Trainers should not only be comfortable for you but also provide cushioning and support as well as fitting well. The average running shoe will last about 500 miles, but they will probably be ‘on their knees’ by this point. It is vital that you regularly check your shoes and change them well before they become completely worn out. And it’s not just the soles that will wear; as the shoes age, the heel, outersole and midsole will deteriorate, giving you progressively less support and cushioning.

There are many brands and different types of shoe available, according to your feet and running gait and it is best to visit a dedicated running store and try on a number of different shoes. Unfortunately, many of the high-street stores are more interested in selling you fashion items rather than footwear that does the job. Two excellent dedicated stores in York are Up and Running along Fossgate and Sweatshop in the lobby of Next Generation Health Club off Hull Road. Both of these stores use computer gait analysis and will be able to give you much more accurate advice on the right shoes for you. They’ll also allow you to try on many pairs (don’t be shy about it) and test them out on a treadmill.

No matter what the advice you may be given, the overriding question you must ask of yourself is ‘are they comfortable?’. If they are not, then don’t buy them! Other good advice would include:

• Take your old pair with you; a good sales person can judge an awful lot by how your old shoes have worn
• Always maintain at least a thumbnail of extra room between the end of your longest toe (not always your biggest) and the tip of your shoe; your feet will swell during running
• Try shoes on with the socks and any orthotics that you may use when you run
• Be sure the sole flexes easily where your own foot flexes

If you need more information on shoes, try Runner’s World: Choosing a Shoe.

Don’t let your shoes get too worn out before you think of changing them!

This is good news and is demonstrating a greater commitment to exercise as therapy.

This result is very surprising, noting other research in the last few years that has concluded a child’s environment is often the root cause of obesity, although I am not in a position to accurately dispute the validity or results of this research. It is also surprising that the figure of genetic effect is so high at 77 percent.

What is actually more concerning are the many headlines in the UK media that have suggested genes are to blame for obesity rather than poor diets or inactivity! See the following:

• Times Online: Genes not poor diet blamed for most cases of childhood obesity
• Daily Mail: ‘Billy Bunter gene’ makes children fat, say scientists
• Marie Clare: Obesity ‘largely genetic’
• The Daily Star: British researchers find obesity largely genetic

Unfortunately, this lack of balanced coverage just supplies excuses to the wider population who see no reason to modify their diets or become more physically active and can now say that “it’s all in the genes” and “it’s just a matter of luck”. In fairness to Cancer Research, they do note this point, although it has not been picked by a lot of the media, or they have chosen to only add a small line at the bottom of their coverage noting that “An anti-obesity group said regardless of genes, a balanced diet and exercise were vital to good health.”

There has certainly been plenty of coverage on the rise of childhood obesity over the last six months and the need for improved diets and levels of activity, so why are we not receiving more balanced coverage? In order to solve this potentially large problem, we need much more sensible advice and debate, and, dare I say it, action! It is heartening to hear of the Department of Health’s new Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives strategy, published on 23 January 2008, and the spending on health education both in school and for parents. However, all of us need to take a responsible attitude towards our future generations.