Why not give a Fit n Well Gift Voucher this Christmas.
It’s always difficult to know what to buy your family
and friends for a treat or present isn’t it?
We all love to be pampered so why not treat someone special this Christmas and give them a Fit n Well Gift Voucher. We have a fantastic range of Holistic Therapies and CACI Facials for him or her to choose from for that ideal gift.
Private affordable blood tests to check and monitor your health.
State-of-the-art laboratory blood testing available to everyone.
Get your blood tests without a referral from your doctor or consultant.
Medichecks offer a range of affordable, accurate and completely confidential private blood tests and health checks that give you the information you need to take charge of your health. Working with the expertise of the UK’s top pathology laboratories with the latest consumer technology to make 21st Century blood testing a simple, easy-to-use process available for everybody.
Just some of the blood tests available:
Health Screening
Well Man and Well Woman
Hormones
Diabetes
Immunity
Thyroid
Nutrition Check
Cholesterol
Sports Performance
Vitamins and Minerals
HIV, STD’s
Bladder and Bowel
Reasons for blood tests
Blood tests give a snapshot of your health. You may have a blood test as part of a regular check-up, to help investigate symptoms and diagnose a condition or to keep track of your risk of long-term chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes.
You don’t have to be ill to benefit from a blood test. You may have a blood test to check your hormone levels, your vitamin and mineral levels such as vitamin D, B12 and iron, your cholesterol status, organ function or to see how much sugar is in your blood. Whether you are changing your diet, wanting to see how your lifestyle choices are affecting your health, training for a sports event or looking to monitor your hormones there is a blood test for you.
Simple, Easy and discreet
Private blood tests in four easy steps …
Order your test from Medichecks on line and receive your test in the post.
Collect your sample – You can choose to go to one of Medicheck’s partner clinics or if you’d prefer a nurse can to come to you. Some blood tests only require a finger-prick sample which can be done at home.
Post sample to the laboratory – All the test kits come with a special pre-paid first class envelope.
Get your results. Your results and doctor’s comments are sent directly to you with the highest confidentiality.
Holistic Therapy at Fit n Well, Stone, Staffordshire
Take some ‘time out’ to make some ‘me time’ this festive season
How often do you make time for yourself?
Busy and demanding lifestyles can take a toll on our general health and wellbeing. The added hustle and bustle during the festive season can leave us feeling drained and tired, not how we want to feel for those Christmas celebrations with friends and family.
Apart from the psychological, relaxing and energising benefits, holistic therapies have many physiological benefits to help look after your health and well being.
Fit n Well offer a fabulous range of Holistic Therapies to keep you relaxed and chilled ready for Christmas.
Gift vouchers are available so why not treat someone special this Christmas!
To book an appointment or if you require any further information please call Maria on 07951 239065 or contact Fit n Well using this link.
You spend days, weeks, months and even years training hard preparing for your sporting event and you have the attitude, dedication and determination it takes to achieve your goals.
You maybe trying to improve on last year’s time, be playing to win or just wanting to achieve your own personal goal.
Are you doing everything possible to achieve your optimal performance?
Pre-event and post-event sports massage will help you to perform at your optimal level!
The popularity and importance of pre and post-event massage is continuously increasing as more athletes are becoming aware of the physiological and psychological benefits. Sports massage is an effective addition to any training schedule regardless of whether you are a runner, triathlete, or any other sporting person.
Firstly what is Sports Massage?
Sports massage is the physical treatment of soft tissue combining a traditional manual therapy with a specialised scientific approach. Specialised techniques are practised to achieve optimal physical, physiological and psychological benefits.
Sports massage will enhance your physical performance irrespective of what sport you participate in. Sports massage can play a key role in the training for a sporting person and also benefit anyone who is physically active with a desire to enhance their health and wellbeing. It is a key component for the optimal maintenance of musculoskeletal health care and for the prevention and treatment of injury. It maintains good body health and is used for the treatment, recovery and prevention of sporting and non-sporting injuries.
Sporting activities can place unnatural stresses on our body but sports massage can quickly resolve problem areas that limit our range of movement and cause us pain. Sports massage is designed to be flexible and is tailored to the individual needs. It can be deep, stimulating and invigorating or soothing and relaxing. Specialised techniques concentrate on both the superficial and deep layers of muscles, tendons and other soft tissue. It is designed to release muscle tension and restore balance to the musculoskeletal system.
During a sports massage the therapist will aim to gradually break down knots and adhered tissues releasing tension from muscles, tendons and ligaments to reduce pain and improve range of movement. Techniques such as stretching, myofascial tissue release, trigger point therapy and mobilisations are often incorporated into sports massage therapy as part of a treatment plan to obtain maximum results.
An experienced therapist who has a good understanding of anatomy and physiology can easily identify problems within soft tissues such as muscle and tendon tension, trigger points and scar tissue/adhesions. Sports massage can be a little uncomfortable at times, however this is far outweighed by the many benefits.
A sports massage can help the performer prepare for their specific competition or event by focusing on specific muscles and joints for optimal performance.
Pre-Event Sports Massage
Pre-event sports massage can be considered from two days to just two minutes before an event.
A professional sports massage therapist knows what muscle groups to concentrate on depending on the nature of the sporting event.
Ideally you should see how you respond to pre-event massage prior to an event that has no major importance to you. This will give the therapist a chance to develop the most suitable treatment and ensure you get the maximum recuperative benefit from the tapering-down process that should precede an event.
Deep massage in problem areas can take a day or two to recover so this is normally avoided from up to two days before an event; however situations do and can arise when this rule is broken.
Effects of Pre-Event Massage
Circulation and flexibility within the muscles is improved.
Warms and stretches the tissues reducing chance of injury.
Increases range of movement.
Aids psychological preparation by reducing pre-event anxiety and stress.
Massage just before an event is normally practised at a fast brisk pace to warm the muscle groups that will be used most. Deep massage is usually avoided. Sports massage can be either administered over clothing or directly upon the skin. The use of oil is often avoided as it could actually hamper performance.
Pre-event massage should ideally precede your normal warm-up stretching and exercises and never used as a substitute to replace them.
Post-Event Sports Massage
A post-event massage can be done immediately after activity and is most effective if done within 24 hours post event.
Fast recovery is the primary purpose of post-event massage. After pushing yourself to the limits a sports massage will soothe and ease fatigued muscles and prevent DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). It will assist a pain free recovery and return you to training with minimal soreness, inflammation and stiffness.
Post-event massage can identify injuries that may have occurred during the event, so therefore can be treated promptly.
Effects of Post-Event Massage
Blood circulation and lymphatic drainage is maximised to increase the removal of lactic acid and waste products.
Encourages the release of endorphins.
Lengthens muscle fibres.
Soothes tight muscles.
Mentally relaxes
Calms the nervous system
Body Maintenance
Regular sports massage helps to keep the body healthy and can prevent musculoskeletal injuries and problems by detecting muscle fatigue, postural imbalances, inflexibility and strains and sprains.
To book an appointment for pre-event or post-event sports massage please phone Maria on 07951 239065 or email Fit n Well using this link Contact Fit n Well, Stone, Staffordshire
For exclusive club/event bookings please do not hesitate to contact Fit n Well for further information.
Many of us will put up with pain, try hard to ignore it and even ‘tough it out’ only to end up wishing and regretting that we hadn’t acted sooner.
Appropriate treatment now will enhance your chances of a fast and full recovery and reduce the likelihood of injury recurrence.
We are all at risk of sustaining an injury just through normal daily activities such as work and leisure, but for those who participate in sport and train hard, the risk of injury increases. Musculoskeletal injuries such as overuse injuries, strains and sprains are very common, so when should we stop ignoring the signs and symptoms of injury?
Don’t ignore your injury if:
Pain alters your ability to function.
Inflammation of the affected area hasn’t reduced after 2-3 days.
If the pain is worsening.
You experience numbness/loss of sensation (does not have to be in the affected area).
The affected area becomes red and feels hot.
There are open wounds or grazes.
An old injury begins to hurt or ache.
You are unable to bear weight on the affected area.
Any physiological body function is affected.
Feel sick, dizzy and/or faint
Pain doesn’t always mean that you have an actual injury, sometimes it’s simply from over exertion or using muscles that you don’t usually use. Common sense and professional advice will help!
Ignoring your injury could result in you having to take more time off work, missing out on leisurely events or not participating in an event or competition that you had planned for months. After all the effort, dedication and hard training the outcome could end in sheer frustration and disappointment.
Of course, sometimes you can get away with overstepping the line, but every time you do, you risk prolonging or worsening your injury.
Reasons for getting your injury assessed and treated:
Sometimes pain is not directly related to the effected area, it may be caused by something else (referred pain).
Inflammation can cause tissue damage resulting in long term injury or a chronic condition.
Untreated injuries can cause a build-up of scar tissue which can adhere to bone or neighbouring tissue.
To avoid further reduction of range of movement.
To avoid developing compensatory movement patterns that can create further problems.
Faster recovery.
Prevention of further injury.
Appropriate and effective rehabilitation.
Please note that if you have received a head injury, impact injury, fracture, dislocation or any severe injury then you should seek medical advice from your GP or nearest hospital immediately.
Fit n Well specialise in the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal injuries and conditions that have been sustained through sport, work or leisure.
If you would like to make an appointment please contact Fit n Well on 07951 239065 or email us using the link Contact Fit n Well
Sciatica is caused by the irritation and/or compression of the sciatic nerve.
Sciatica describes the symptoms of pain, numbness and weakness that radiate along the sciatic nerve. The sciatic nerve runs from the back of your pelvis, through your buttocks, down the back of both legs, ending at your feet.
Signs and symptoms of Sciatica:
Sciatic pain can vary from mild and irritating to constant and incapacitating. It can be made worse by sitting or standing for long periods, sneezing and coughing. Symptoms can be different in location and severity as this depends upon the condition causing the sciatica. While people with sciatica can suffer back pain, the pain associated with sciatica usually affects the buttocks and legs much more. Depending on the cause, symptoms can travel as far down as the feet and toes.
Sciatica is often characterised by either one or from a combination of the following symptoms:
Muscle weakness in the affected leg
Tingling sensation from the back through the buttock traveling down the leg.
Constant or intermittent pain in only one side of the buttock or leg (rarely can occur in both legs)
Pain that is worse when sitting
Leg pain that is often described as burning, tingling or searing
Weakness, numbness and/or difficulty moving the leg or foot
A sharp pain that may make it difficult to stand up or to walk
Causes of Sciatica are:
Sciatica is often caused by lower back disorders between the forth lumbar and third sacral vertebrae, where there is pressure or irritation to a lumbar nerve root.
Sciatica is sometimes caused by a herniated or “slipped” disc. This is when one of the discs that sit between the bones of the spine is damaged and presses on the nerves.
Degenerative disc disease.
Less common causes include spinal stenosis (narrowing of the nerve passages in the spine), a spinal injury, infection, or a growth within the spine (such as a tumour).
In rare cases, surgery may be needed to correct the underlying problem in your spine. Sciatica itself can be treatable through a range of treatments and therapies offered by professional therapists.
Other causes of sciatica
There are many other causes of sciatica that are more easily treated; for example problems with over tight muscles in the hamstrings, Piriformis Syndrome (spasm in the piriformis) and weak glutes.
Sciatica that is caused by less complicated conditions are easily treatable by a professional physical therapist such as a sports therapist or physiotherapist.
Self help
There are a combination of things you can do at home to reduce the symptoms of sciatica until the condition improves:
Taking over the counter anti inflammatory painkillers
Exercising and stretching
Use of hot or cold packs
Avoiding dehydration
Managing stress levels
Avoiding sleep deprivation
You are advised to speak to your GP or pharmacist about taking any over the counter medications.
You can minimise your risk of developing a slipped disc or back injury that could lead to sciatica by adopting a better posture and lifting techniques, stretching before and after exercise, and exercising regularly. While bed rest may provide some temporary pain relief, prolonged bed rest is often considered unnecessary and unhelpful.
Gentle stretching to the following muscle groups can help to ease sciatic tension and alleviate pain
Piriformis stretch
To stretch the piriformis, lie on your back and gently pull your knee towards your opposite shoulder. You should feel a tightness (not a pain), hold for 6 seconds, drop your leg down and repeat 5 times.
Lower back – knee to chest stretch
To improve the flexibility of your lower back lie on your back on a mat or the carpet. Place a small flat cushion or book under your head. Bend your knees and keep your feet straight and hip-width apart. Keep your upper body relaxed and your chin gently tucked in. Bend one knee up towards your chest and grasp your knee with both hands. Slowly increase this stretch as comfort allows. Hold for 20-30 seconds with controlled deep breaths. Repeat three times, alternating legs.
Standing hamstring stretch
Stand upright and raise one leg on to a stable object, such as a step. Keep that leg straight and your toes pointing straight up. Lean forward while keeping your back straight. Hold for 20-30 seconds while taking deep breaths. Repeat two to three times with each leg.
Please note that it is important that you only stretch as far as comfortable. If you are in severe pain, have undergone an operation or have a medical condition then you are advised to check with your GP if the above exercise are safe for you to practice.
We can help!
If you are suffering with sciatica and would like to know how Fit n Well can help you or if would like to book an appointment please phone Maria on 07951 239065 or email us using the link below.
You should see your GP if your symptoms are severe or persistent, or are getting worse over time. You should immediately call 999 for an ambulance if you experience loss of sensation between your legs and around your buttocks and/or loss of bladder or bowel control as this may be caused by a more serious condition.
Fit n Well 