It’s the last Newsround of 2018!
This week we’re looking back on our progress since last Christmas, sending pasties to friends and trying to remember for the sake of our mental health that Christmas doesn’t have to be all its hyped up to be.
From the MAN v FAT Football leagues
Shoutout to the boss himself, Father Christmas AKA @Doug7923 and Leyton’s IVE Farm have one Season 6 with 2 games to spare! Mr Christmas has lost 16kg and 10%! Well done, Doug! 🎅🏽
Won Season 6 at Leyton IVE Farm last week with 12 wins in a row & 2 games to spare, so had a bit of fun on the pitch tonight! 🎅🏻⚽️💙🤣 16kg lost 10% gone feeling great & loving life! #MidnightFeast @manvfat @lotrust pic.twitter.com/CIzz7dHJTK
— Doug (@doug7923) December 18, 2018
In other news…
What a world we’re living in. You can now gift your friends and family the luxury of Greggs through Facebook messenger. Just log on, message ‘GreggsGifting Bot’, chuck in your payment details and a voucher for scrumptious baked goods is sent to a friend! (h/t Metro)
Sports superstore Decathlon has conducted research into the UK’s most active region. Decathlon’s Activity Index surveyed physical activity and participation in sport. Interestingly, there’s no north-south divide and London is not as active as I expected despite all of that big city buzzing around.
Here are the top 10 most active regions in the UK:
North East
Northern Ireland
South West
Wales
Scotland
Yorkshire and Humberside
East Midlands
South East
West Midlands
London
Is that what you expected? Let us know.
What we’re reading
There a bit of a theme to what we’re reading this week. With gender stereotypes being banned in advertising, I’ve been reading about what fitness gender stereotypes we could also smash 💪🏽
- Fitness classes are just for birds, right? Girly aerobics, dancing and stretching. Wrong. Men’s Health tells us how ‘training like a girl’ will make a better man of you! Those feelings of motivation, team-bonding and competing with not only yourself but the person next to you might be wants needed to supercharge your workouts.
- Another very stereotypically feminine activity; yoga. It’s stretching, how is that beneficial? Mindbodygreen tells all.
What we’re talking about over on the MAN v FAT Forum
- Intermittent fasting. Ever heard of it? Ever tried it? Curious? Looks like @Zero4 is doing the hard work for you, giving it a try and reporting back his findings over on the forums here.
- @GunslingerSJ has been telling us about his winning day. That’s the sort of positivity we need on these soggy December days. Why don’t you join him and celebrate your daily wins, no matter how big or small!
- Talking of victories, it is so, so, important for us to reflect on how far we’ve come. It allows us to see our progress and plan for our next steps. Editor @Emma asked you to compare your pics from last Christmas for a Crimbo-comparison. How far have you come?
What we’re eating and drinking
- Light in flavours, perhaps not in calories (or price!), but Waitrose are offering an alternative to the Christmas pud. It’s a tangy, zesty affair with lemon mousse and raspberry compote being gently hugged by a white chocolate ‘snowball’. The ideal dessert if you’re bored of spiced, mulled, iced everything. They’re £12 for 4 snowballs and 327 calories per pud (but it is Christmas!)
Quote of the week
“Christmas can be a really stressful time of year, whether you live with a mental health problem or not. There’s pressure to socialise with friends and family, more temptation to overindulge in food and drink and of course the financial strain that presents and celebrations can put on your bank balance.”
- Mind, mental health charity. If you want more advice on navigating the Christmas period, take a look at their website here.
And that’s all from me for this year! Have a good Christmas all, and I’ll see you in the new year.
