Author: Dr Juliet McGrattan

Active Women Interview – meet Della Skeates

Knee pain is a common reason for people to stop exercising, particularly running. I recently hosted a Guest Blog by Alexandra Merisoiu who uses natural movement techniques to help people run with a healthy technique and reduce injuries. It was a very popular post and I had lots of feedback about how interesting it was. Helping people to overcome their barriers and keep active is my passion and this Active Women Interview Series has been a brilliant forum to share stories of some of the amazing women who are doing just that.

Tips For Being Active When You Work From Home.

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

Data from the Office of National Statistics showed that in 2014 there were 4.2 million people regularly working from home. With studies demonstrating reduced stress, increased happiness and increased productivity, it’s no wonder that this figure is increasing all the time. As you may know, I had a recent change in career direction and I now find myself working from home 90% of the time. I love it. I love my house and enjoy spending time in it, I work well there. I have however found that I have to make an effort to be active during my working day. I don’t have colleagues to walk over to talk to, a coffee room to visit and I don’t need to nip out to get a sandwich at lunch time. I don’t have a commute, there’s no stroll to the bus stop, no crammed train to stand on and no brisk ‘late for work’ walk. So, whilst I’m happier, I’m aware there’s a risk I may not be healthier. Reducing our sedentary time is an important part …

Tips for Healthy Running- Guest post from Alexandra Merisoiu

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

I’m delighted to welcome Alexandra Merisoiu to the blog today. Alexandra has a background in Martial Arts (she still competes at international level) and a fascination with how the body moves. She is a Running Coach, specialising in running form and technique. She works with runners of all abilities to help them run faster, further, more efficiently and most importantly, with fewer injuries. I still frequently hear, “Running hurts my knees” so I thought it would be helpful to have Alexandra share some of her wisdom about minimising the impact of running. Head to the Merisoiu Technique Institute to find out more but in the meantime I will hand over to Alexandra to share some of her top tips for healthy running.

The Westminster 100 team at the Virgin Sport British 10k

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

On Sunday I ran the Virgin Sport #British10k as part of the #Westminster100 team. It was a very special morning so I wanted to share it in a blog.

Influencer of the Year – I’d Love Your Vote!

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

Woop woop! I’ve been shortlisted in the Women’s Running Magazine 2018 reader awards in the Influencer of the Year category. Thank you so much to everyone who voted for me and got me through the nominations and into the shortlisted round. I’ve never been shortlisted for an award like this before so this has made me super happy. I’ve had so many amazing messages from people recently telling me how my work has inspired them. Many of these came after I wrote my blog about following my passion and leaving General Practice. Realising you aren’t happy, working VERY hard to change it and then making the leap takes a whole lot of courage. Women who feel stuck have written to me to tell me that seeing what I do has helped them to reassess their own lives. Women who have also made the leap have sent me messages to congratulate me and share how wonderful it’s been for them. For some reason I expected negativity and worried that making that cut would be harmful to …

Game Changers in Germany

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

I’m just back from a four-day trip to Germany with 261 Fearless. I feel a little stunned, I’m trying to digest and process all that took place during this trip, both for me personally and for 261 Fearless. I’m the Women’s Health Lead and a Master Coach for this global women’s running network. This means I get to share my passion for helping women learn to run and my expertise in women’s health with candidates who want to become coaches and start their own 261 Fearless running clubs. It’s a perfect fit! I’ve taught on many of the Train the Trainer courses over the last few years but this one was a little different and it’s left me with a brain literally exploding with ideas, possibilities and questions. The global sponsors for 261 Fearless are adidas and the team at adidas running are so supportive of our aim to reach and empower women all around the world, through our non-competitive running communities. It’s incredible to work with such a big organisation and it was a …

Exercise to Empower

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

There are so many benefits of exercise. From getting fitter and helping control weight, to easing stress and lifting mood. I certainly began learning to run, hoping for the former and continued when I realised the latter. One of the unexpected benefits I discovered however was the ability that exercise has to empower.

Active Women Interview – meet Laetitia Montfort

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

I’m happy to welcome Laetitia to the Active Women interview series. She became active when she was struggling to cope with the concept of being pregnant and now fitness is a huge part of her life. Baby number three has just arrived and she is desperate to get back to high intensity exercise but knows there are some important steps to take first.

You’ve run 5k, now what?

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

Reaching the 5k target is a huge accomplishment so congratulations on your achievement! Perhaps you’ve done a 5k race or a parkrun to mark the occasion and are still basking in the glory of success. What do you do now though? Has running become a regular part of your life that you can’t do without out or more commonly, are you still wondering what all the fuss is about and dreading putting yourself through another run? Deciding what step to take next can be tricky. It’s very easy to find yourself not running at all and quickly losing all that fitness you’ve gained. Take a few minutes to consider which way to go now. Here are some ideas and options.

Active Women Interview – meet Ann Currie

Published by Dr Juliet McGrattan

Everyone’s barriers to activity are different. Ann explains how she had pretty much given up exercise in her twenties due to long term back pain. She discovered for herself how exercise is really important in managing and preventing back pain. Read about how she overcame it and the amazing, active things she’s getting up to now, in this latest #ActiveWomen interview!