is doing in Gloucester
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Warm UP for the Spring Exercise Regime!
Check out this essential advice on injury free training
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GL4 Junior Trail Run Series
Find out about this fantastic series of runs for the
family
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H ave
You
Tried Chess
Boxing?
Chess Boxing is a
hybrid sport that
combines chess
with boxing in
alternating rounds.
Chess Boxing is a
fast growing sport,
with large
followings in Berlin
and London.
Participants need to
increase their skills
in both Boxing and
Chess as matches can
be won either way.
The basic concept of
Chess Boxing is to
combine the #1
thinking sport and
the #1 fighting sport
into a hybrid that
demands the most of
its competitors –
both mentally and
physically.
In a Chess Boxing
fight two opponents
play alternating
rounds of chess and
boxing. The contest
starts with a round of
chess, followed by a
boxing round,
followed by another
round of chess and so
on. A round of
boxing takes 3
minutes. Between the
rounds there is a 1
minute pause, during
which competitors
take off or put on
their gloves. The
contest is decided by:
checkmate (chess
round), exceeding
the time limit (chess
round), retirement of
an opponent (chess
or boxing round), KO
(boxing round in full
contact), or referee
decision (boxing
round). If the chess
game ends in a
stalemate, the
opponent with the
higher score in
boxing wins.
Chess Boxing can
also be played in a
non-contact form
and is a great team
building day for
businesses who want
to create a team who
can think, act and
perform under
pressure. And best of
all its great fun! The
non-contact version
differs in that each
competitor takes on
a boxing coach
scoring points for
clean shots to target
areas, whilst taking
on their opponent in
the chess. Oversized
gloves and protective
equipment is worn
by competitors to
protect the coaches
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from the enthusiastic
players! The Chess Boxing
rules are still the same and
the winner is decided by
victory on the chess board
or highest points in the
ring.
Thinking on your feet,,
memorising a strategy,
dealing with fatigue and
adapting to your opponent
is what chess boxing is all
about. It does seem
strange, and yes we had to
be convinced, but once you
see it you will want to take
part, get in the ring and
beat your competitor.
If you are interested in
chess boxing for an event,
team building day or just
for more information then
please get in touch. Call
ActiveConnections on
0800 0234 963
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F UTSAL
Futsal is a variant of football which is played on a smaller pitch and mainly played
indoors. In Brazil, futsal is amazingly played by more people than soccer but does not attract as many spectators.
Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is the goalkeeper. Unlimited substitutions are permitted. The game is played on a hard court surface with a pitch marked out. Futsal is also played with a smaller ball with less bounce than a regular football. The surface, ball and rules create an emphasis on improvisation, creativity and technique as well as ball control and passing in small spaces.
Gloucester has a growing Futsal presence with the programme Onside, a University of Gloucestershire based football initiative, which has continued to adopt small sided formats of football in order to be inclusive and provide more opportunities
for children in and around Cheltenham and Gloucester to get involved in Sport. Onside hope to set up more sessions in local areas so more children can take advantage of this fantastic sport. For any further information on how you can get involved in Futsal with Onside please contact Alex Cheal (Onside Development Officer) on [email protected] for more information.
We also have a team, Gloucester Futsal Revolution, who play in the national league. This team, coached by Jim Hart, play their home matches at GL1 Leisure Centre. Gloucester Futsal Revolution is a community project formed by Gloucester City AFC and has grown since its roots in 2009. Jim Hart delivers a whole range of Futsal activities for all ages from very young children up to adults. For more information please go to www.gloucesterfootballrevolution.com.
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S ports Skills Start
Young
By Mike Squire MA, BSc(Hons)
Developing sports skills starts
very early on in childhood. From
early childhood environmental
factors play a crucial part in a
child’s physical fundamental skills
which underpin their sports skills.
As children grow we spend a lot of
time looking at how we nurture
their senses, how they see the
world, how they interpret what
they hear, and the types of food
they may like.
What we need to be focusing on as
well, as children grow, is developing
their physical senses alongside the 5
senses (sight, sound, smell, taste and
touch) as they are commonly known.
These other senses which are so
crucial to a child's physical
development are known as
proprioception and vestibular senses.
Not to get into too much science but
the vestibular system in our body is
essentially concerned with our sense
of balance and spatial orientation. It
helps us to know where we are in
space, how fast and in which
direction we are moving.
Proprioception is the sense that
indicates whether the body is moving
with the required effort, as well as
where the various parts of the body
are located in relation to each other,
i.e. knowing the position a body part
is in, in relation to other parts .
So how can we help support the
development of these senses ? Well
as many parents know, children love
the park and this is where these
senses get a lot of stimulation.
The swings, roundabouts, slides and
climbing frames all help with the
development of the vestibular sense
through the different movements of
the body and helps the
proprioception development by
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offering different textures, a sense of
weight, pressure and force on the
body.
Schools play their part by ensuring
that the children in their care receive
high quality physical development
opportunities and not just traditional
sports coaching. Sport in its
traditional sense is important but the
development of these underlying
senses is crucial for sport and
everyday life. So instead of teaching
young children how to play specific
sports in specific ways, we should be
giving them the tools to play what
they like and how they like.
This will help children develop life
long integrated sports skills and also
a love of movement and physical
activity.
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S treetGames is
Back in
Gloucester
StreetGames is back in Gloucester
after a brief absence. StreetGames is a
sports charity that changes lives and
communities. ActiveConnections
delivers StreetGames in Gloucester
and other areas of the county as part
of their Game Plan project.
StreetGames supports projects
like Game Plan which give sports
and
volunteering opportunities to young
people in communities across the
UK. Doorstep sport is StreetGames’
delivery method, whereby we bring
sport close to the home in
communities at the right time, for
the right price, to the right place and
in the right style.
StreetGames is proud that it gives
young people exactly what they’re
seeking – the chance to enjoy sport,
give back to their communities and
aspire to greater things. The
enthusiasm that this breeds leads to
an increase in sports participation
and recognition of the enjoyment
that can be gained from taking part
in sport. Game Plan can be found in
different locations across the city.
There are Game Plan sessions in
Tredworth, White City, Matson,
Coney Hill and more coming soon to
Podsmead and Kingsway. These
sessions offer young people from the
age of 8 upwards access to sport on
their doorstep. It also offers the older
ones (16+) with access to training and
volunteering to help support sessions
and develop themselves.
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Case Study (Boxing at Parry Hall)
“We have a new session of Game plan
boxing running out of Parry Hall in
Tredworth. Already we have 30 young
people between the ages of 9-14yrs
old signed up. The turnout has been
fantastic and we are getting new ones
every week. It has been funded
jointly by StreetGames and Network
Rail. We would also like to thank
Sported. for funding the fantastic
boxing ring. We are working on
developing links to mainstream clubs
to signpost those young people who
want to take the next step, to be able
to go on and develop further”
Emma (Sport and Community
Project Worker, ActiveConnections).
If you would like more information
on StreetGames, perhaps you would
like to volunteer and become a
qualified sports coach then please
contact us on 0800 0234 963 or email
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W arm Up for the
Summer
By Luke Kavannagh, Fitta4Life, BSc (Hons)
Yes the
summer
months are
on the way
and as ever
we hope that
it brings
something other than the annual flood
warning followed by an immediate
hose pipe ban!
I’m not here to promise you endless
sunshine and a long lasting tan however I
am here to warn you regarding Injury. The
summer weather is normally a great
excuse to participate in exercise again as
we get our lighter evenings back and
it is more appealing to don on your
trainers and go for a run.
BE WARNED!
Just because it may be warm outside
this doesn’t guarantee it will be warm
inside (meaning your muscles!)
The major thing I see commonly in
Gyms, on Parks, fields or courts are
poor warm ups which only just about
tick a box for raising core body
temperature.
Next time you are gearing up for a
Gym session, Run, Match or Event,
think of “RAMP”.
RAMP
R - Raise:
This is a well-known aim that is associated
to a reason for why we may warm up. This
activity should be of a low intensity and be
similar to the exercise that you are about to
do e.g. if your plan to run then your warm
up should include running. You should aim
to raise the following:
Heart Rate
Core Body Temperature
Breathing Rate
A - Activate:
Now your focus should be to begin to
“wake up” the key muscle groups to
which you will be using in the activity.
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This activity should be a dynamic
exercise. Good examples of exercises to
use are:
Lunges or Squats:
Good for waking up the leg and bum
muscles.
Mini Press Ups:
Great for waking up the upper body
muscles (Chest, Shoulders, Arms and
Back)
Again it is important to note that this
should be specific to the exercise/activity
that you are about to perform.
M - Mobilise:
Now that you have woken up your muscles
this may be a good time to loosen them.
This will improve your flexibility long term
but will also help prevent any injury
through tight or stiff muscles.
This is normally a common cause of injury
that is associated to a poor or ineffective
warm up.
As always try to associate this to the
muscles that you are using in your exercise/
activity.
Major muscles to mobilise are: Legs, Back
and Shoulders.
P - Potentiate:
Here is the science part….(stay with me)
The final part of the warm up should be as
close to the intensity and technique of the
exercise/activity that is about to take place.
This can be sprints to near max levels or
jumps which encourage our muscles to act
in an explosive nature; this will help to
prepare them ready for top performance of
the activity.
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Take part in the
GL4 Junior Trail
Series of exciting
runs will vary in
distance. Runs will
be between 2km
and 3km and will
also vary in terrain,
some will be hilly,
some flat and some
muddy. These runs
are fun and
enjoyable and can
be completed by
children and young
people of all
abilities. The
emphasise is really
on fun and building
a sense of
achievement and
confidence.
Opportunities for
children to do
running events is
very limited - it
tends to be cross
country and
competitive - we
would like to give
more children the
opportunity to
experience and
enjoy running.
You can enter this
series of runs for
£23 for entry to all 4
runs or £7 each .
We hope that
families will come
out and join in the
runs that are aimed
at school years 3-7 .
Check out the
locations and
contact details for
the runs below.
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