Running blog: How was your weekend running?

I’ve been hanging out at two different tracks in the last few days. In Friday I was in Prague for the European Indoor Athletics, on Saturday back home at my local running club, running at a pace that probably doesn’t even count as a warm up for most of those professional athletes.
If you’ve never been to an athletics meet - do it. This was my first indoor event and it was utterly fantastic. The atmosphere - even early on the first day of competition - was lively, with huge roars greeting any Czech competitors. I got to watch the awesome Katarina Johnson-Thompson on her way to gold in the Pentathlon, if not, alas, the world record - though that surely is just a matter of time. What you see in the stadium that the TV can’t catch is fascinating - the warm-ups, the stretches, the drills, the pigeon-paces the athletes take to measure their long jump run up ...
An indoor arena with its 200m track also gives you a real sense of just how fast the sprinters are - blink and you will miss the 60m hurdles (or Richard Kilty blasting past to gold) - and just how high they jump. I think pole vaulting god Renauld Lavillenie should have been given a shot at jumping over Prague castle. He would probably have sailed over.
As for my own running - Prague is not the flattest city and cobblestones make for interesting footing, but I had some treadmill slogs and one particularly glorious run to and round Letna Park, which overlooks the city and has views so fabulous you just have to stop for a breath to appreciate. Being surrounded by athletes at the event itself, you also can’t help but want to pull the trainers on and run, run run.
So how was your weekend running, did you catch any of the athletics on TV - and can I persuade you to go and watch some athletics live yourself?

Healthy Breakfast For Your Life

The researchers noted how blood glucose levels differed between the groups, and found that those who had breakfast showed a much lower spike in blood glucose after lunch, compared to those who didn't have breakfast. Clearly, eating healthy meals in moderate portions and at scheduled times is the best way to manage diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends having a similar amount of carbohydrates for breakfast every day. Consistent carbohydrate intake for each meal helps keep your blood sugar levels within range.

A healthy breakfast, especially during the colder months, is hot cereal. You can prepare a healthy diabetes breakfast by adding fruit and a half-cup of milk to a cup of any hot cereal. A staple in diabetic breakfast ideas is a cup of cooked hot oatmeal, two tablespoons of raisins and a half-cup of skim milk. To prepare a healthy breakfast with 45 to 60g of carbohydrate, add three-quarters of a cup of whole-grain cold cereal to a cup of skim milk. Add one slice of whole-wheat toast with one tablespoon of margarine and you will have a great breakfast to start the day.

Just having breakfast is not enough; one has to ensure that breakfast is nutrient-rich, and not a platter full of sugary, fatty food. By helping your child develop the habit of eating breakfast at home, you can make better choice of food that follows the dietary guidelines. Since there are a specified quantity of people that a bed and breakfast will be able to accommodate chances are that you simply might run into fellow guests as well during the day or at breakfast.

Consider the activities you may like to view throughout holiday and check if this meshes with the type of environment where you would look for a bed and breakfast. All the rooms probably a name associated with it such as the white family room and the room's décor may reflect it. This sort of overnight accommodation makes a terrific weekend trip for couples that are looking for a calm room to escape their everyday lives.

Why can’t patients receive blood results via text or use Skype for appointments?

In 2011, I became the 11th person in the world to undergo an intestinal transplant which took place at the Churchill hospital in Oxford. I knew a key post-operative requirement would be the constant monitoring of my condition. What I didn’t appreciate was the time and effort it would take. On the third anniversary of my surgery I was diagnosed with high-grade B cell lymphoma.
Like so many I constantly use my mobile phone and technology as part of my everyday life. I want to manage my health journey in the same way. Why can’t I receive blood results via text or use Skype calls for routine follow-ups?
The truth is, I can. Information governance is no excuse, and privacy and security challenges can be overcome. The technology is also not to blame, and some companies are already helping NHS organisations to safely and securely unlock the value of their information with models that can be integrated within their IT systems.

In my case it took bravery – the bravery of a surgeon who said: “If that is how you want to interact, then let’s do it.” How much simpler is it to text routine blood results? It saves clinical and patient time and improves efficiency. Why wouldn’t you use this in everyday messaging of routine results? It takes a cultural change for the system to go from “no we can’t” to “yes and this is how we can”.
Being a long-term patient with multiple complex chronic conditions means two things to me. Firstly it’s imperative that I am an active participant in every aspect of my care. I want to know everything that is happening to me and be part of every decision. Secondly, I am aware that I am one of the biggest drains on healthcare resources.
When I asked my surgeon if I could Skype him instead of travelling for 90 minutes for a routine appointment he agreed and emailed me to confirm I had given my consent. As he was about to dial in, the four nurses in the room walked out from fear of interacting with a patient in this way. Here a patient was consenting to using a freely available and perfectly capable service but, because it was a health discussion they didn’t want to engage. The surgeon went home and we did the call from his house.
Eighteen months on at the same hospital, Skype clinics have become the norm. They are being adopted in other departments in the trust, and the email consent is now a three-line letter. It saves time, money and improves efficiency and patient satisfaction. When I come to the clinic, the medical team are up to date with what issues need managing and tests have been prearranged.
I recognise technology is not for everyone but the Pew Institute has some interesting health facts – 86% of people go online to look up health matters, 71% do it from home via their mobile and 25% of patients benefit from online communities. The biggest demographic of online patient users are those over 55, according to HIMSS. We are ready for this technological change but the cultural shift that is needed in the NHS is not there yet; there aren’t enough brave chief executives or clinicians.
Patients understand the benefits, and data protection issues can be overcome. Years ago, the idea of getting money by walking up to a cashpoint where anyone could see you typing in a pin number would have been laughed at. Now we can bank on our mobiles, we can shop and manage virtually every aspect of our lives through technology. I want to manage my healthcare in the same way.
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5 little changes that can have a big impact on your family's health

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  In sports when a player isn't working, the coach takes him out. We need to do the same thing in our lives.
  The book "Switch," by Chip and Dan Heath, talks about a nutritional experiment where families where asked to change one thing in their diets. They were asked to buy skim milk instead of whole milk. That one switch made a big difference. Participants lost weight and improved their health.
  Most often, after we've made one healthy switch in our lives, we'll go on to make others. Making healthy substitutions one at a time makes change seem less formidable.
  We are creatures of habit. Once we create a healthy habit, doing it requires little effort. It's almost automatic. Here are some healthy habits that can get your family moving.
  

• Stay and play

  Instead of coming straight home from school, stay with your children and let them play for 20 minutes on the playground or stop at the park on the way home. If your kids are bussed, send them straight to the yard after their snack.
  

• End errands with fun

  Your last errand of the day should be a stop at the park or an indoor play area to let your kids get their energy out. Your kids can look forward to this instead of a treat at the end.
  

• Take a walk after dinner

  Instead of turning on the TV, try walking as a family after dinner. Walking after meals has been shown to aid in digestion as well as burn calories. It also is a great time for conversation and togetherness.
  

• Drink water

  Water is one of the major building blocks of your body and a key to good health. You can save yourself and your kids tons of calories and money by drinking the clear stuff. Get in the habit of ordering water when you eat out and give it to your kids with snacks instead of the sugary stuff.
  

• Do something active as a family every weekend

  Take a few hours every weekend for hiking, bike rides, beach combing, picnicking or any other way your family likes to get out and get moving. You'll build memories, get exercise and enjoy the benefits of the great outdoors and fresh air.
  

• Sign up for a class

  You may like yoga, martial arts or gardening. The idea is to pay someone to help you develop a healthy habit. If you have paid and have a set time to participate, you are more likely to follow through.
  You can make other healthy substitutions in your day as well. Start taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Walk or ride with your kids to school. Switch to wheat instead of white bread.
  Pick one thing today you can substitute with something healthier. Once that's become a habit, move on to something else. You'll be well on your way to a healthier new year.