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ProfessorChristian Bugge Henriksen, a climate and food security expert at the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, says that feeding city dwellers sustainably is a triple challenge.

The first part of it is increasing urbanisation: by 2050, its expected that 6.5 billion of us will live in megacities thatsnearly two out of every three people. The second issue is the negative effects on our climate; forests are cleared to produce farmland, ruminants produce methane, and transportation of food from farms to cities emits huge amounts of carbon dioxide. The third part is malnutrition: many of us, especially in cities, eat too much of the wrong things, particularly processed meat. Currently, 70% of all deaths in Europe can be somehow linked to non-communicable diseases that are affected by malnutrition, said Prof. Henriksen.

One solution might lie in having the inhabitants of cities eat food that is produced as close to them as possible. It is commonly believed that eating locally produced food is better for the environment because it has travelled a shorter distance from farm to fork. But what does the evidence say?

Truth be told, there isnt an awful lot of it, which is why ProfessorMatthew Gortonat Newcastle University, UK, began coordinating theStrength2Foodproject. This is a sprawling endeavour, looking at short food supply chains in terms of their environmental and social sustainability.

Prof. Gorton says that, in general, the project has found that short food supply chains live up to their good reputation. By and large, they provide better margins to producers, the carbon footprints tend to be lower, with also better indicators for social sustainability, he said.

But there are instructive anomalies. Take a part of the project where Prof. Gorton and his colleagues looked at the fishing industry around the Newcastle area. The main catch landed here is langoustine, but it is nearly all exported to Italy, France and Spain, while UK consumers eat mainly imported fish such as salmon, he says.

One of the things were interested in is: how can we improve that? said Prof. Gorton. How can we get local fish on the menu in the north east of England?

Fish box

One idea the team explored was to create a fish box containing fresh local catch that people couldnt otherwise buy. But it wasnt a quick win. It turned out consumers wanted recipes and cooking instructions as well as the fish, and some wanted it more or less often. Also, subscribers of which there are currently only 45 pick up the boxes from local restaurants, which means the service isnt easy to scale up quickly and involves a dedicated car journey separate from the customers supermarket shop.

But while the scheme wasnt an overnight hit, it provided some useful lessons, such as how crucial it is to not ask consumers to make several separate journeys to pick up food.

One way to solve that is to get local food into supermarkets. The trouble is that people often think with their purse when out for their weekly food shop and tend to buy cheaper options even if they like the idea of local food. Prof. Gorton suspected that this could be remedied if there were point of sale displays to remind people of the benefits of local food.

This idea was tested out with one of the projects partners, Konzum, a supermarket chain. The team set up an experiment in 18 stores across Croatia, Serbia and Slovenia where local apples were sold alongside cheaper imported apples in three different ways.

In one group of stores the local apples had point of sale displays with the slogan: I buy local; I buy it fresher; I support the local farmer. A second group of stores had a picture of a young and healthy-looking farmer with the national flag. In both of these groups, the idea was to send the message that these local apples were healthy and buying them supported local people. The third group was a control, with no extra marketing material.

The team found this promotional material had a significant effect on peoples buying habits. For example, in stores in and around Zagreb, Croatia, local apples accounted for only 34% of the sales in the control stores during the test, but that rose to 56% in the stores with the pictorial point of sale displays.

The time is really ripe to go in and transform the food system.

Prof. Christian Bugge Henriksen, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

All this suggests short food supply chains are a positive move and can be made to work, even if its not easy. But how do we scale up the schemes that work? An answer should be forthcoming from theFoodSHIFT2030 project, which is led by Prof. Henriksen.

His team is looking at how we can scale-up innovations that will help make food in urban areas both more sustainable and more healthy. There is a particular focus on getting people to switch to a plant-based diet, which canhalve the carbon emissions associated with an omnivorous diet.

Its early days for the project, which formally began in January 2020. But it has already established spaces known asaccelerator labs, in nine cities around Europe that are each exploring different innovations that could be scalable. These range fromeducating school pupils about local foodin Athens, Greece, tovertical farming and other food production technologiesin Barcelona, Spain.

Urban agriculture

Besides short food supply chains there is also potential for scaling up urban farming. Aglobal studyhas demonstrated that up to 10% of the global output of legumes, roots and tubers, and vegetable crops could be produced by urban agriculture, said Prof. Henriksen. In other words, cities could grow a significant amount of the vegetables their populations need on roofs, allotments and other bits and pieces of space.

Scaling up any innovation to an entire city requires political buy-in, but there are some good signs on this front. For example, in 2015 theMilan Urban Food Policy Pactwas launched and this collective commitment to develop sustainable food systems is now signed by 209 cities around the world.

Theres also the Good Food Policies Declaration,organised through the C40 cities networkfor the worlds megacities. Signatory cities to this pact have agreed to work towards achieving thePlanetary Health Dietby 2030. This diet, developed by EAT, a non-profit organisation, in partnership withThe Lancetmedical journal, is mostly composed of plants and whole grains and is designed to be healthy and environmentally sustainable for the whole world population.

As well as this, Prof. Henriksen thinks the Covid-19 pandemic might provide added impetus for authorities to rethink food supply chains. So far, long international food supply chains have been remarkably resilient but its not clear how long that will last or that any future pandemic would be so forgiving. At the very least, change is in the air when it comes to food in cities.

You could say, said Prof. Henriksen, that the time is really ripe to go in and transform the food system.

The global food system is responsible for up to 37% of greenhouse gas emissions, according to a2019 report from the UNs Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

In March 2020, the EUs Group of Chief Scientific Advisors publishedadvice on how to make Europes food system environmentally, socially and economically sustainable.

Among the recommendations are treating food as a common good rather than a commodity and addressing power asymmetries in the food system by requiring food manufacturers and retailers to be sustainable and helping consumers make informed food choices.

Professor Matthew Gorton gives his top tips for making local food systems work most sustainably.

Think about the benefits to consumers.Many local food initiatives can have a vaguely charitable feel to them, says Gorton, with a support local famers vibe. That may be laudable but its unlikely to work in the long term if its the only appeal to consumers. Its better to sell local produce on the tangible benefits to consumers, such as improved freshness or taste.

And convenience.Local produce boxes can be popular. But the logistics of getting to consumers can be tricky. If people have to make a special trip that not convenient for them, it also adds carbon emissions. Better to think smart and try to organise larger scale activities, like local produce markets or deliveries to large workplaces.

It takes time.Getting people to change their behaviour is tricky and can take time. Too often this isnt recognised in retail for example supermarkets will often trial products for a week or two and pull them if sales dont take off. Behaviour change takes time to bed in.

The research in this article was funded by the EU. If you liked this article, please consider sharing it on social media.

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Lindsey Vonn has made some significant changes to her diet! When the professional athlete was competing, she typically consumed things like oatmeal and Red Bull, but now that shes retired from competitive ski racing, Vonn is able to have a bit more fun with her food.

When I used to race it was a little more challenging because were always staying at hotels and you never know what youre going to be able to get, Vonn, 35, told Delish in a video interview on Wednesday, May 27. In the morning, usually, I tried to eat eggs and oatmeal, or in Europe they have muesli, which is like grains and fruit.

Once she got up on the mountain and was ready to ski, Vonn said she would usually snack on a protein bar, but recalled being too nervous to eat much more than that. She did, however, drink a Red Bull prior to each race for a little bit of extra energy.

After each race, when it was time to replenish and refuel, the Minnesota native would eat a banana and a protein shake. I just always ate what I could find. Whatever was available, Id put in my mouth, she added with a laugh.

Dinner was a balance between protein, carbs and veggies, and Vonns ideal meal was salmon, rice and vegetables, which is what she usually ate prior to a race. In fact, according to the former World Cup alpine ski racer, she feasted on the healthy fish the night before she won a gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Her pre-race eats also included banana bread, which she made herself. I won the Olympics on banana bread and salmon, she quipped.

As for foods that were off limits? Vonn explained that she avoided meat while competing. No steaks, no burgers. Your body is spending a lot of energy trying to digest it instead of using your energy to recover and rest and get ready for a race, she said. I never ate meat the night before a race.

Pasta was another food that the gold medalist avoided. As she put it: I think too much carbohydrates is not good.

These days, Vonns diet is a bit more relaxed. My eating has definitely changed a lot since competing, it doesnt really look anything like it used to, she dished. I still try to eat really healthy, but I definitely let myself indulge a bit more.

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Tyler Wilmer had to overcome an eating disorder while he was a freshman and sophomore at Riverheads, but now he's ready to help others who face similar issues.(Photo: Patrick Hite/The News Leader)

STAUNTON - It was the night before the state cross country meet in 2017. The Riverheads boys team had qualified for the race and Tyler Wilmer, then a sophomore, was excited about getting the opportunity to run.

A call from his doctor changed all of that. Blood work had come back indicating Wilmer'selectrolytes were too low.His heart rate was low also, and the doctor said that if Wilmer ran, he could die. Heart failure was a very real concern.

Jessica Wilmerhad to break the news to her sonthat he couldn't run in the state meet.

"It was pretty devastating," she said. "He had worked so hard."

It was a health issue that had started more than a year earlier when Wilmer was a freshman. He began to have negative thoughts about himself, feeling like he wasn't good enough or that he didn't perform well enough on the cross country course. He didn't like the way he looked.

"I started having these terrible mental thoughts about myself," he said.

He coped with those thoughts by using extreme diets and long exercise routines. He started dropping weight, which he was happy about, but he was never satisfied that it was enough. He ate less and less.

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Jessica Wilmer noticed something was wrong with her son. At first, she and her husband, Andy, just thought he was losing weight because he started running. But they began to realize it was more than typical weight loss. He was being very restrictive with what he ate, and his parents knew that wasn't good.

"Then it kind of snowballed until we knew something was really wrong," Jessica Wilmersaid.

She took him to the pediatrician, but could never get a diagnosis that seemed correct. That's when his parentstook him to the Teen and Young Adult Health Center at the University of Virginia. They diagnosed him almost immediately.

Wilmer was suffering from anorexia nervosa, an eating disorder characterized by weight loss and a distorted body image. At the beginning of his freshman year Wilmer weighed 165pounds. By his sophomore year, he was down to 104 pounds.

Tyler Wilmer, standing between his parents, Jessica and Andy, struggled with an eating disorder during his freshman and sophomore years at Riverheads.(Photo: Submitted)

"It was a very difficult sophomore and junior year for me," he said.

The National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA)cited a study showing that males represent 25% of individuals with anorexia nervosa, and they are at a higher risk of dying from the disease.

Young people in general, those between the ages of 15 and 24 with anorexia, have 10 times the risk of dying compared to their peers in the same age group, according to NEDA.

Until he was healthier, running was out for Wilmer.He not only missed that state cross country meet as a sophomore, but he also missed the indoor and outdoor track seasons.

He was hospitalized three times. He took classes and was in therapy. None of it seemed to be working until he found residential treatment, a live-in healthcare facility where Wilmer stayed for five weeks in the summer before his junior year.

There were other people around his age in treatment with him, but Wilmer had very limited contact with anyone outside of the facility. That included no contact with family for the first three days.

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When the shorter hospitalizations weren't working, Jessica Wilmerknew that residential treatment was probably the next step.

"It was a hard decision," she said. "Probably the hardest one we ever had to make."

The first 72 hours there were the most difficult. He didn't go willingly. Looking back now, he said he was in "complete denial," and wasn't happy that he was placed in treatment, butalmost two yearslater he understands the benefits.

"It made like a spark go off in my head that I needed to recover," he said, "and I needed to really focus on becoming happy again."

He returned to running as a junior. And now, with high school over, Wilmer is ready for the next chapter in his life. He'll be attending Roanoke College in the fall, where he'll run cross country and track.

Tyler Wilmer will be running for Roanoke College next year.(Photo: Tom Jacobs/The News Leader)

He also wants to major in health and physical education. For now he's considering going into the mental health field when college is over, possibly as a therapist or nutritionist. He believes he can talk to others dealing with similar issues. He wants to help them avoid the struggles he faced.

"I know that he is going to help somebody along the way," his mom said. "If he can just help one person not to have to go through this I think he'll have done his job."

Wilmer is now between 130 and 135 pounds and said his doctors are happy with that weight. They'd like for him to weigha little more, but as a runner that's not easy.They continue to do blood work to monitor his health, which is good now as he gets ready for college.

That doesn't mean he's completely healthy. It's a daily battle he faces, one of negative thoughts toward himself. Doctors and others who have been through this tell him those will probably never go away completely.

"They kind of haunt you in the back of your head," he said. "It's more of having to see through the fog and realize that it's something you can't do to yourself again. It's something that you need to kind of ignore those bad thoughts. It's a very challenging thing to do."

His mom knows it's been a struggle for their son, for the entire family. It could tear some families apart, she said, but for them their bond grew tighter.Now, she's excited to see where he goes next.

"He came out stronger," she said, "and we're super proud of him."

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After recovering from several knee surgeries, Ned from YouTube's Try Guys embarked on an ongoing mission to improve his health and personal fitness. "I want to feel strong, I want to feel healthy," he says in his latest video. "What better expression of that than getting a hot, shredded bod?"

While stuck in lockdown, Ned resolves to get fit, with the specific goal of working on his abs and developing a six-pack in a six-week period.

"For Ned to get a six-pack, he needs to work on a few things," says personal trainer JP Amistoso. "He needs to work on his diet and nutrition, and also his amount of exercise. So one of the things I'd advise him to do is work on his macros." JP recommends a macro split of 40 percent carbs, 40 percent protein and 20 percent fat.

When it comes to exercise, part of the challenge is that it has to fit into Ned's existing daily routine, so JP prescribes high-intensity workouts that only last 30 to 40 minutes.

One of the toughest adjustments of the challenge for Ned at first comes from the nutrition side. "The diet has been so hard," he says going into week 2. "I am not the type of man that can just eat a fist of pasta and call it a day! I have no idea how to make salads!"

By week 3, however, he is encouraged by the results he is starting to see, and by his overall improved mood. He is also spurred on in his workouts when he starts participating in live-streamed, fat-burning HIIT sessions. "I feel like a gym is a really good community, and doing it remotely on a conference call is a way to stay connected," he says. "Also, I think I work harder and sweat more."

That energy drops off in week 4, however . "I saw this initial spurt of changes and increased confidence just from exercising, but since I'm not doing the diet, I'm not seeing additional changes."

Ned decides that the only way he's going to see the results he wants is to double down on the nutrition (abs are made in the kitchen, after all), and his progress looks up as he heads into week 5, with the semblance of a "four-pack" on show. His endurance in the exercises has also improved, and he is able to get through a cardio workout and a core-busting plank hold without breaking. "I feel the need to really go hard these last two weeks," he says.

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At the end of the 42 days, Ned's stomach is considerably flatter, with visibly toned abs. "I don't actually look that different, but I'm more defined, and more muscular," he says. And perhaps just as importantly as the visible results, he feels good about how the experience will stand him in good stead for the future.

"Doing this for six weeks really made me build healthy habits," he says. "The challenge ended, and the next day I still exercised. It became a really fun part of my morning."

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Can a Nintendo Switch workout be as beneficial as a traditional full body workout? Can you really get fit and aid weight loss by playing video games? I've been trying the best Nintendo Switch games for fitness and particularly in the case of Ring Fit Adventure I can confidently say the answer is YES. Sure, it's not like some hardcore 15-minute six-pack workout, but for a lot people who find all that grunting and sweating off-putting, this could be THE best home workout.

Getting fit by playing video games was largely unheard of until the introduction of the Nintendo Wii, which brought physical movement into the console realm, most notably with Wii Fit. Fast-forward 14 years and Ring Fit Adventure, among other titles, is taking the Nintendo Switch to a whole new level of swole.

These dedicated fitness games with special controllers are designed to transform you from Mario to Luigi, and then into erm, one of those really ripped Nintendo characters. Er Trevor Belmont or Samus Aran. Someone like that.

Where to buy Nintendo Switch: these retailers have stock now

I put a selection of the best Nintendo Switch games for fitness to the test, to find out if they are any good at helping you to lose belly fat fast. In order to keep track of the calories burned playing all the games in question, I used a heart rate monitor because these are still the most precise fitness wearables to track heart rate and also because I didn't need the altimeters, GPSand other sensors they pack into running watches on this occasion.

Each game was played for approximately half an hour and if there was an option, I chose the most physical way of playing them. For instance, in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, you can play using buttons only but for the test, the dual or if not available, single controller setup was chosen. In Ring Fit Adventure, I chose the 'Extreme' difficulty setting. For the other two games on this list, I used the default controller settings.

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My initial thought was 'no' but after trying the games, I must say they certainly burn calories, and can definitely improve your physical fitness, if you play them correctly and regularly. Not all Nintendo Switch fitness games were created equal, but they all have their uses, as you'll see.

Overall, the game that can not only help you lose weight but potentially help you get stronger as well is Ring Fit Adventure, not surprisingly. Thanks to the special controller that provides some resistance and the variety of exercise you can perform in the game (once they have been unlocked), playing Ring Fit Adventure can effectively help you burn fat and build muscle mass. The game is not without issues, but overall it's excellent.

Playing Ring Fit Adventure regularly can get you in shape for sure

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Best for: all fitness needs, even building muscles but definitely losing weight

Calories burned (in 30 minutes): 245 kcal

Ring Fit Adventure is an amazing game. It is not easy but it makes exercising a little bit more fun without compromising on the quality of the workout. There are over 40 different exercises you can do in the game (once all unlocked), not to mention the mini games that targets certain muscle groups and the custom workouts you can put together for yourself.

You'll have to grind through the main story mode in order to unlock new moves. Needless to say, the story is not overly complicated but you don't play this game for the immersing story. Different moves have different attack points and you must use some strategy if you want to beat your opponents before they take you down.

Ring Fit Adventure is an indoor game and Nintendo thankfully included some features to make working out with this game more neighbour friendly. You can play in "Silent Mode" where you can squat pulse as opposed to stationary jog in order to move your virtual avatar forward on the screen, reducing the amount of vibrations and sounds you make as you defeat your opponents.

Thanks to the special controllers and the way they are worn, playing Ring Fit Adventure provides a full body workout. You can train your legs and improve your cardiovascular system just by stationary jogging/squat pulsing, let alone doing actual squats during Fit Battles in the game.

One of the downsides of the game is the lack of variety in the exercises at the beginning of the game: you can only choose from 4-5 to start off with and you unlock one at the time as you progress in the story. You can also choose which exercises you want to do in each battle and although I appreciate the flexibility, a more structured approach could ensure that players don't slack off picking the easier exercises to progress.

Playing Ring Fit Adventure is not a like-for-like replacement for working out with kettlebells, dumbbells or suspension training systems, but it is a fun way to introduce people to resistance training and get them healthier too.

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Get those arms toned with Fitness Boxing

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Best for: improving aerobic fitness, toning the arms

Calories burned (in 30 minutes): 183 kcal

Fitness Boxing is seemingly the love-child of the original Wii Fit and Just Dance 2020, or any generic dance game for that matter. In Fitness Boxing, you need to perform a set of moves while following the beat of the music, with the cues floating into the screen from the bottom.

It's fun to do, especially if you like to work out to listening pop music. There are even incentives, like unlocking new music and the ability to dress your instructor up in new outfits, as you put the hours into the game. Better still, you can do workouts that target different body parts and even set the time you would like to work them out for. When training the biceps, your workout will include a lot of uppercuts and the pecs will be attacked by doing hooks.

Needless to say, your legs won't be worked too much, all that is required from your lower body is some light bouncing around, at least at the beginning. If you want to build leg muscles, check out our best glute workout piece for inspiration.

Due to the sensors in the Joy Con controllers not being as precise as an atomic clock, some of the punches are not registered and even if they were, getting them 'perfect' each time is anything but easy. If you don't mind the lack of precision, you'll be rewarded by being able to relive the glory days of aerobic boxing workouts of the early 90s with Fitness Boxing.

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Compete with friends in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Best for: HIIT upper body workouts, group exercising

Calories burned (in 30 minutes): 191 kcal

The Mario & Sonic at the Olympics series is not new the first game came out in 2007 and given the subject matter, the games in this series always had a sporty aura around them. This is the case in the latest iteration, Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, which probably should be renamed Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2021 at this point but never mind.

In the game, you can try mimicking different sports using the dual Joy Con setup and from my experience, the running-related sports are the most challenging. Some other principles, like climbing, are pretty impossible to do using the sensors: it just wouldn't register the position of the arms, even if you wave them around like a lunatic.

Where Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 really shines is the multiplayer mode.If you have a big enough TV and big enough space four people can play this game simultaneously, making it the perfect fitness party game.

There is even a story mode if you prefer to play alone and better still, there are some retro games available in this mode that can also be played later using classic characters from both the Mario and Sonic franchises.

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You won't burn many calories exploring post-apocalyptic Hyrule

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Best for: puzzle solving (not for improving fitness for sure)

Calories burned (in 30 minutes): 30 kcal

Zelda: Breath of The Wild is an amazing game with a lot of depth and it will most likely entertain you for at least a few months after you start playing with it. This game will keep your mind occupied with its shrine-puzzles and complex mechanics, not to mention the cooking feature and the bazillion side quests available to complete.

One thing Zelda: BoTW won't get you is fit, though, since you don't use any muscles to move Link around on the screen. Sure, your brain is responsible for a big chunk of your resting metabolic calories burned, but even focusing really hard on this game won't increase calorie expenditure much.

Maybe you should try doing 10 pushups every time you unlock a shrine might help you building some arm definition?

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Weight loss can be fun! We tried Ring Fit Adventure on Nintendo Switch and it is a REAL workout - T3

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How to Reward Employees in Uncertain Times

With limited funds, increased physical distanceand general uncertainty, you might find it difficult to even consider employee rewards and recognition right now. Yet its arguably more important than ever to acknowledge those who continue to commit to their work, whether they are on the front lines or working from home.

If you need some inspiration for employee rewards during times of crisis, consider the following ideas.

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Reward employees for their hard workby helping them cover the cost of food and grocery delivery. Services like Instacart, Shipt and Postmates offer annual subscriptions for free delivery for 12 months. The services typically work with several local grocery stores and restaurants to ensure a variety of choices.

Subscription costs can be as little as $99. For your employee, this reduces the overall cost, becauseeach delivery often includes a fee of between $4 and $10. They can order online or through the delivery service app to avoid venturing outside to stores.

Another option that your employees might enjoy while working remotely is a monthly gift subscription box. You have lots of options to send, including many necessities such as fresh produce, meat, prepared foodsand healthy snacks. Some subscription boxes might even help deliver a well-balanced diet. That can be a welcome gift, especially when some food items aredifficult to come by.

Alternatively, you can select a box themed around the recipients hobbies or interests. These types of subscription boxes help your team member pass the time and prove that youve been paying attention to them as well. Knowing what your employees like and need shows your personal interest in them. Theyll also realize that you are concerned about their physical and mental health.

Related: How Remote Education Is Evolving During the Crisis

Your companys employee reward doesnt necessarily need a dollar value attached to it. Often, employees simply want some recognition for the effort they make. Why not recognize and praise them on your social media channels? Share their achievements with your audience and let them enjoy the spotlight.

You can also write a post that includes a picture or video and a summary of how valuable they are to you and your company. This is also a good way to highlight your teams reflection of company values, which can resonate with other employees and customers.

Now that many workers have a bit more time on their hands, its a perfect opportunity to help employees focus on their personal and professional development. Ask them what skills they would like to develop, then give them the chance to choose whats important to them.

Give them access to online courses that focus on their chosen skills. Platforms such as Udemy and Coursera offer hundreds of free or low-cost courses that you can give your employees. Even universities are introducing free and low-cost courses for continuing development opportunities.

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Once your employees take a course, ask them about their experience and what they learned. As business improves, work with them to pinpoint opportunities for the application of those skills to company goals and projects. An educational opportunity can then be the gift that keeps on giving for everyone concerned.

When youre working from home, it is often difficult to step away from work the way you would if you had a physical office. Consequently, your employees may find themselves working more than they should. A paid break from work helps them step away from the screen and recharge.

Even though your employees may not be able to go anywhere, theyll still appreciate that you are giving them a paid mental health day. You can also offer it as two afternoons off if that makes it easier for your employees. Again, it shows you want whats best for your team members, including adequate physical and mental rest.

Another way to reward employees is to do something special for the whole team. As weeks of working from home drag on, motivation may become a struggle. This approach helps the team to focus on something positive while showing them how much you appreciate their efforts.

Related: What You Can Learn From Freelancers Right Now

In-person parties arent feasible in most areas right now, so why not host an online social event?Pick a theme and encourage everyone to dress up for the theme. You can send party packages to the team so they can decorate and participate in any games you decide to include. Even just turning your regular video call into a social hour can help your team unwind.

Make it a habit to thank your employees for what they do. Try to reference a specific reason for your appreciation. This adds authenticity to your message while also connecting the value you see in them with the results theyve achieved for you and the company.

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The 5:2 diet is a popular intermittent fasting plan that focuses on fasting for two days a week, while eating a normal diet for five days a week. It's a very handy way to avoid weight gain at home, during lockdown. As with all diets, there are a few variations of the 5:2 diet, particularly when it comes to how many calories you eat on your fast days, and what foods you should or shouldnt eat on your days off. It's a good way to Get fit in 2020.

The term intermittent fasting refers to meal plans that revolve around regulated, periods of eating and then not eating, and there are several ways you can use intermittent fasting for weight loss. The most popular variations of intermittent fasting are the 5:2 and the 16:8 diets. On the 16:8 diet you only eat during an eight hour period, and therefore fast for 16 hours a day (obviously, the period when you are asleep is included in this, which helps a tad.)

The 5:2 diet applies the principle of intermittent fasting to days, rather than hours, and so you fast for two out of every seven days. It works by significantly restricting your calorie intake on those days, which means your overall calorie intake is lower, providing that you dont compensate and eat more than usual on your off days.

The original 5:2 diet plan, popularised by the Doctor and journalist Michael Mosley, recommends that on fast days women should consume 500 calories and men should consume 600 calories, which equates to roughly 25% of their normal recommended daily intake.

Since the publication of Mosley's first 5:2 diet plan, The Fast Diet, in 2013, variations have arisen, including from Moseley himself. His most recently-revised plan, published as the blood sugar diet because of the benefits of intermittent fasting on blood sugar levels well touch on this later recommends eating no more than 800 calories on fast days.

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One thing that makes the 5:2 diet so popular is that in theory you can eat whatever you want on your 'off' days. It's true that no food is off limits and you don't have to totally deny yourself the foods you love. However, its important to be aware that what you eat on your 'off' days will impact your weight loss.

While the 5:2 diet only requires you to restrict and count calories for two days a week, naturally the better you eat on your 'off' days, the more likely you are to a significant amount of weight. If youre looking to lose weight fast youll need to be reasonably strict on your 'off' days and follow a Mediterranean diet on the non-fasting days.

If, however, youre looking for a sustainable diet that will help you lose weight and keep it off long term, then you can expect to lose around 1lb a week by fasting for two days and eating normally for five.

So what should you eat on your fast days? Its important to choose nutrient-dense foods that will fill you up more, making the calories you consume work harder for you. Vegetables, eggs, fish, lean meat and natural, unsweetened yogurt and are all good choices.

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The most obvious benefit of intermittent fasting is weight loss, because of the restriction on calorie intake. Whatever you eat, weight loss essentially comes down to calories in versus calories out: also known as your calorie deficit. In short, if you consume more calories than you burn in a day, the excess energy will be stored as fat. If, however, you burn more calories than you consume, your body will start to take energy from your stored fat, resulting in weight loss.

As well as this, intermittent fasting also benefits our blood sugar levels. When we fast whether thats not eating or eating less the insulin levels in our blood drops. Insulin is used by our cells to absorb sugar from the food we eat, so without insulin the cells are less able to use sugar for energy and so the rate of fat oxidation increases. Fat oxidation simply means when fat molecules are combined with oxygen to provide energy its what you or I would call burning.

What's more, some studies have shown that intermittent fasting helps you to lose fat without losing muscle, because fasting increases the level of human growth hormone in your body which in turn helps build muscle mass.

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The main difference between the 5:2 and 16:8 diets is the period of time for which you fast. On the 5:2 you fast for two days out of seven, but fasting is defined as consuming 500 - 600 calories. On the 16:8 you fast for just 16 hours at a time, but this means you consume nothing but water during the fast period.

Importantly, the weight loss principle is the same for both diets. By restricting your calorie intake for an extending period of time 16 hours or 24 hours your body runs out of carbohydrate to burn and instead begins to burn fat for energy.

Because neither diet restricts what you can eat, which one will work better for you comes down to lifestyle more than the diet itself. For people who have a regular routine around which they can plan meals, or who prefer not to eat early in the morning or late in the evening, the 16:8 diet is arguably easier to follow than the 5:2. On the other hand, the 16:8 requires you to fast every day, whereas the 5:2 only requires it two days a week.

What's more, the 5:2 is more likely to have a positive impact on your overall eating habits. People who normally skip breakfast and eat dinner around 7pm may find themselves accidentally following the 16:8 diet (providing they don't snack after their last meal). This could mean they don't make any conscious changes to what they eat. It's very unlikely that anyone's normal diet limits them to 500 - 600 calories, and so with the 5:2 there has to be a conscious effort to adapt your diet and make healthier choices. We think that's a good thing if you're serious about losing weight well and keeping it off.

Some users have found that it takes a little while for the weight loss to kick start, but nevertheless, the 5:2 diet works: "Initially there were two weeks when nothing happened, but after four weeks I started to lose weight," says Jackie, who began the 5:2 diet in January 2018.

Before starting the 5:2 diet Jackie weighed 9 stone 6 lbs, which put her towards the top end of the healthy weight range for her height and age. She wanted to lose half a stone on the diet, but ended up losing 1 stone 3 lbs in around five months.

"The 5:2 diet made methink more about what I was eating and how much I was eating on my 'off' days. While I didnt give anything up, I did reduce my portion sizes, particularly when it came to treats like cheese and cake. I found that fairly easy to do," says Jackie.So eating cheese and cake is compatible with losing weight? It seems so.

What Jackie found hardest was getting into the routine of cooking the lunchtime meals suggested in Mosley's book, and instead she found herself eating easier to prepare but less satisfying lunches like a sandwich made from one piece of bread. "I was always relieved to get to the end of the second fast day. Not so much because I was hungry, but because of the thought that the next day I could have things I really wanted - just not in great portions," she says.

As well as the necessity of good meal prep, users not surprisingly note that following the 5:2 diet requires willpower in order to overcome hunger on fast days. Other side effects include tiredness and low energy levels, and so its vital that you speak to a healthcare professional before starting the 5:2 diet if you are at all concerned about your health, are pregnant or have previously suffered from an eating disorder.

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The 5:2 diet: it requires willpower but can be powerfully effective - T3

Be More Keto offers customised plans to suit your requirements Image Credit: Supplied Highlight

Nyma Peracha, Co-Founder, Be More Keto, talks about how her experience with the keto lifestyle led to setting up a company to help others embark on the journey

What is the food philosophy of Be More Keto? Tell us how you came up with the idea?

Be More Keto is so much more than a quick-fix, short-time diet. With so many diet fads that come and go, here at Be More Keto we wanted to create an exciting and flavourful menu to share with people. We wanted to encourage people to not only reap the rewards of ketosis but also to enjoy some meticulously created carb-free, sugar-free, gluten-free and grain-free dishes.

Having followed the keto diet myself since 2017, Ive managed to shed all my pregnancy weight within weeks and I was convinced that this needed to be shared. I embarked on a keto journey alongside my regular fitness lifestyle and saw many mental and physical changes and I wanted to share that with others.

How does the service at Be More Keto work?

Be More Keto offers a variety of plans to cater to your personal needs. Its not one-size-fits-all concept. Like with any other diet plans, results differ from one individual to another and Be More Keto offers customised plans to suit your requirements. We offer fresh meals delivered to your doorstep six to seven days a week with a variety of packages from biweekly to monthly.

Why should people choose Be More Keto?

Be More Keto doesnt treat you like just another booking or customer; once you enroll or call for enquiries one of our keto coaches will get in touch for an over-the-phone consultation and briefing to support you when you decide to embark on your keto journey. Be More Keto is one of the few meal plan providers that offers 24-hour keto support for their clients via WhatsApp.

Where are your food products made?

All Be More Keto products are made in a central kitchen located in Dubai. Our meals are created fresh daily by our team. We deliver to Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

What is the most special thing about your products?

Aside from our 100 per cent keto-friendly flavourful food, what really gets our clients hooked are the keto desserts and the very popular keto pizza. The menu is far from boring or plain and simple. With a variety of cuisines from Italian pizza to taco salad bowls, there is something for everyone to enjoy.

In light of the current Coronavirus crisis, did you make any changes to the way you conduct your business?

All Be More Keto products are made in a 100-per-cent sanitised and FDA-approved kitchen for our clients health and safety. All our staff have their temperatures checked daily and wear face masks, gloves and protective suits to ensure safety.

Recommend some of your best-selling products.

All the food we offer is ketolicious but certain dishes that really stand out are Keto Brownies, Keto Pizza, Keto Cashew Chicken, Keto Zucchini Grilled Cheese and Keto Cheesy Tacos.

For more details visit Facebook.com/BeMoreKeto/or call 0501047459

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Kickstart your keto journey the right way with Be More Keto - Gulf News

Looking for the ultimate workout for six-pack abs? A 15-minute six pack abs workout, no less? Then Elliot Burton is your man. If you've been spending more time at the ice cream maker and less time concentrating on your abs crunches, fret not: theres still plenty of time to lose belly fat and get a six pack if you heed this expert advice. I mean seriously, just look at this guy. You can tell he knows what he's talking about. And even if he didn't, we wouldn't tell him that to his face.

Elliot is the face of fitness coaching outlet The Balance Fam and the proud owner of a washboard stomach thats firm enough to slice smoked ham on. He is also one of Grenade's ambassadors and swears by its ranges, which are among the best protein bars and best protein powder shakes.

More often than not, those looking to get ripped and to achieve shredded abs will look past the most important factor: nutrition. You can do as many crunches as you like, but if your body fat percentage is too high, they simply wont be visible. And, when it comes to lowering your body fat percentage, what youre eating and how much youre eating is key.

Diet and weight loss where required plays a huge part, so Id advise anyone to look at cutting down on fatty foods and excess sugar before embarking on the plan. After that, adding these key ab exercises into your workout regime will keep any six-pack sharp.

Below, Elliot has listed his favourite abs workout, going into detail on how to perform each move with the correct form and why it is beneficial. But first

Elliot Burton loves hanging leg raises

(Image credit: Grenade)

As Elliot explained earlier, the worst kept secret to gaining a solid six pack is cleaning up the diet and that means cutting down on refined sugars, avoiding lots of saturated fat and keeping a close eye on calorie input and output.

In short, only those with a body fat percentage of around 10 per cent or lower truly reveal the sort of washboard stomach that makes it to a Speedo photoshoot, so take a look at a few of our diet recommendations and tips below.

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Similarly, additional exercise that targets key muscle groups will require additional protein in the diet to aid muscle repair and growth. The only way to get a six pack of your dreams is to ensure the abdominal muscles swell sufficiently to create that desirable rippling torso.

Throwing in a protein shake during the day can curb the desire to snack on fatty foods and injects a healthy dose of the good stuff, while lots of protein snacks exist that are low in fact, carbs and free from sugar but still taste delicious if you really cant give up that afternoon chocolate break.

Elliot stops for a quick Grenade protein break during his quest for solid abs

(Image credit: Grenade)

For this routine, youll need an interval timer on your smartphone or computer. There are loads of free apps out there that will help you time each working interval. Set it up so you are working on each move for 30 seconds at a time, going straight into each individual exercise with zero rest in between.

Once all exercises are complete, rest for 60 seconds and then hit the routine again, aiming to complete three-to-four rounds in total. This should be sufficient to really work the abdominal muscles hard.

When performed correctly, these exercises prove to be extremely effective in building strong and defined abs, however, in order to achieve maximum results, its vital that you focus on a few thing, Elliot explains.

Focus on form throughout, ensuring the abs are tensed and you arent using other muscle groups to help perform the move. Control your breathing, aiming to breath out under tension. Finally, dont rush the movements. In fact, the slower and more controlled you are with each rep, the better the end result, he adds.

The perfect plank position

(Image credit: Getty Images)

1. Plank

An abs staple, the dreaded plank is a killer but for good reason. This exercise not only works the abs, but is great for improving posture, flexibility and ultimately strengthening the core.

Adopt a press-up position but lower your weight onto your forearms, rather than the palms of your hands. Keeping a straight line running from head to toe, keep the back flat, butt engaged and core tight. Hold this position for 30 seconds.

An advanced hanging leg raise

(Image credit: Future)

2. Leg Raises

Another essential exercise to add to your abs routine, leg raises focus predominantly on developing and strengthening the lower abs, an area which is quite often neglected with the over-use of exercises such as crunches and sit-ups.

Lay flat on your back, arms slightly out to the sides with palms facing down. Now lift both legs off the ground by tensing your abdominal muscles. Raise up, hold for two seconds and slowly lower in a controlled motion.

A progression of this movement is the hanging leg raise, performed whilst hanging from a pull-up bar. But be warned, this one isnt for the faint hearted, as it requires good grip and upper body strength. Alas, youll certainly see the results if performed consistently.

A reverse crunch is a nice play on the traditional move

(Image credit: Getty Images)

3. Reverse Crunches

The reserve crunch is a personal favourite of mine and, when performed correctly, can be extremely effective in developing a rock-solid core. Lying flat on the ground, with your knees raised and hands beneath your bottom, simply lift your feet off the ground and draw your legs into your torso and then back again thats one rep.

Its a great alternative to regular crunches and, similar to leg raises, this move really works the lower abs, which is vital if its a six-pack youre going for rather than just a four-pack.

Slow the bicycle crunches down for the bets results

(Image credit: Pixabay)

4. Bicycle Crunches

Heres one for your upper abs and obliques. In order to really see the benefit from this exercise, ensure you slow things right down. Often, bicycle crunches are performed incorrectly, with many rushing through them.

For best results, simply lay flat on the floor with your lower back pressed to the ground pull in your navel to target those abs even further. Place your hands behind your head and bring your knees in towards your chest, lifting your shoulder blades off the ground.

Straighten one leg out in front of you and twist your body towards the opposite knee, touching the knee with your elbow. Repeat on the opposite side and for a total of 20 reps but keep things slow and controlled, this isnt a Tour de France stage!

The side plank variation really works the oblique muscles

(Image credit: Tom Evans)

5. Side Plank

Another plank?! I hear you scream. Yep, and before you dismiss this vital move, hear me out. The side plank is arguably one of the most effective exercises for developing obliques and strengthening the core, making it a must-have addition to your regime.

Lay on your left side with your right arm out in front at a right angle to your body. Stack your feet on top of one another and now raise your hips off the ground by engaging your core and glute muscles.Hold this position for 15 seconds, keeping everything tight, and then swap sides.

Like the standard plank, its a movement that encompasses more than just the core, strengthening the shoulders and testing out your endurance too.

Continue reading here:
You can get a six pack in 15 minutes without even leaving your living room with this workout - T3

During lockdown weight gain is perhaps inevitable, and not necessarily the end of the world. But if you want to lose weight or at least not put on too much extra weight there is one thing you can do that is almost certain to help. It is very obvious when you think about it, and arguably not that easy, but it will give positive results, and perhaps it might not have occurred to you before.

So, you want to know how to avoid isolation weight gain at home? There is one item in a lot of people's diets that could be easily cut and would result in losing weight faster. You guessed it: alcohol, booze, and the drink. No one needs a lecture about why alcohol is bad for your health but I think a lot of you don't realise how consuming alcohol effects your diet and your weight loss. Or your weight gain, more accurately.

If Google Trends is anything to go by, everyone seems to be having more booze than usual now that we are in full lockdown. And in the case of the UK in particular, that is saying something.

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Let's get one thing out of the way right at the beginning: the best way to lose weight is not to exercise more, but to eat less. Especially now that we have to stay indoors almost all the time, eating the same amount of food as we used to will result in us putting on weight. Cutting back on calories of any sort will help you in your weight loss battle. No news there. Avoiding these 5 types of food can also help you lose weight faster.

There are a lot of misconceptions about alcohol and as I mentioned above, I'm not here to lecture anyone about just how bad it is to consume alcoholic beverages. Sure, some types of alcohols contain certain micronutrients (like minerals) that can be beneficial for health, but this doesn't outweigh the negative effects of these drinks.

One very important thing to realise about alcohol is that it is basically pure carbohydrate. Carbs are one of the three main macronutrients your body needs to function; the other two are lipids (fats) and protein. This doesn't mean your body needs alcohol to function, on the contrary. Drinking alcohol adds nothing to your diet, alcohol calories are just 'empty calories'.

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Just how many calories, though? There are a few options that are considered 'low-calorie' drinks, like vodka and diet coke. Although diet coke can be considered free of calories (still pretty bad in every way) a double shot (50 ml) of vodka contains over 100 calories. You would have to run 10 minutes to burn off those calories and that is just one drink.

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How about beer? A small bottle (12 oz/355 ml) of Goose Island IPA is 208 calories, twice as much as what's in a double shot vodka plus diet coke combo. And whoever has only one small bottle of beer when they drink? That's right, no one.

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Maybe wine? A bottle (750 ml) of Cabernet Sauvignon is just under 600 calories, meaning that two medium glasses (approx. 175 ml) contain around 250-300 calories.

We used the Drinkaware Unit and Calorie Calculator to calculate the below numbers.

For the rest, we used MyfitnessPal's database and the manufacturers websites.

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The best idea, of course, is to keep your alcohol consumption to the minimum. As I mentioned in the 'how to lose weight at home' article, being mindful about your diet and food/drink intake can help. Before you pour yourself another drink, ask yourself: do I want another drink? Am I bored? Is there another task I'm putting off by drinking?

Admittedly, on some occasions, especially during social gatherings, it is pretty challenging to get out of drinking at least some alcohol. When everyone is having beers and wines around you, the social pressure on you to have one too could be immense. Even in these cases, there are ways to reduce consumption.

If you are a wine drinker, have a soda spritzer instead of just a glass of wine. You would still get the sensation of having a wine in a wine glass, but you also drink plenty of water, which dilutes the alcohol and makes it easier for your body to digest it more efficiantly.

If you are more of a beer drinker, see if there are any low calorie/alcohol-free beers in stock. A bottle of alcohol-free Holstein is only 8 calories (!) and there are plenty of low-cal options out there, especially if you live in the US.

And in any case, if you drink a glass of water after you had a drink, your stomach will fill up sooner and you will feel fuller sooner, making you less likely to drink too much alcohol. It also helps with hangovers, too.

Continue reading here:
How many calories are in alcohol? Probably more than you think - T3

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