From Pilates for men to Swedish aerobics, it’s been a busy year on the Press and Journal health desk.
We’ve spent the past 12 months trying out a host of weird, wonderful and sometimes exhausting activities all with the aim of showcasing the best the north and north-east has to offer.
So, as the year comes to an end, we have put together a list of 7 of our favourites. Perhaps you will see something you’d like to do in 2024.
Don’t see your favourite on the list? Get in touch with us at healthandwellbeing@ajl.co.uk and maybe we can give your top activity a tryout in the new year.
1. Pilates for men
Pilates is having a moment, thanks to top male celebs including Harry Styles discovering just how fantastic a workout it can give you.
Created in the 1920s by a German POW, Pilates has been more associated with women over the past few decades.
However, because it helps builds fantastic core strength and flexibility crucial to many elite sports it is increasingly being adopted by male athletes looking for an edge.
Having Harry Styles on board also hasn’t harmed its profile among men.
That’s how health reporter Andy Morton ended up in Banchory for a Pilates for men at the Pilates Hut, where he found people of all ages taking part.
Definitely not just something for Styles and co.
2. Paddle boarding on Knockburn Loch
In July, Shanay Taylor headed out to Knockburn Loch near Banchory for a paddle boarding lesson.
Stand up paddle boarding (SUP) is becoming increasingly popular – to the extent that coastguards are warning people of its dangers.
Shanay learned how to safely navigate her board, under the watchful eye of instructor Jason Topley.
“Get as much experience as you possibly can,” Jason told Shanay as they sailed across the loch. “The social aspect and tranquility of paddle boarding is great.”
3. Taking a sound bath
If paddle boarding and Pilates sound like too much work, perhaps you need a sound bath.
Rosemary Lowne took part in the holistic treatment that uses sound and vibrations to induce a calmer state of mind and a relaxed body.
No, it’s not a “peculiar cult”, Rosemary wrote. It was an “odd but beautiful sensation – you could literally feel the vibrations resonating through your entire body”.
4. A run through Inverness
In Inverness, Incredible Feet is a running club with a difference.
All of its members have been affected by cancer. They also refuse to let the disease define them so twice a week go for a run around the Highland capital.
Andy Morton joined them as they jogged around the beautiful Ness Islands and heard the group’s amazing stories of courage and determination.
5. Brazilian Jiu Jitsu
P&J reporter Lottie Hood showed courage and determination in December when she went toe-to-toe with a group of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu fighters with the Aberdeen Martial Arts Academy.
They sent Lottie head over heels – literally – as they taught her the basics of the sport.
But though a lot of the chat was about things like how to safely choke or strangle someone, what stood out was the warm and welcoming atmosphere.
This was a roundhouse kick of a hit.
6. Scuba diving for beginners
Talk about diving in at the deep end.
In November, Rosemary tried out a beginners scuba diving class where she got a taste of the underwater realm – all from the safety of the swimming pool at the International School Aberdeen.
Rosemary walked away with a certificate for her first dive, and a sense of “calmness and relaxation mixed with feel good endorphins and a real sense of achievement”.
7. Getting sweaty with Friskis & Svettis
In Scandinavia, the name Friskis & Svettis is a byword for exercise and healthy living.
The Swedish non-profit organisation, which translates as Healthy and Sweaty, has hundreds of gyms across Sweden and Norway, but in the UK only Aberdeen has an outpost, thanks to Swedish expat that started the branch in the 1980s.
Andy Morton gave the fun mix of aerobics and dancing a try in October, and though he had little idea what he was doing was quickly won over.
“I’m having a blast, though I do feel like the one person at a ceilidh who doesn’t know how to do the eightsome reel,” he wrote.
