20th December 2006

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“I’m definitely going to lose a stone in weight.” “I’m going to go to the gym three times a week.” “I’m going to have a proper six-pack this time next year.” “I’m getting back into the gym from January”… The list of New Year’s fitness resolutions goes on and on. They either last for a few weeks, or don’t even get off the ground (or the sofa) at all! 

Everybody over-indulges at Christmas but the University of Ulster is on hand to offer some helpful advice on watching your waistline over Christmas and New Year. 

Co-director of the UU Sports Academy Marie Murphy says that it is natural to put on some weight at this time of the year, with greater access to food and more social occasions to attend. 

“After Christmas it’s natural for most people to have put on a couple of pounds. The best way to get rid of excess weight is through exercise –severely restricted diets just don’t  work in the long term. If you want to lose the weight, take a sensible approach to eating, rather than going on a diet, and step-up the amount of exercise you do each day,” says Dr Murphy. 

Dr Murphy says that the solution to losing weight is simple – eat a healthy diet and exercise more. 

“To make a pound of fat it takes about 3,000 excess calories and so to burn off a pound of fat it you need to use about 3,000 calories. Essentially for every 3,000 calories you burn and don’t replace by eating extra food, you’ll lose a pound of fat. So it is quite a simple mathematical relationship.” 

The trick though is maintaining your New Year’s resolution and not to get disheartened after a few days. 

“Direction and purpose is key to a sustainable personal fitness programme,” says David Brown, fitness assistant at the UUJ Sports Centre.  

“So many people arrive in January without a clear idea of what they wish to achieve through their fitness activity and eventually lose motivation and drive, because they don’t really know what they are training for.”  

There’s a remedy for this at UU Sports Centres. Fitness assistants at campus fitness suites are available for consultation for new and existing members, and can provide personalised exercise programmes, depending on what the individual wants to achieve from going to the gym, in the long-term.  

“Our personalised exercise programmes give fitness suite users a real sense of direction and purpose to their exercise routine. The results really are evident when we look at the outcome of the personal fitness tests at the end of their programme,” says David.  

The wide range of memberships and packages at UU Sports centres means that there is something for everyone, from experienced and frequent fitness facility users to beginners alike.  

“The facilities are second to none, with modern machines including treadmills, cross trainers, step machines and static bikes, all of which are ideal for weight-loss training. We also have extensive weights facilities for those wishing to increase muscle mass,” says Jonny Bloomfield, Sports Science Officer at SINI at Jordanstown.  

Coupled with the excellent fitness programmes UU has to offer, Dr Marie Murphy also offers some additional advice on keeping fit each day. 

“Exercise or activity ‘adds up’ like loose change. If you were to thow your loose change into a jar every night, then at the end of the month look at how much you have, it’s exactly the same with exercise – doing little bits over the course of the day, making active choices such as taking the stairs, parking further from the office, walking to see a colleague rather than picking up the phone or getting off the bus a stop earlier all adds up and the net effect is a massive amount of calories being used up,” says Marie. 

Make the grade in 2007, visit your UU campus Sports Centre this January and benefit from the expert guidance available, and enjoy achieving real fitness results this year. 

For further information, please contact:

Trina Porter
Telephone: 028 71675511
Email: Trina Porter