Top tips and high kicks at town's OT Week 7

 IT was a case of BOT participants putting their best foot forward last Monday night because it was kickboxing champion Ian Kingston’s turn to lead the weekly fitness class.

There are more than 100 people engaged in Bantry’s fantastic Operation Transformation initiative, which includes free exercise classes, nutritional and lifestyle talks, and a series of weekly organised walks and other exercise events.

Ian Kingston was on hand between 5.30pm and 6.45pm at the Westlodge Hotel last Monday to give people a taster kickboxing session and to show them what they could expect to learn if they took up the discipline.

The participants weren’t disappointed because the class proved to be a high energy, heart-pumping, cardio class that included combination boxing drills that really tone the muscles.

BOT team member, Dr Gitte Wieneke, gave a talk aimed at debunking a few food myths, as well as helping people to adhere to their eating and exercise resolutions.

She said one such myth is that you should ‘eat less and move more’ but that doesn’t make sense if you want to lose weight, keep it off, and feel better.

What you need to do – according to the doc – is focus on eating the right kind of food and eating enough to feel satisfied. 

And here is where eating good protein plays a major role.

Consistent good eating is the only way to stop the sugar spikes and crashes – the kind of highs and lows that play havoc with the body.

This week, the BOT participants also took a look at the myths around counting calories, and Dr Wieneke explained in no uncertain terms what a can of coke can do to a body!

As for exercise, her message remains the same: ‘Aim for 30 minutes a day – even if you break it down to two lots of 15 minutes.’ 

Next week, Dr Wieneke will be talking about ‘maintenance.’ If you are curious, go to the Westlodge at 5.30pm on Monday, February 27th and find out more.