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Time Out Dubai
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out Dubai
9 weird Dubai world records you probably didn't know about
Did you know Dubai has the tallest building in the world? Of course you did. But we bet there are some weird Dubai world titles you definitely don't know about. The city loves a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records, and we've dug out some of the strangest achievements so you can use them as a fun fact, or in your next pub quiz. Here are the 9 of Dubai's weird and wonderful world records Tallest crisp packet structure On Thursday June 6 2024, Lay's managed to make the tallest crisp packet structure – now surely that counts as a weird Dubai world record. Creating the shape of a crisp packet, the sculpture stood at over four metres tall and made history in the Carrefour store at Ibn Battuta Mall. Unfortunately, you can't see it if you visit the store today, but think of it as you browse the aisles doing your weekly shop. Largest flower arrangement/structure (Credit: Dubai Miracle Garden) Even the humble flowerbed is seen as a plot from which to grow a world record in Dubai. Miracle Gardens is teaming with green-thumbed gurus, and their funky floral efforts have landed them in the record books since 2016. Hailed for pruning the largest flower arrangement/structure known to man, their petal-version of an Airbus A380 measures 72.95m by 78.34m, and towers 21.98m above the dropped jaws of guests. Largest shawarma-tasting (Credit: Flayva) A recent, yet tasty, entry on this list as Flayva food hall at Al Ghurair Centre hosted the world's largest shawarma-tasting event on Thursday October 10 2024. A total of 312 participants munched on more than 900 shawarmas by Allo Beirut. Every participant needed to take at least one bite of three varieties of shawarma – chicken, spicy chicken and chicken avocado in case you were curious – for the record to be valid. Largest fortune cookie Dubai world records: Dragon Mart is home to the world's largest fortune cookie (Credit: Dragon Mart) Unveiled as part of the 20th anniversary celebrations for Dragon Mart, the fortune cookie weighs a total of 2.286 kilograms and stands at 30cm tall and 58 cm in length. But your eyes don't deceive you, pictured above is a huge larger-than-life sculpture version of the record-breaking fortune cookie which stands at four metres tall and six metres wide which sits next to the real cookie. Largest synchronised car dance Achieved on March 5 2022, 265 cars helped break the record in Dubai to bag a record for Sony Playstation. To mark the launch of the Gran Turismo 7 game, vehicles from 4x4s to supercars all got into formation. Cool right? Longest line of pies Credit: Adobe Anyone hungry? One of the tastiest Dubai world records, some 2,209 perfect pies were lined up on January 4 2021, filed by USA Pears, Emirates Culinary Guild and Jumeirah Creekside Hotel to form a lip-smackin' record. Longest wheelie (distance) on a quad bike (ATV) Sheikh Zayed Road in the modern day Credit: Canva 60 clicks is a fair old distance to cover. But ever thought about it while doing a wheelie on a quad bike? Us neither. But that didn't deter the intrepid Abdulla Al Hattawi, who managed to steer his ATV 60km while pulling a wheelie along Sheikh Zayed Road on January 2018, winning him one of the coolest Dubai world records. Al Hattawi then bagged another record in June 2022 when he travelled the greatest distance performing a quad bike (ATV) wheelie whilst balancing a person on shoulders. Longest underwater live radio broadcast (unsupported) Did video really kill the radio star? Or did it just send them under the sea? Atlantis The Palm holds the unusual record of hosting the longest underwater live radio broadcast at its Atlantis Ambassador Lagoon aquarium on May 13 2017. Radio presenter Stu Tolan was the man to take the plunge, staying submerged three metres down in an 11m litre tank for five hours, 25 minutes and 25 seconds. Turn it up! Fastest police car in service Credit: Supplied Dubai Police's Bugatti Veyron supercar set one of the craziest world records as the fastest police car in the world in April 2016. Blazing down Sheikh Zayed Road at 400kmph is now possible for the Dubai Police force, if the traffic doesn't stop them first. Dubai Police reclaimed the record from the Italian police force, which previously held the record of fastest fleet car with the Lamborghini Gallardo, capable of zipping around at speeds of up to 370kmph. The Bugatti Veyron topped that by 37kmph, coming it at a total top speed of 407kmph. Most people to parachute from a balloon simultaneously (Credit: Guinness World Records) Skydivers can be spotted all day, every da,y plummeting to earth above The Palm. But rarely do you see more than a handful falling in tandem. Which is why the world record of 25 thrill seekers simultaneously descending from a balloon makes for quite the spectacle. An adrenaline-fuelled day and a record to take home, this record was made all the way back on February 10 2013 at Skydive Dubai. Looking for things to do in Dubai? 112 amazing things to do in Dubai in 2025 Everything to tick off your Dubai bucket list The best Saturday brunches in Dubai to try this weekend (whatever your budget) You need to try these brunches at least once Here's how to eat at 12 expensive Dubai restaurants for less Yes, even at the Burj Al Arab
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘The Last Of Us': Differences Between HBO Series & Video Game Across Seasons 1 And 2
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways SPOILER ALERT: This post contains spoilers for both seasons of The Last Of Us. HBO's television adaptation of the Sony Playstation game The Last Of Us took several departures from its source material in Season 1, with the creative direction of Naughty Dog's Neil Druckmann, who is also responsible for the award-winning game. More from Deadline Season 2, which has reached its halfway mark, also splits off here and there from The Last of Us Part II — the sequel RPG game of which it is based. Below find an in depth breakdown of the major changes to the narrative in the television adaptation. Season 2 Abby's Physique & Motive Kaitlyn Dever in 'The Last of Us' Season 2 Fans were quick to point out that Kaitlyn Dever, who portrays Abby in HBO's adaptation of the video game, does not match Abby's build in the game itself. However, Druckmann has already explained why Dever's physique was not a concern when casting her for the role. RELATED: 'The Last Of Us' Creators Discuss Season 2 Premiere & Tee Up What's To Come: 'So Much Of The Season Is About Consequence' 'We need someone to really capture the essence of those characters…. We don't value as much, 'Do they look exactly like the character with their eyebrows or their nose or their body?' Whatever it is. It's not nowhere on the priority list, but it's below a bunch of other things that we consider,' he previously told Entertainment Weekly. Another huge change from The Last of Us Part II involves the revelation that Abby is a former member of the Fireflies, the militia group that Joel is delivering Ellie to in the first game/season in the hope of finding a cure for an Infected bite using Ellie's immunity. In the beginning of the Season 2 premiere, viewers learn that Abby has a personal connection to someone who was killed in the hospital when Joel murdered everyone in his path to save Ellie from her own demise — and she vows to make Joel pay. In the video game, viewers are not privy to Abby's motives or her backstory until much later, even playing as her at times without fully knowing who the character is. Joel's Death In the second episode, Joel goes out on patrol with Dina and, as they're seeking shelter from a snowstorm, stumble upon Abby being chased by a horde of Infected. This sequence unfolds a bit differently in the game, as Tommy is on patrol with Joel, not Dina. However, much of the remainder of the sequence is very similar to the game. RELATED: 'The Last Of Us' Creators Break Down Season 2's Heartbreaking Second Episode & Its Enduring Implications Abby offers to let them seek shelter at the lodge that she and her friends are in. When they arrive, Abby introduces the strangers she's brought, and the crew set to work knocking out Dina (in the game, Tommy) and brutally murdering Joel. As Abby is beating Joel to death, Ellie walks in and is tackled, forced to watch as Abby delivers the killing blow. The Horde of Infected Resurrecting From Snow In the game, Abby is being chased by a horde of infected when Joel finds and saves her. This also happens in the series, except the horde of Infected then descends upon Jackson and breaches the town. Gabriel Luna (right) as Tommy fighting an Infected person Ellie and Dina Go To Seattle Joel's death is the inciting event for the story in The Last of Us Part II, which focuses on Ellie and Dina's trek to Seattle and, more specifically, Ellie's quest to make Abby pay for killing Joel. There are a few notable differences between the show and the game in terms of how this unfolds. Since Tommy is with Joel when he's killed in the game, he's also the one who tells Ellie the names of Abby and her crew. In Episode 3, Dina is the one to tell Ellie who Joel's killer is, and she's also tracked down more information about them and their whereabouts, as well as their affiliation with the Washington Liberation Front. They bring the information to Tommy, who discourages them from leaving because Jackson doesn't have the resources to support them, which is similar to a conversation he has with Ellie in the game. RELATED: 'The Last Of Us': Gabriel Luna Reflects On Tommy's Trauma In The Aftermath Of Jackson's Infected Attack & A Major Character Death Ultimately, in the series, they put it to a vote with the Council, which votes against sending manpower on this mission, but Ellie and Dina sneak out in the middle of the night and go anyway. In the game, there's no council vote, and Tommy actually leaves in the middle of the night in hopes that he can take care of Abby before Ellie and Dina have a chance to, but upon learning he left, the two of them go after him. Ellie & Dina's Relationship In Episode 3, Ellie and Dina have a conversation about their kiss during the New Year's party that is almost identical to a conversation they have in the game, where Dina asks Ellie to rate the kiss. In the show, they're sleeping in a tent on their way to Seattle. However, in the game, this conversation happens when Ellie and Dina are on patrol near Jackson and Joel is still being tortured by Abby. They are eventually interrupted by Jesse, who tells them that Joel and Tommy are missing. Isabela Merced and Bella Ramsey in 'The Last of Us' Season 3 Ellie and Dina are also intimate for the first time in that game sequence, but in the show they don't get physical during that interaction. Three Month Time Jump In the game, there's no explicit time jump after Joel dies like there is in the series, though it implied there is at least a small one. The opening sequence of the third episode shows Tommy visiting Joel's body in the morgue and Ellie waking up in a panic in the hospital, clearly still suffering intense PTSD from watching Joel die. There's then a three-month time jump before Ellie finally gets out of the hospital and visits Joel's house (similar to a sequence in the video game) before Dina tells her everything she knows about Abby and her crew. On their way out of Jackson, Ellie visits Joel's grave for the first time. In the game, Joel's death scene cuts almost immediately into a scene of Ellie at Joel's grave. Isaac's Introduction Jeffrey Wright as Isaac Dixon in 'The Last of Us' Season 3 Isaac is the leader of the WLF, played by Jeffrey Wright, who is reprising his role from the video game in HBO's adaptation. In the game, most of the player's understanding of Isaac and his ruthlessness comes from references by other characters. Episode 4 of the show, however, expands greatly upon his character with two scenes that are not in the game at all. The first opens the episode, with Isaac betraying his FEDRA unit by throwing grenades into their armored vehicle. This is a pretty significant change from the game, which never insinuates that Isaac was once associated with FEDRA. The second scene takes place 11 years later, when Ellie and Dina are searching for Abby in Seattle. Isaac is interrogating a Seraphite for information on the group's plans for their next attack, and the dynamic adds to the audience's understanding of the conflict between the WLF and the Seraphites. Seraphites and the WLF The third and fourth episode of the series take quite a few liberties in depicting the conflict between the WLF and the Seraphites early on. However, there are also several notable moments from the game that made it into the show, including the scene where Ellie and Dina stumble upon the disemboweled bodies in the radio station and deduce that the Seraphites were responsible. This comes after an Episode 3 scene, which isn't in the game, where Ellie and Dina come across a group of Seraphites who have been massacred by (they assume) the WLF. Dina and Ellie Reveal Their Secrets Undoubtedly one of the most anticipated moments from the game is when Ellie reveals that she is immune and, in turn, Dina tells Ellie that she's pregnant. The moment unfolds similarly in the television show, although there are some notable differences. The Last Of Us Perhaps the biggest difference is the way in which Ellie's immunity is unveiled. In the game, Ellie and Dina encounter spores in the transit tunnel while running from the WLF soldiers and, when Ellie's mask breaks, she's forced to explain to Dina why she won't become Infected. In the show, Ellie throws her arm in front of Dina to save her from getting bit. Dina's reaction is pretty similar in both the game and the show, and she ends up revealing her pregnancy in this moment of duress. However, Ellie's reaction to that news is quite different in the game than in the show. In the game, Ellie is very angry that Dina didn't tell her about the pregnancy earlier, calling her a 'burden' and illustrating the dark and hardened path Ellie is already barreling down by this point in their journey. In the show, Ellie is quite excited by the news and essentially tells Dina she's looking forward to starting a family with her. This is likely because of other changes in the timeline of Ellie and Dina's relationship. In Episode 4, the revelation of their secrets is what finally sparks the physical intimacy between the two of them that breaks down all the walls they'd been fighting to keep up about their feelings for each other. In the game, Ellie and Dina have already been romantically involved for quite some time by this point. Season 1 Pilot Episode's Talk Show Opening The talk show that opened the very first episode of The Last Of Us Season 1, in which two doctors were being interviewed about a potential pandemic related to cordyceps, only happened in the TV show. The video game takes viewers back to the early days of the cordyceps infection, but the show takes it back even further to a fictional 1968 TV program in which one researcher pitches the problem of a potential fungal infection that global warming could accelerate. The Timeline The pilot episode introduces a slightly different timeline in the TV show versus the video game. The game begins in 2013 before jumping to a post-apocalyptic future set in 2033, while the show starts in 2003, and the 20-year time jump leads to post-pandemic 2023, which was the year the show launched its first season. Sarah's Story Is More Prominent The show spends much more time on Joel's (Pedro Pascal) daughter Sarah, who gets his watch repaired and wants to celebrate his birthday, which falls just short of Outbreak Day, or September 26. Tess & Joel's Relationship In the game, the relationship between Tess (Anna Torv) and Joel is less romantic, but the show suggests they are more than friends and partners in crime in a few ways, through a scene in which Tess embraces Joel in bed one night and then also Bill's (Nick Offerman) letter to Joel telling him to use what he and Frank (Murray Bartlett) left behind to protect Tess. The Way Cordyceps Spreads In the game, spores are a huge threat to players as when ingested, the funges can start to grow inside the body, but the show stresses direct contact as more of the ultimate way people get infected — specifically being bitten. Craig Mazin, who developed the series with Druckmann, previously explained that the elimination of the spores was a practical move, given that, in reality, spores would likely spread very quickly into open air and infect most of the population. Anyone who was not infected would need to wear a mask at all times, which would not make for interesting television. Tommy's Absence In the show, Joel has lost contact with Tommy for a bit after they would contact each other regularly via radio while Tommy was in Wyoming. In the game, the pair are separated seemingly because they aren't close anymore. Gabriel Luna as Tommy Miller in 'The Last of Us' Season 2 The Scientist In Jakarta Christine Hakim's Dr. Ratna Pertiwi, who was tracked down by the Indonesian government to secretly identify a cordyceps-infected woman, is introduced in Episode 2 of the show. This background context sequence is not in the video game. The game focuses more on the outbreak within the U.S., so this addition to the show suggests Jakarta was the starting point of the infection where Patient Zero bit the dead woman. Ellie's Immunity In the game, Tess and Joel become convinced that Ellie can't be infected because she inhales spores and doesn't come down with the disease. Of course, with the shift from spores to direct contact through bites, Ellie in the show has a bite and some scarring from when the infection attempted to take hold in her body after the fateful night where an Infected person bit her and her best friend Riley (Storm Reid). The show also has her get bit again, which ultimately solidifies her status as someone immune to cordyceps. The show fleshes out this backstory in the finale. Tess' Death Anna Torv as Tess in 'The Last of Us' Season 1 In the game, Tess is killed by FEDRA agents that tracked the trio outside the QZ. Tess takes a stand in the show against a horde of Infected because she is herself also infected and knows she only has so much time left either way. Ellie's Love of Mortal Kombat In the video game, Ellie finds an arcade cabinet for The Turning, rather than Mortal Kombat, which alludes to her love of Mortal Kombat II. Bill & Frank's Love Story The third episode in Season 1, which tells the story of how Bill and Frank met, is one of the biggest departures from the video game. In the game, Bill hasn't died before Joel and Ellie get to him, and he has actually split from Frank by that point. Nick Offerman / Murray Bartlett as Bill and Frank in The Last of Us, Episode 3 Kansas City Instead of Kansas City like in the show, the game watches Joel and Ellie head to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, after visiting Bill's compound. Melanie Lynskey's Kathleen also does not exist in the video game. Her show character amalgamates a few different characters from the game. RELATED: 'The Last Of Us' Season 2 New Characters: Who's Who? The pit of Infected people who were banished underground in KC also does not show up in the game, though the show has quite a sequence involving a pack of them overrunning Pittsburgh. That moment also introduces a Bloater — the type of infected person covered from head to toe in cordyceps mushrooms with the split apart brain of a Clicker. The Bloater actually first show's up in Bill's section of the game. Ellie's 'First' Kill In the video game, Ellie kills a raider attacking Joel, but the show has her stab a raider whom Joel delivers the final killing blow to. Henry and Sam Ellie and Joel bump into Henry (Lamar Johnson) and Sam Burrell (Keivonn Woodard) on the street in Pittsburgh versus the pair of brothers sneaking up on Ellie and Joel in their sleep. Keivonn Woodard as Sam in 'The Last of Us' Season 1 Sam's deafness depicted prominently in the show, is not as specific in the game. Henry's FEDRA informant backstory is unique to the show, as is the lack of Infected people in the Kansas City tunnels the quartet navigates. Ellie's application of her blood to Sam's infected wound also doesn't appear in the game. Wyoming The couple Ellie and Joel encounter at the beginning of Episode 6 in The Last of Us Season 1 are not present in the video game. When Ellie and Joel find Tommy and his wife Maria (Rutina Wesley) at their compound in Jackson, Wyoming in the show, Tommy tells Joel that Maria is pregnant. She is not expecting a baby in the video game. RELATED: 'The Last of Us' Season 2 Release Schedule: When Do New Episodes Come Out? Joel also does not have panic attacks in the game like he does in the show in Wyoming. Ellie's Response to Joel Asking Tommy to Escort Her the Rest of the Way West In the game, when Ellie overhears the brothers talking about passing her off to Tommy for the remainder of what would have been her journey with Joel, she runs away. Joel's Wound at Eastern Colorado Campus Joel fell onto a metal rod in the game to cause his near-fatal puncture wound that a raider gives to him by stabbing him with a knife in the show. Ellie and Riley's Backstory Storm Reid as Riley in 'The Last of Us' Season 1 In Episode 7 of The Last of Us Season 1, Ellie flashes back to the story of how she first got bit by an Infected person in an abandoned mall. In the game, this flashback is brought about when Ellie is forced to scavenge for supplies to try and heal Joel's wound in a different mall, but that sequence changes in the show when she finds a needle and thread in the kitchen of an abandoned house where she leaves him. The show also expands Ellie's time at the FEDRA academy where she met Riley. Riley and Ellie also attempt to play The Turning in the mall in the game vs. Mortal Kombat II in the show. Riley's Firefly status is not as clear in the game when she takes Ellie to the mall, while she was stationed there in the show. Riley and Ellie's encounter with the single Infected in the show was made different from the horde they face in the video game. Ellie's Birth Ashley Johnson in 'The Last of Us' Season 1 The details of Ellie's mother Anna (Ashley Johnson, who voices Ellie in the game) giving birth to her as they unfold in the show are not seen in the game. Anna being bitten by an Infected person before she cut Ellie's umbilical chord expands the lore of why Ellie is immune. This is not explicitly laid out in the game, but as Marlene (Merle Dandridge) says in the show, a doctor thinks Ellie is immune to infection because the cordyceps in her has grown with her since her birth, and anytime she was infected with the other strain, her natural one would fend it off, making the fungal cordyceps infecting everyone else think Ellie was already cordyceps. RELATED: 'The Last Of Us' Cast And Characters Across Seasons 1 And 2 Of Videogame Adaptation Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. 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Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Yahoo
Woman charged with assault, robbery
A 28-year-old southeast Harnett County woman was charged Tuesday, April 8 with two counts of assault with a deadly weapon stemming from a break-in on Gordon Lane Sunday. Deja Nicole White, who was held on a $100,000 bond, was arrested following an investigation where a home was broken into and a victim, Daniel Devane, was shot and robbed between 1 and 1:30 a.m., according to eCourts. According to an arrest warrant, White allegedly stole a Sony Playstation valued at $700. Devane was also allegedly threatened with a screwdriver. The Harnett County Sheriff's Office is looking for three black men who allegedly accompanied White in the crimes. White, who is listed with an address on Ranger Lane in the Shady Grove Mobile Home Park in the Anderson Creek area, is also charged with first-degree burglary, robbery with a dangerous weapon, possession of stolen goods and conspiracy, all felonies. She also faces a misdemeanor charge of first-degree trespassing stemming from Feb. 17 when she allegedly failed to leave the home of William Junior McMillan at 101 E. Washington St. in Lillington. White was charged with communicating threats stemming from Feb. 19, 2020, but the charge was dismissed because the prosecution witness, Latoya Lakesha Wright, failed to appear.
Telegraph
24-02-2025
- Health
- Telegraph
I thought I was a fit 52-year-old – until I tried Reformer Pilates
Sciatica, it turns out, is no fun. After a week of being unable to sleep because of the burning sensation running down my leg, coupled with some excruciating lower back pain, I realised that I should probably do something about it. But I was at a bit of a loss. I think of myself as being reasonably healthy for a 52-year-old bloke. I'm not overweight, I cycle to work most days and I took up running a couple of years ago: 10km around the neighbourhood is now part of my weekend routine. So I'm fairly confident that my thighs still work and that my heart ticks over adequately. However, until the sciatica hit, I had never, ever, done an exercise class. Never done weights or bench pressed (to be honest I still don't really know what a bench press is), and had certainly never attempted to 'body pump'. And exercise – proper, co-ordinated exercise – seemed to be the key to ridding myself of all the leg burning and back pain stuff. Fixing that, I was told by a sympathetic colleague, would be all about strengthening my core, improving my posture (ruined as a result of decades sitting at a desk) and reversing some of the muscular atrophy that is the curse of all men in their 50s. Ideally, they said, I should try Reformer Pilates. Now, in as much as I'd ever previously thought about Pilates, I'd assumed it was the sort of thing highly toned women did while finding their inner zen: light exercise with a wellness tinge. But it turns out that plenty of men – some of them quite famous – also swear by it. Cristiano Ronaldo does it. Hugh Grant, too. David Beckham reckons Pilates has put him in his 'best shape in years'. I'm not sure Jeremy Clarkson will ever be one of my role models, but even he confesses to 'not unenjoying it'. The thing that gets them going is the 'Reformer' version I'd been advised to try. This is Pilates – which, it turns out, is far from light exercise – performed on a weird bed/rack contraption with various ropes and pulleys. (Clarkson calls it a 'sex orgy dungeon table'.) You can see the attraction from a male perspective: it's Pilates with a Sony Playstation vibe, plus the potential for a bit of a lie-down at some point. The idea of using precise movements and controlled breathing to build up my strength had a certain appeal: a bit science-y, a bit Karate Kid. So once the sciatica had calmed down a bit, I booked myself a class at my local studio, part of a chain that runs across north London, Hertfordshire and Essex. I was quite excited by this point: a body like Beckham was now the bare minimum I was aiming for. The reassuring mantra that plenty of men do this was immediately undermined when I arrived to a swing-doors-of-the saloon, hold-the-sarsaparilla silence and the certain knowledge that I was the possessor of the only Y-chromosome in the room. I immediately had a prickly feeling that I was intruding on a sisterhood where the bants would be absolutely terrific if only the smelly boy hadn't turned up. But it turns out that a Pilates class is not particularly chatty, nor is it sound tracked by thumping dance music, or led by people in leggings trying to be Jane Fonda (all of which had been high on my anxiety list). Instead, to the gentle crooning of Chris Martin from Coldplay, I was gestured towards my Reformer – one of eight available; the small class size is part of the appeal – and made the first tentative enquiries into the existence or otherwise of my core. Joseph Pilates was a German physical exercise guru who was born in 1883 and pioneered the idea of using repetition to work on muscle exertion. He also invented 'the apparatus' which evolved into the 'universal Reformer' that is used in Pilates studios around the world today. Controlled breathing is at the heart of it all. You breathe out when you are exerting yourself, which apparently helps engage your core and provides stability in your spine. You are encouraged to think about breathing at all times: expanding your ribcage as you inhale and contracting it when you exhale. There's also a lot of chat about the transverse abdominis, which is your key Pilates muscle. I promise to let you know when I've worked out where it is. All this takes some getting used to. A typical routine would include strengthening exercises for the lower back, or planking while sliding the platform below you, followed by stretches using a Pilates 'ring' (another piece of equipment to master, which helps add resistance to exercises involving your arms and shoulders). You keep repeating the movements under the guidance of your instructor, then layering extra elements of complexity, with some 'pulses' at the end of each exercise (by which point I'm often close to collapse). There's also a box, which you sit on, stand on or stretch out on, in 'long box' or 'short box' configurations. Our class uses some light weights as well – nothing terrifying – often with a pulley looped over one arm. Ah yes, the pulleys. There's an exercise that appears regularly towards the end of a session during which I desperately hope I won't catch anyone's eye. Lying on our backs on the Reformer, feet caught in stirrups, we do slow circles with our legs and various groin stretches. At one point our instructor said what we were doing should feel as if we were 'pulling a tampon up inside ourselves', before adding, for my benefit, 'or pulling 'your boys' inwards'. Frankly at that moment 'my boys' had rarely felt so alarmed. But all that repetition really works. I've had some embarrassing moments: it's terrifyingly easy to fall off your Reformer while you are involved in some tricky balancing positions, and I've had to learn by sneaking glances to my left or right what 'cat pose' and 'child pose' are supposed to look like. There was also an awful impasse at one point where it became evident that I had absolutely no idea what a crunch was. But each class is held as if everyone is a beginner and individual routines are often adjusted mid session in order to ensure people get the most out of them. And, just to reassure you, occasionally another bloke will turn up. In fact, I'm reliably informed that my local studio has more than the usual number of men as clients. To be honest, I tend to be too busy 'exhaling on the effort' to do more than nod a greeting. Gentlemen, I'm proud to be a Reformer. As one instructor told me, if you're after muscle mass you lift weights in the gym, but if you want to look 'cut' – which apparently means visible muscle definition and low body fat – then Reformer Pilates is the answer. I wouldn't say I'd got to the 'cut' stage quite yet, but I genuinely think I've gained some upper body endurance, more flexibility and a better posture. I still get my glutes and abs confused occasionally, and I suspect my core will never be completely engaged, but my sciatica has gone completely. And that's a result to be proud of, even if I don't get a body like Beckham's any time soon. Three Reformer Pilates exercises to try Bicycle crunches Lie back on the reformer platform with your head in the head rest, your legs in tabletop position and your hands in the long loops pointing towards the ceiling. Exhale as you bring the loops forward and move your head into a crunch. Incorporate one leg per repetition, pointing it towards the mirror or wall, inhaling as you return to neutral, and repeat. Shoulder retraction Kneel facing the back of the reformer and hold both loops with your palms facing forward. Keep your back straight and shoulder and abs engaged Keeping your arms straight, pull the loops to the side of your body while exhaling, and repeat. Single leg lunge with bicep curl Select your chosen weights. Place one foot on the side of the reformer and the other near the front of the carriage, a hip's width apart. With your standing leg slightly bent, push the carriage away with the other leg in a lunge while exhaling. At the same time, do bicep curls upwards with your weights, and repeat. Then do the same, lunging with the other leg.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
EU proposes ban on video game sales to Russia in new sanctions
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission included restrictions on sales of video games and joysticks to Russia in its 16th package of sanctions on Moscow, the proposal document showed. The restrictions would impact sales of consoles like Microsoft's Xbox, Nintendo's Switch and Sony Playstation. "Video game controllers, gaming controllers, flight simulator controllers, gamepads, joysticks and other input units, for video game consoles or entertainment systems, either corded or cordless" should be restricted, the proposal said.
