Tabata catch-up

Lori Anderson’s article about the latest fitness fad, Tabata (Perspective, 27 December) made interesting reading, particularly as most of us will be coming out of the festive season having eaten and drunk too much, and done very little exercise.

Ms Anderson warns of the risk of the “HIIT” method (high intensity interval training), which is what journalist Andrew Marr was doing before he had a stroke earlier this year.

I am no expert on either diet or fitness, but shouldn’t we just keep it simple if we want to lose weight or get fitter?

Surely – unless one is a professional athlete or hopes to become one – it is just a 
matter of eating less and more healthily, drinking less alcohol, and doing more exercise, of any kind.

And rather than spending money we don’t have on fancy classes and gym sessions, shouldn’t we just incorporate this additional exercise into our daily lives?

The mental health benefits that can be gained from taking a few minutes to walk in a forest, on a hill – or even in a city park – are immeasurable.

ANGELA INNES

Dundas Street

Edinburgh