Personal Best

When you pass a mirror, do you automatically suck in your tummy? Are you doing any extra fitness to get your stomach ready for the beach? Never mind the look on the outside, how much attention do you pay to the inside - to your GUT? This week Gillian Russell and the team are aiming for a "personal best" in gut health...! Doctor, blogger, personal trainer and author of "The Food Medic For Life" Hazel Wallace explains what happens in our guts, why the bacteria inside us matter and the role stress and relaxation play in our gut health. Richard Forbes meets Katrina Mather, founder of The Body Toolkit, to find out about the gut retreats she runs for those in need of a reboot ... while Grace describes the benefits she (and her gut!) felt from trying out their juicing fasts and changing her diet. Dr Wendy Russell from the Rowett Institute Of Nutrition & Health talks about what foods we should be eating to improve our gut health, whether detoxing and juicing work and the connection between our gut and our brain.

Grab your jacket, your shades or your brolly - today Gillian Russell and the team are embracing the hugely successful Daily Mile scheme by getting outside and doing a mile throughout the programme. What could be simpler? Staff at Birchwood Highland down tools and join the Personal Best team on a lunchtime walk. Will they be persuaded to make a daily habit of it? Elaine Wyllie, founder of the Daily Mile, talks about why they've decided to expand it to encourage older children, students and adults to walk, jog or run a mile a day. Trish Gorely from the University of the Highlands and Islands talks about the research done into the mental and physical health benefits of the Daily Mile for primary school pupils. What kind of positive impact could it have for us adults? Chris Thompson from Living Streets, the charity for everyday walking, advises on the kind of phone apps that can help motivate us to get out walking. Paul Kelly from the University of Edinburgh describes the research they did into how active -

Whether you're training for something or just want to get a bit fitter for the summer, what's your routine after exercise? Stretch, have a warm bath and eat protein? Or is it more likely you'll have some cake and slump in front of the tv?! Gillian Russell visits Perth College and asks if it's time we paid a bit more attention to our muscles after we exercise...? Physiotherapist Sarah Watts explains what happens to our muscles during and after exercise and why the right kind of recovery is important. Dale Roberson, lecturer in sport and fitness at Perth College, describes what active recovery is all about and how we can implement it into our routine. Andy Murray famously recovers his muscles by plunging himself into an ice bath - what is the extreme cold doing and would some kind of freezing treatment be useful for the rest of us non-elite athletes? David Jenkins from Sports Therapy Scotland uses cryotherapy for pain management and exercise recovery ... so Richard Forbes goes to meet him to find out just ho

Gillian Russell ask how we can create - or perhaps regain - our Personal Best body confidence when life takes an unexpected turn? Sarah Russell, exercise specialist in rehabilitation and coaching, talks about the extent to which her body image changed (ultimately for the better) after major surgery... while Stephie Simpson describes the impact colitis had on her own body image as she was growing up. Elaine Davidson explains the effect her hair loss had on her body confidence and how she managed to create a more positive body image. How confident are you about your teeth? If you missed out as a child would you consider braces as an adult? More adults than ever now want treatment so what's it like taking the plunge when you're older? Anna Welander explains why she decided to get train tracks as an adult. When you've undergone something major like breast cancer surgery, how do you begin to regain your body confidence? For Carol McAlpine, the decision was to have a tattoo done to cover her scar. Producer Rich

Whether it's a wedding speech, a presentation at work or speaking up at a community council meeting, most of us will have to face public speaking at some point or another ... and yet studies show that it's one of the things we fear most in our lives! Today Gillian Russell and the Personal Best team have come to Eden Court Theatre in Inverness to learn how to improve our public speaking so that we've got our own toolbox of tricks and techniques available when we need them most! Voice coach Kate O'Connell and PR expert Laura Bruce give public speaking novice Andy Grant a mini masterclass on relaxing and projecting your voice, what to do to get yourself feeling and sounding confident, how to get your posture right, whether to include humour and why breathing is key. Style consultant Amanda Latham offers advice and inspiration for getting our clothes right and explains how our appearance can have such an impact on our confidence when we're taking to the stage. Jonathan Davies from Eden Court Theatre's creative

Chemotherapy. Radiotherapy. Surgery. Drugs. That's probably what you expect to be prescribed when you've got cancer - but what if your doctor was to suggest exercise as well? On this week's Personal Best, Gillian Russell looks at whether prescribing exercise is a realistic step... Angela Roberts talks about her experience of exercising during and after chemotherapy for breast cancer. Dr Anna Campbell from Napier University explains how exercise can benefit a cancer patient, what type of exercise and how often might it be useful ... and how much of an impact it can have on our mental health. Plus is there any evidence it might help to prevent recurrence? Personal Trainer Kristeen Pollock describes how her mum's cancer diagnosis led her to start working with cancer patients. Dr Juliet McGrattan explains why her passion for fitness has led her to quit her job as a GP to concentrate on encouraging others to become more active, believing she can have more of an impact on people's health that way than writing pre

Do we all need get outside more? According to recent research, 80% of people in Scotland feel that they spend too much of their free time indoors so should we be using what's all around us as a route to health and happiness? An adventure playground? An outdoor gym? Ian Walker from the Royal Yachting Association talks about the research and the ways in which we can all get outside more... Gillian Russell joins sailing first-timers Helen and Rhona on a yacht, under the watchful eye of Nairn Sailing Club's Paul Chaplain, to find out how much they're typically outdoors and what's stopping them from spending more time outside. How much do they enjoy the great outdoors, would they like to spend more time outside ... and will they develop a taste for sailing? David Bushell explains why he decided to return to sailing in his 50s and wife Anne describes what she gets, both mentally and physically, from being outdoors. Richard Forbes meets Jennie Martin from the Wild Things project to find out how their walking gr

Does being fit and active matter to you? If so, are you planning to stick with it in years to come? Or if you've never really got round to exercise, do you think that you've perhaps left it too late? Gillian Russell is at Grangemouth athletics stadium seeking inspiration from athletes in their 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s who all say age is no barrier to getting fit. Phyllis (62) and Hugh (92) talk about how running has been a part of their lives for as long as they can remember and explain what keeps them motivated as they age. Keen runners Jim, Janette and Bob describe how they all came to fitness later in life and what inspired them to get started. Photographer Alex Rotas talks about her passion for photographing older athletes and why she's on a mission to challenge our perceptions of what we're capable of as we age. Hazel Mollison from Age Scotland describes the barriers some of us may encounter when it comes to keeping active in later life and how we might overcome them. Exercise physiologist from Bournem

Is sweating good for body and soul? Gillian Russell spends a hot half hour in a sauna in Callander to find out everything you ever wanted to know about sweat... Dr Stuart Galloway from the Faculty of Health Sciences & Sport at Stirling University explains what sweat is, why we sweat and what's going on in our bodies when we sweat. Do antiperspirants work, how can we effectively replace fluids after sweating when we exercise and do men actually sweat more than women? Gillian tries out a hot yoga session at Heat Fitness in Stirling and asks instructors Jack and Jules about what the heat and sweat can do for us physically and mentally. Excessive sweating can be debilitating and embarrassing for some people. Dr Carol McAllister explains to Richard Forbes how botox can work to alleviate the symptoms. Elizabeth Pawley from Heart Song Healing describes what a sweat lodge is and how the heat and sweating can be beneficially for our mental health and wellbeing.

On today's Personal Best, Gillian Russell discusses two menopauses: the female one (if you've been through it, is there stuff you wish you'd known and if you haven't, how well informed are you?) ... and also the male one (is it even a thing?) Consultant urologist from Men's Health Scotland Michael Fraser talks about whether the male menopause exists ... or is it actually a midlife crisis? Or quite simply - ageing? What symptoms might men experience? Do we all need to be more aware of them? John shares his experiences of going through what he describes as the male menopause. Ruth Devlin from Let's Talk Menopause talks about some of the lesser-known symptoms women might experience (eg joint pain and genitourinary issues) and describes how much of an impact diet and exercise can have on alleviating symptoms. Susan and Sybilla share their menopause experiences and talk about the importance of being better informed and prepared. Physiotherapist and comedian Elaine Miller explains the importance of using humour

Gillian Russell visits Greenhills Care Home in Biggar to find out from fitness instructor Fiona Pagett and manager Jean Dunlop about the weekly dance and movement classes the residents are taking part in. Stephen - whose wife Jane has dementia and is currently in the care home - explains why dancing has always been so important to the two of them and how they're able to dance together again during the weekly sessions. Stephen and Jane's daughter Sarah describes the impact the dance sessions are having on her parents and why she's written a blog about the family's experiences of coping with her mum's dementia. Research Fellow Dr Alison Dawson from Stirling University talks about the CHARMS project which is all about encouraging care home residents to move more and explains why something like dancing might be useful for people living with dementia.

This week's Personal Best is getting up close and personal... While we seem to be getting better at addressing our physical and mental health ... and we understand the importance of sleep, relaxing and de-stressing ... what about our sexual health? Is it even on your radar?! If we're stuck somewhere between playground sniggering and the prudish Victorian era, isn't it time we normalised sexual health? Gillian Russell is round the kitchen table with Susan, Britta, Sibylla and Valeria talking sex education, sexual health and whether attitudes differ from country to country. Norwegian medics Nina Brochmann and Ellen Stokken Dahl explain why they wrote their book The Wonder Down Under and the importance of more open, honest conversations about sexual health. Richard Forbes visits a sexual health clinic in Aberdeen to find out from consultant Steve Baguley about what brings people through their doors. How much do we know about what the clinics do and would you ever go to one? To what extent has there been an i

Neurologist Jules Montague talks to Gillian Russell about the personal story which led her to write her book Lost And Found. From dementia to brain injury, from personality disorders to coma, Jules explores memory, identity and who we become when our minds misbehave. Are you still the same person when something changes in your brain? Eric Sinclair, who had a stroke a few years ago, talks about how it affected his personality and identity ... and explains why he thinks it's important for us to consider these changes as much as the physical ones. Wendy Mitchell, who has dementia, describes how and why she's adopted a positive approach to the changes she's encountering with her memory and identity.

They're stuck at the end of your body - usually encased in socks and shoes - but just how much thought do you give to your feet? Love them or loathe them, Gillian Russell is on a mission to find out if they get the attention they deserve? Not so much the psychiatrist's couch but the podiatrist's chair ... Gillian (absolutely not a foot-lover!) reluctantly removes her socks and visits podiatrist Lindsay McKerrow to find out just what we can do to have happier, healthier feet. Enthusiastic walkers from the walking group Step Up Highland describe what they do to take care of their feet. If you're a runner, how much time do you spend thinking about your trainers? Run For It manager Ryan McKenzie gets Gillian running on the treadmill for some gait analysis and describes what to take into account when you're purchasing running shoes. Not to be outdone, Richard Forbes is also taking his socks off! He tries out a reflexology session and hears from reflexologist Shenagh Leiper about what it can be useful for.

Swearing? Biting your nails? Smoking? Spending too much time on your phone? Gillian Russell delves into our bad habits and asks just how much our health and happiness might improve if we knocked them on the head? Author and expert on the power of the mind Dr David Hamilton explains what exactly habits are, why we form them in the first place, what's going on in the brain when we indulge a habit and why bad habits are always harder to kick. Ruari Fairbairns, author of The 28 Day Alcohol-Free Challenge, returns to find out how Gillian and guest Suzanne Lockhart got on with their quest to quit booze for four weeks. Have they actually completed it and did they feel any better? What did they learn about themselves and their drinking habits? If a habit gets more serious and starts to take over your life ... whether that's sugar, shopping or social media ... what would you do to break the cycle? Jo De Rosa has been there herself and through her own experiences, she's now developed Quantum Sobriety ... a novel app

If you've been glued to the Winter Olympics on tv, has it inspired you to give some of those sports a go ... or do you tend to feel they're just for elite athletes? Gillian Russell visits Lecht Ski Centre to seek inspiration and ask whether more of us should consider including winter sports as part of our fitness and health regime... Exercise physiologist and beginner skier Dr Susan Dewhurst talks about how much she enjoys skiing, having taken it up just a few months ago. She explains the physical and mental health benefits we can gain from a range of winter sports and how useful they can be for us right into older age. 88-year-old Myrtle Simpson shares her passion for skiing and demonstrates that age is no barrier when it comes to pursing an activity you enjoy. Snow-sports and mindfulness? Ski and snowboard coach Euan Baxter explains how snow-sports can be good for us mentally because you're absolutely "in the moment" and immersed in what you're doing. He also shares his tips for gaining and building on c

Woof! Miaow! Squeak! Gillian Russell explores how much of an impact pets can have on our fitness, our health and our happiness. Gillian goes out walking with Margaret Ross and her dog Harry to find out how much he contributes to her health and happiness ... and about the work Harry does as a therapy pet. Matt Robinson from Pets As Therapy describes the difference the animals can make to the lives of the people they visit in hospitals, care homes and schools. Staff and pupils at Crown Primary in Inverness explain how the Read2Dogs scheme works and the impact it's having on reading time. Dr Carri Westgarth, Research Fellow from the University of Liverpool, talks about the research she's doing into the social, physical and mental health benefits of dog ownership. Louise Russell explains why she set up Give A Dog A Bone, a charity which aims to tackle loneliness in older people and the rising number of animals in shelters by bringing the two together. Moira Clark, who got her dog Leo through the scheme, desc

It's Valentines' Day this week ... and if you have romance in mind ... would you consider using Coaching Cards For Couples to enhance your relationship? Gillian Russell speaks to Kim Morgan, Managing Director of Barefoot Coaching, to find out why she created the cards and what she hopes couples will get out of them. Producer Lauren and her fiance Duncan took a pack of cards home and put them to the test - but will they still be smiling at the end of it?! It's a buzz phrase in business and in the sporting world but what exactly is Growth Mindset? Dr John Paul Fitzpatrick, Director of Teachmindset, talks about the work he's been doing in schools across Scotland to try and instill the principles of growth mindset (a love of learning, resilience and effort) ... and explains just how the rest of us can apply it in our everyday lives too. Staff and pupils from Hillhead Academy in Glasgow share their experiences of using growth mindset, both within school and in the outside world. Alan Gow, Associate Professor o

Would you make a big life change if you weren't scared? Mike Lewis did just that and has created a global community of fellow "jumpers" who share their experiences of creating the life they want. Mike talks to Gillian Russell about his book When To Jump, the four stages involved in taking a leap and how even making small changes can have a positive impact on our health and happiness. Life coach and runner Julie Creffield shares her experiences of jumping and describes how she's been able to use her story to advise others who want to make positive changes in their life and step out of their comfort zone. Founder of Brainworkshops Phil Dobson explains what's going on in our brains when we're out of our comfort zone and why it's good for us to deliberately stretch and challenge ourselves. GP Ollie Hart describes his experiences of doing stand-up comedy and reveals what he has learned from being completely out of his comfort zone! Despite being overweight and inactive, Dawn Nisbet pushed herself out of her co

Throughout January there are no New Year's Resolutions here on Personal Best! Instead Gillian Russell and the team are focusing on trying new things, changing our perceptions of what's possible and filling our lives with more of what's good for us so we can squeeze out some of the bad habits! Kiko Matthews explains what new things she's trying this year and how she hopes her challenge of rowing across the Atlantic will empower other women to give something new a try... Alex Rotas talks about discovering a passion for photography, her joy at photographing older athletes and why she wants her pictures to change perceptions and challenge the stereotypes many of us have about old age. Rabbi Steve Leder, author of More Beautiful Than Before, explains how pain can have a purpose and that by changing our perceptions of and approach to pain - both physical and mental - we can actually learn from it and grow.