Category: Top Tips

The Ultimate Gift List for Fitness Fanatics

Posted on by madeleine.cross

December is upon us and so is the festive season. If you are yet to complete your Christmas shopping or if you just want to bank some future present ideas, here is the ultimate guide to sporty gift-giving.

For the tech-obsessed 

If you are looking for an extra-special Christmas present this year, there’s more exciting fitness-tech on the market then ever before! A fitness tracker can be a great all-rounder and there is one suitable for most budgets. Even the low-cost options can sync with your phone to track specific goals, monitor heart rate, activity levels and even sleep.

We like: Fitbit Charge 4 fitness tracker

A stock image of a man with an electronic tablet on his lap

(more…)

5 Tips for Motivation During Winter

Posted on by madeleine.cross

It may be getting colder and darker, but moving for your physical and mental wellbeing is just as important as other times of the year – if not even more important! Today we are sharing some of our top tips for staying motivated, safe and well during the winter months.

We will also be giving you a sneak preview of some of the things we’ll be doing to stay active over at University of Bristol Sport.

 1) Exercise with friends

Getting out and moving may seem less appealing at the moment, but meeting a friend will make sure you stick to your plans and boost motivation for your workout too. It’s a great excuse to temporarily escape those Christmas family commitments and boost endorphins in the process.

Making plans with others can also make you more adventurous and can give you the confidence to try new things and push yourself further.

Winter bucket-list: Why not suggest a wintery walk or festive fitness class to try with a friend.

(more…)

What is B:Active and why should you get involved?

Posted on by madeleine.cross

Welcome to B:Active, an inclusive activity programme designed for student life – from social sports to fitness classes, the aim is to make it as easy, fun and affordable as possible to get moving and look after your mental and physical wellbeing. But why is B:Active so great?

Location, location, location!

(more…)

8 Reasons to join a class

Posted on by madeleine.cross

Did you know that there are over 80 classes a week at the Indoor Sports Centre? With classes from Body Combat to Yoga fit to Spin, there is something to suit everybody and any level. Today we will be taking a look at  reasons why joining a fitness class can be a fantastic addition to your active life. Most of our fitness classes operate from the Indoor Sports Centre on Tyndall Avenue and are included in the Active Memberships. Our B:Active programme also runs its own series of low-cost and free classes on Campus and in the Residences, you can check out both timetables on our website.

1. It’s a great way to make connections

(more…)

10 things you can do with University of Bristol Sport that aren’t sport

Posted on by madeleine.cross

Despite our name, we are not here to just support students and staff in pursuing competitive sport. In fact, we offer a huge range of activities, events, classes and opportunities for all of our community. Keeping active plays a key part in helping you maintain a healthy, happy life at university and there are more ways than you might think to get involved! In this blog post we’ll be sharing some of these.

(more…)

What to Eat Before and During a Run

Posted on by Molly Williams

Written by Dr Fiona Lithander, Performance Nutritionist and Dietitian

Dr. Fiona Lithander
Dr. Fiona Lithander


In this blog post, our in-house Dietician and Nutrition expert, Dr Fiona Lithander, gives us the information and advice that we need to stay well-fuelled before and during a long run. Whether you’re taking part in the University of Bristol Run Series Half Marathon or you like to de-stress with a long run in the evenings and on weekend, this post is for you!

 

 

Before a run

The key thing is to start your run well fuelled and well hydrated.  A pre-race meal is recommended about 3-4 hours before the start of the race. This may differ slightly between people which is why it is important to practice, to see what works best for you.

(more…)

Starting a new Sports Club

Posted on by Molly Williams

The University of Bristol Student Roundnet Club was new on the scene in 2019. In this post Committee member, Antoine, writes about the experience of setting up a brand new Bristol SU Sports Club, and shares top tips for any students interested in doing the same thing next year with another new sport!

What is Roundnet?

Roundnet is a relatively new sport which is very popular in the US and is taking the rest of the world by storm. The sport is amazing because it can be played almost anywhere and really caters to all abilities; from your casual BBQ with friends to competing in a World Championship final. The European and UK Roundnet scenes are thriving with new and exciting clubs and tournaments, so it was definitely a great time to get into the sport. Roundnet is also well known for its incredibly friendly and inclusive community, which is at the core of our Club’s ethos.

Roundnet is a sport played by four players in teams of two around a circular net. Once the ball is served onto the net, the other pair have up to three touches to hit it back onto the net. Once the ball contacts the net, possession changes to the other team. There are no boundaries, it is a 360º game! A team wins a point once the other team is unable to return the ball legally onto the net.

Roundnet Rules graphic

(more…)

Faces of the Run Series: Roy Kiruri

Posted on by Molly Williams

The University of Bristol Run Series is a community and wellbeing focused virtual event. Through this event we are encouraging staff, students, alumni and people of Bristol to re-connect with one another over a common goal – be that 5k, 10k a Half Marathon (or all three!) – with the aim of bettering our physical and mental health during a time of anxiety, uncertainty and isolation.

Our ‘Faces of the Run Series’ blog posts will shine a light on individuals who have signed up to one, or more, of our virtual events and ask them to share what brought them to our virtual community this year! Through this blog series, we hope to introduce you to your fellow runners by putting a face to the Facebook profile, email address or Strava user we’ve only had the opportunity to ‘meet’ in 2D so far!

Bio

Name: Roy Kiruri
Staff or Student: Bristol SU Sabbatical Officer, International Students
Run Series Event: Whole Series!

 

 

(more…)

A marathon, not a sprint – encouraging your kids to get active

Posted on by BristolUniSport

Picture of John Wilford, Sport and Health managerJohn Wilford is our Sport and Health Manager. He is also a Dad of three who has been navigating working from home and homeschooling over the past year, and he has some wisdom to share.

 

“A marathon, not a sprint.” This sporting metaphor has been a common refrain over the last year. The last couple of months have become more like a car trip though – “are we there yet?”, “you’re squashing me”, “I feel sick” “I’m hungry”…

The February school break came as a welcome pause even though the break from school was being spent at “school”. Getting teenagers out of bed became even more futile and there were still cries of “the wifi is playing up”, but it was time spent playing games of Among Us and, Youtube content disrupted, instead of Maths lessons or Mrs Wordsmith.

One aspect persisted – physical activity levels stayed low. Previous lockdowns saw a national dip in levels for children with more 5 to 18-year-olds not reaching the recommendations of 60 minutes of physical activity per day than ever.

(more…)

Faces of the Run Series: Rushab Shah

Posted on by BristolUniSport

Our second Face of the Run Series is this year’s elected Sports and Student Development Officer, Rushab Shah. Rushab has been at home in Nairobi, Kenya since Christmas, which is where he will be running the Run Series virtual 5k on the weekend of 20-21 March.

A selfie of Rushab Shah and his Sister, Sachee, smiling
Rushab and his sister, Sachee, out on a run

Bio

Name: Rushab Shah
Staff or Student: Student Sabbatical Officer
Role: Bristol SU
Run Series Event: Whole Series!

(more…)