Exercisers ‘must invest in a decent pair of fitness shoes’

Women exercising in order to lose weight and keep it off should make sure they invest in a decent pair of running shoes, an expert has claimed.

Peter Hier, editor of the Running 4 Women website, said that keen runners should undergo gait analysis, which measures how a person runs in terms of where they apply the most pressure and how their body moves.

"If you are going to start running and you are going to start running regularly, you need to go to a store that does gait analysis," he emphasised.

Mr Hier went on to say that the shoes need to be properly fitted as, if they are the wrong pair, they will not give the runner the support that they need.

He stressed that this was particularly important for those exercising on hard footpaths, tarmac or roads.

His comments follow a presentation from Dr Eeva Karjalainen, of the Finnish Forest Research Institute in Metla, which claimed that natural, green settings are better for exercise than indoor weight loss sessions, as they can strengthen the immune system.

They also help in reducing stress, improving mood and reducing anger and aggressiveness, she added.

Why not add jogging outdoors to your weight loss-motivated exercise plan?