Lutonian spotlight

FIRST ISSUE | SUMMER 2018

LUTONiAN SPOTLiGHT SHOWCASING THE TRUE BEAUTY OF LUTON

BEHIND THE SCENES AT BANNATYNE SPA

INSIDE ART & CULTURE ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES HEALTH & FITNESS

9 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE LUTON CARNIVAL

HOW WE CREATED LUTON’S NEXT GENERATION OF SMOKERS ONE THING YOU NEED THIS SUMMER IS AN EYE TEST

FREE

Local Mini Magazine

23/24 JUNE 2018 A festival of extraordinary outdoor performances

IMAGINE IL U T O N Image: The Exploded Circus

FROM THE EDITOR

IMAGINE ILUTON 23/24 JUNE 2018 An exciting free festival for all the family, bringing the streets of Luton town centre to life with the spectacular circus, theatre, dance and music performances!

Join us in 2018 for more adventures on the streets, from high-energy dances and impromptu street raves to amazing acrobatics and mischievous theatrical encounters.

Showcasing world-class acts alongside the best of homegrown talent, the festival will have something for everyone and create an atmosphere of magic and excitement all over town!

www.imagineluton.co.uk @ info@imagineluton.co.uk

Dear Neighbours, It’s finally summer time! Bring on the smoothies, sunglasses and shorts.

T

his season we would be revealing secrets on this colourful summer adventure. Did you know the Luton Carnival was cancelled once? Or that bold and bright hair colours are trending in Luton. If you want to find out read about that and 3 super chill indoor party ideas that would give you a major sugar buzz or get you utterly wasted, check out the Arts and culture section.

Did know that only around 20% of Luton residents smoke? Or that sparrows are severely endangered? Ok, I’ll give you another massive spoiler, we have some tips that would help you waste less and recycle more. Head onto the Environmental Changes section to find out more.

Due to rising interest in martial arts in Luton, we have a review on what it was like to train in the most popular MMA gym in Luton. We also found out why Bannatyne has low ratings on trip advisor. Speaking about health, we’ll talk you into going organic and getting an eye test on our Health and Fitness section.

Before I go remember to send your entries for our seasonal poetry contest to our email: lutonianspotlight@gmail.com in order for your poem to be featured on the section page.

Now you can flip to the next page, go on! I dare you.

Remember to follow us on our Social media. @lutonianspotlight Till next season my dears...

Imagine Luton Supported using public funding by

ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND

Luton Investment Programme

Cindy

3

CONTENTS ARTS & CULTURE 7

9 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT THE LUTON CARNIVAL.

8-9

HAIR THAT SPEAKS FOR YOU

10-11

3 MUST-TRY INDOOR PARTIES

ON THE COVER

ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES 14

HOW WE CREATED LUTON’S NEXT GENERATION OF SMOKERS

15

SAVE THE SPARROWS

16

HOW TO WASTE LESS & RECYCLE MORE

PAGE 7

HEALTH & FITNESS 19

BEHIND THE SCENES AT BANNATYNE SPA

21

MY FIRST EVER MMA CLASS

22

AN ORGANIC SUMMER DIET

23

ONE THING YOU NEED THIS SUMMER IS AN EYE TEST

24-25

LUTON EVENTS CALENDAR

26-27

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“

ARTS & CULTURE I have a face But it’s not my face It’s a face with flawless skin And I have eyes But they’re not my eyes Lined in black With upraised wings And the glitter and gold above them Is not mine either Shimmering and throwing light When I blink And I smile But it’s not my smile A practiced smile framed with bright red lips That are not mine either

NOT MINE - MAHIKA

But the drums beat And the flute lifts And the song starts And the excitement in my head Is as loud as the bells on my feet So I dance And the emotions I feel Are all mine

ARTS & CULTURE

9 THINGS THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT

THE LUTON CARNIVAL PHOTO CREDITS: CINDY UBAH

Steve Hoyt tells us things we didn’t know about the Luton Carnival

T

here are several things most Lutonians don’t know about the Luton Carnival that has been on yearly for over thirty years.

To learn about the Carnival I met and interviewed, Steve Hoyt the Costume Design team leader for the carnival, who has been volunteering at the carnival since 1999. Below are nine things you didn’t know about the carnival.

1. The Luton carnival artists design pieces for other towns.

Steve explained that ”Most of the groups are part of a Touring band. My band only exists with about 50 members, it could be a lot more. I have to keep it down because I’m touring and I can only afford to carry one coach and one coach consists of 50 members.”

2. During that interview, he told me that they have been preparing for this year’s carnival since September 2017, “We all work

together, which is very unique, many other carnivals don’t have groups working together, its all a big secret, its all hidden until the day. Here we help out each other as we can.”

3. “It’s a lot of hard work.

When carnival was first thought of, everyone looked at a carnival as tin foil and toilet rolls, but we’ve come a long way since then, we’ve gone round, we’ve researched. We’ve found new materials.”

4. “We are an art form just like any other. We work with metals and we work with hazardous materials. So you have to know what materials you use and what protection to use with certain materials.”

5. “It’s been shrunk from what it used to be, it used to be a lot bigger. A lot more people turned up. Last year carnival we had around ten thousand, there were years when the carnival had a

hundred thousand. We had a longer route, we ran into the town centre. We always went through the main parts of the town.”

6. “There is lack of everything.

There’s lack of volunteers, lack of money lack of everything.”

7. “Luton is the first carnival on the map, all over in the UK. It’s the first one in May. Then we’ll go up and down the country with the carnivals.”

8. “The costumes I make, I do them every year. I do a selection every year, so at the end of the year, I will recycle what I can recycle and make new ones for the following year.”

9. “The carnival has been cancelled only once here in Luton.

In 2007 and that’s because the heavens opened up and the places were flooded. There was water some places a foot deep, that was a bad year.”

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ARTS & CULTURE

HAIR THAT SPEAKS FOR YOU Bold hair fashion trends among Lutonians. PHOTO CREDITS:

PHOTO CREDITS: MARY

PINTEREST

PHOTO CREDITS: OBAWON

I

n 2018, hair in Luton isn’t just the thing on your head. It’s a canvas, a conversation starter. It boldly and uniquely conveys a memorable perception of you in the eyes of others.

Residents regardless of age and gender are more often than before rocking magically bright or dreamy pastel locks, artfully sculpted shaved sides, undercuts and low cuts hair. But does simply getting a big cut or changing your hair colour really make that much of a difference?

Upcoming musician, Babatomiwa Ogundimu (Obawon) seems to believe it does. He said, “It serves as a conversation starter.

“I make music, so as I was releasing a new project, I decided to dye my hair. I dyed it green because green is the colour of my countries flag. I was feeling very patriotic. It hasn’t brought any negative feedback, and I’ve had it for about a year”.

Although the 27-year-old loves his look, he finds it a challenge. Obawon complained that it dried his hair out so he has to condition and take care of it, “I’ve dyed it like three to four times.

“Conditioning my hair is a big challenge because I don’t usually pay attention to my hair.”

However, not everyone plans to undergo such a bold transformation. Sometimes it might just happen spur of the moment, like for 18-year old Georgios Karros (George) rocking a short yellow pixie cut.

He admitted, “I was at home. It was a challenge actually.

“My friend was like, ok let’s do that now and we did it together.”

George said he will stick with the look, “actually I don’t why, but I look more approachable, I’m going to keep it.”

Not everyone is brave enough to bleach, dye or chop their hair by themselves or do it for the first time at home, that’s why there are barbershops.

One of the barbers at Friendz barbershop who had dyed his beard believes, “it’s a personal preference.”

The barber loves the trend because every day he gets to unleash his creative side.

He said, “I like it because I like fashion and creativity is my hobby.

“Day in day out you meet different needs. Being a barber, you’re just like an artist, so whatever style that comes you just have to go with it.”

ARTS & CULTURE

The 36-year-old barber who has been styling and cutting hair for 25 years revealed that nowadays both guys and ladies want to shave sides or bleach or dye their hair.

That was what the boys think, what do girls think? Does colourful hair really have that much power?

Mary Hearne, a 30-year-old Lutonian who has been dyeing her hair for 16-years claims it does. She claims, “In some ways, I feel more confident.”

Mary said, “I suppose I first started dying it when I turned into a massive goth. I just sort of fancied doing it one time and did.”

The former goth who has dyed her hair several colours during those 16 years also admits it requires lots of maintenance and it’s fairly cheap because she buys in bulk. She said, “It probably only costs me about a fiver a month.”

Although Mary thinks more people should dye their hair, she thinks it is more acceptable for girls than boys. She said, “Generally people comment on it but positively. I think for a girl it’s easier to have dyed hair than maybe if you’re male. Because I know males that have had dyed hair and they’ve had really negative comments.”

I also got my first buzz cut in autumn 2017, I was terrified that my hair wouldn’t grow back. Although inspired

by Instagram celebrities, after getting the cut I soon realised that getting it professionally dyed and bleached monthly would be difficult as a student with limited disposable income. Instead of repeating the buzz cut I decided to cut only the sides of my hair. By January 2018, I started shaving it myself to save money but I miss the colours.

So go ahead and try it, expressing yourself through your hair. Make the streets of Luton your runway this summer.

According to George “You can try whatever you want, just do whatever you want, if you like it just try it. If you don’t like it, you can change it, but if you don’t try you’re never going to know.”

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PHOTO CREDITS: CHRISTAL

For Information on Services Contact Friendz Barbers At 01582 931856 Or Vist The Store At Inkerman Street Beside The Galaxy

STREAM ONLINE

10

ARTS & CULTURE

3 MUST-TRY INDOOR PARTIES That will turn boring summer nights into the ultimate bonding experience

PHOTO CREDITS: SHUTTERCOCK

D

uring this warm season, there are a million ways to have fun in the sun but limited options on how to spend rainy summer days or summer nights when you’re trapped indoors. Instead of wasting your summer in Luton complaining about how bored you are, why not bring the fun to yourself.

That’s why I challenge you to throw a super chill game night, a sweet pyjama party or a bingewatching movie night this summer. Any of those get-togethers would create a memorable bonding experience for you, your friends or prospective friends. But first, there are some rules you must follow.

Rule 1: Don’t cook at all. Instead of wasting your precious energy that should be spent having fun, showcasing your amazing culinary skills or lack of it, keep it simple and buy party regular party food like pizzas and doughnuts, that can be eaten from the container they came in. Lots of pizza stores in Luton have discounts for people buying for a group.

Rule 2: Don’t over-spend or over-invite. Even though this might your guest’s first visit to your home, you’re not throwing a fancy dinner party or a house party, so there’s no need to show off.

Keep them informed if they are sleeping over or if there’s a dress code or if they need to chip in regarding costs of food or drinks.

Rule 3: Clean-up and avoid creating a mess.

One mistake a host might make is to bring out glass plates and cups, they’ll either break or increase your amount of clean-up.

Clean-up the place where you and your friends would be hanging out in, either your room or the living room, make sure to consider the number of guests when choosing.

Lastly, each of these get-togethers applies to various ages and genders, no one’s too old to have fun.

SUPER CHILL GAME NIGHT Most importantly, you’ll need to invite about 4 to 12 guests. When choosing the food and drinks don’t be a dictator, ask your guests what they want and try to accommodate reasonable and affordable requests they make. Also, try to buy more than enough of an item i.e. if you have four guests buy a 12 drink pack.

If you don’t have group board games or cards, download the Party Starter app from PlayStore, the drinking game ‘Most likely to...’ would help break

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ARTS & CULTURE

PHOTO CREDITS: SHUTTERCOCK the ice and give your guests a burst of liquid courage or a sugar rush. Pair beers or sodas with pizza or fried chicken and buying in a pack would help to prevent your party from ending too early because it would be easy to monitor how drunk or buzzed your guests are getting.

BINGE-WATCHING MOVIE NIGHT This summer, a sequal of the movie Insidious, ‘Queen of the south’ season 3 and ‘Power’ season 5 are coming out. Wouldn’t it be fun to stay up at night with some of your friends that watch one of those shows or movies to refresh your memories of the previous seasons and prepare for the release of a new one.

Keep the guestlist simple with a maximum of six friends and sticking to the no-cook rule, pop over to the mall and buy one or two £3 popped popcorn from the popcorn stall in the mall, a mixed pack of crisps and fizzy drinks. Now, switch off the lights and turn on the memories of scenes you loved.

Sweet

SWEET SLEEPOVER PARTY It’s time to catch up. Invite your besties or your siblings that you haven’t seen in a while, to spend the night, after all, nothing heals more than talking it out or singing it out. Buy lots of sweets and desserts like doughnuts or cupcakes and don’t forget ice cream, get at least 2 tubs for 2 - 5 friends.

Maybe buy some vodka or wine and fruit juice for some fish bowls and if you and your friends don’t drink, skip the vodka. Recalling funny memories or inside jokes is a good way to introduce the conservation, then discuss past relationships, a little bit about politics, work or school drama and once the conversation dies out sing your pains away with some YouTube Karaoke.

So my fellow Lutonians, if you follow those three rules and throw an indoor party with one of these themes, your friends or guest would never forget how much fun they had at yours.

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PHOTO CREDITS: SHUTTERCOCK

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18 June - 24 June 2018

‘Have a Go’ Events

Join us on these dates from 10 am - 3 pm for free Adult learning opportunities. Please take a look at the FREE taster session we are offering and book online to join today!

. .

18 June Learning with the Library Coffee Morning.

Introduction to Adult Learning.

. .

19 June Learning with the Library Coffee Morning

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21 June Telling a story from a picture workshop for adults.

Introduction to the art of sharing a book workshop.

22 June

. Learning with the

Library Coffee Morning . Puppet and nursery rhyme workshops for adults.

.

25 June ‘Have a Go’ with Luton Adult Learning.

Visit our website: www.lutonacl.ac.uk/ or Call us at 01582 490033

PHOTO CREDITS: CINDY UBAH

“

ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES Sitting in the Arndale an old lady said to me Look around it’s not the town it used to be Too many people, too much noise And groups of loud teenage boys.

Places to eat and pubs for a drink, A welcoming library to study and think.

A very handy airport when we go away.

A fast train to London for work and play.

I listened while she complained at all she could see Then I shook my head and said “ I don’t agree “ I love Luton it’s the place I call home Yes, it’s changed it’s prospered and grown.

A stroll in Stockwood Park, coffee at the Hoo On a sunny day a lovely thing to do.

Schools, colleges and a university for all Let’s not forget the game of football.

Think of the good things that happen in this place We have the biggest carnival, a marathon race, Green open spaces we still have a few.

A big swimming pool sparkling and new.

MY TOWN - THERESA GAZARD

Lots of sports centres and gyms around Plans for the Hatters to have a new ground.

I could say more my list is so long.

The good outweighs the things that are wrong.

If you don’t like Luton, here’s what I say: Pack your bags and move away.

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ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES

HOW WE CREATED LUTON’S NEXT GENERATION OF SMOKERS The little things we ignored that encouraged children in Luton to start smoking.

PHOTO CREDITS: BASIL MK

I

remember the first time I was in a car with a smoker.

I kept telling myself while my face was glued to the window, ‘Just persevere, after all, there’s nothing like a free ride’, because she was my boss.

Both of my parents did not smoke, and their friends had similar beliefs. The only smokers I saw growing-up were thugs or jobless adults on the streets, so in my young mind, I had branded smoking as a repulsive act done by people I never wanted to be like in future. The second time it happened, I was shocked speechless.

My boss had her four-year-old daughter strapped to a car seat in the back as she smoked whilst driving.

That day, I researched all I could about the laws the Luton Borough Council had to restrict smoking because in my dictionary what she was doing was child abuse.

The equivalent of giving a helmet to a child hanging off a cliff, it was criminal, horrifying to watch. I discovered that it is illegal to smoke in enclosed public spaces and but “Vehicles used mainly for private purposes are not required to be smoke-free. If you see someone smoking in smoke-free premises or vehicle, you should contact us on 01582 510330”, (Luton Borough Council, 2018).

According to a report on Tobacco made by the Luton Borough Council, over £11m of Luton’s constricted budget is spent on smoking-related diseases, smokingrelated social care, smoking-related fires and passive smoking health problems when only about 20% of

adults in Luton smoke. The report also stated that “Two-thirds of adult smokers start before the age of 18.”

So how did we create Luton’s next generation of Smokers?

By not banning smoking in public spaces kids frequent like the streets, parks and preventing the sale of cigarettes near schools.

Each time a child watches their parents or an adult they look up to smoke cigarettes, they see smoking being endorsed and encouraged by their role models.

Councillor Aslan Khan, Portfolio Holder for Public Health at Luton Borough Council said, “Half of all lifelong smokers in the UK die as a direct consequence of their smoking, and smokers lose an average of about three months of life expectancy for every year smoked after the age of 35.”

The fact that people who inhale secondhand smoke are at risk of getting similar health conditions as the smokers or that our streets are littered with cigarette ends, should be enough reasons for us to petition the government to make public spaces in Luton cigarette-free zones.

Shouldn’t smoking in public be a criminal offence? Ignoring these little things is how we encouraged young Lutonians to start smoking.

For Help or More Information Visit: www.lutonacl.ac.uk/

ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES

15

SAVE THE SPARROWS! How we can help the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds to protect local wildlife.

PHOTO CREDITS: CINDY UBAH

P

ollution, modern housing, pesticides and depleting food sources are critically endangering and bringing out the extinction of many species. Among the species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list is the Sparrow, a bird species that has been popularised by movies like ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ and ‘Red Sparrow.’

To find out more about this issue and how we can help save the Sparrows, I spoke to Mrs Elizabeth R. Kelly who works with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. She was very passionate about the issue.

Mrs Kelly said, “They’re on the red list now. We have sort of an amber red warning, red means we are highly concerned and we need to watch out for that.”

She explained that Sparrows are nearing extinction because of their habitat and also because of a scarcity of food.

She said, “Years ago there used to be grain fallows but now their all locked up and the food is not available. What we are finding is that the habitat that’s left is affecting all our wildlife.”

For that reason, Elizabeth encourages locals to feed local birds with bird food from stores like Wilkinsons, Poundland and other shops that sell pet food.

She then described how to make DIY bird feeders by inserting wooden spoons in measured holes on

the sides of a plastic bottle and what seeds to put inside.

She said, “There are lots of seeds you can get in lots of different places, you can get mix seeds like mill worms, they love mill worms.”

Elizabeth also advised that we clean our bird feeders and always wear gloves when cleaning.

She said, “You’ve got to clean the bird feeders ever so often, because sometimes they trap diseases which can harm the birds, so you give them a good scrub with a little bit of detergent, just a little bit but not too much because that could harm the birds, so you’ve got to rinse it and dry it and of course use your gloves for yourself and clean the water every now and again.

“There’s a bird flu that going around and it’s very rare that that could contact humans, but it’s just hygiene.”

As a citizen of planet earth, we should try to protect the remaining wildlife by donating what we can afford to help build conservation sites.

According to Mrs Kelly when donating to the RSPB, “90% in there goes to wildlife conservation, proper educational advocacies like campaigns.

We are trying to buy land between our reserves as well, to get the numbers up, to get that continuity of nature. So with the payment, we want you to be comfortable.”

For More Information Visit: https://www.rspb.org.uk/

16

ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGES

HOW TO WASTE LESS & RECYCLE MORE

PHOTO CREDITS: LUTON BOROUGH COUNCIL

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n 2015/2016 the Luton borough council collected a total of 94,265 tonnes of its resident’s waste. This amount can fill around 6,000 to 7,000 neighbourhood garbage trucks.

However, during that period we helped the Luton borough council by recycling 35% of that waste.

Unfortunately, it is expensive to send waste to the landfill due to budget cuts and council has to reach the target of 50% of the waste being recycled by the year 2020, so we need to recycle more.

PHOTO CREDITS: CINDY UBAH

Luton is ranked 12th out of 16 in total recycling rate when compared with councils similar to it. In order to help boost Luton’s rank and reach the 2020 target, here’s how we the residents can become more socially responsible.

The first thing to know in order to improve your recycling habits is that each street has a different bin collection schedule so you can download the bin collection schedule for your street on the Luton government website.

Secondly, reduce the amount of plastic and paper cups you buy

by investing in a bottle. It will help reduce, reuse and recycle and you get a discount when you buy a drink at stores like Starbucks.

Thirdly, donate what you don’t need or want. There are lots of charity shops in Luton where you can donate anything from clothes to small furniture instead of throwing it away. You could also give food to the homeless if you make or buy food in bulk instead of throwing it in the bin.

By doing these three things you will help the council reach its target of wasting less and recycling more.

MANOR PARK UPGRADED Affinity Water and the Luton Council are working together to improve the landscape at Manor Park.

According to the Luton council, the planned redesign which will be completed by the middle of May 2018. It will make the riverbank more visually appealing and accessible. A new play area would be provided, and some of the play equipment would be replaced.

The refurbished park would also provide a better habitat for the living organism native to the local streams.

For More Information Visit: https://www.luton.gov.uk/

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“

FITNESS & HEALTH Hearts pumping, yearning for the race We grab the torch of pride and place; Let down the ropes and let the games begin With passion driving, we going in!

On foot or cycling, with balls or bats We’ll seize the game in summery hats!

Nations so many, united in one, striving With high-jumps or swimming, we going in!

Tensions may rise, teardrops may flow But it’s the innate bustling that sets us aglow; We’ll run, we’ll dance and that bit of wrestling Winning or losing, we going in!

GOING IN - MARY EMEJI

FiTNESS & HEALTH

BEHIND THE SCENES AT BANNATYNE SPA Former spa manager exposes the reasons behind Bannatyne’s negative reviews and ratings.

I

n an interview with Ola Amajie, the former spa manager at Bannatyne Health club and Spa, she revealed the reasons behind its’ negative reviews on Trip advisor. Several customers had complained about the poor state and dirtiness of the facilities and how there was very few staff around during their visits.

Ola Amajie who had worked there for around seven months was upset because she couldn’t disagree with them. She believed the penny-pinching general manager that was unwilling to invest in the business was the

biggest reason for the negative comments.

Ola stated that “Some clients would say the facilities are dirty, they are not cleaning it enough and yeah it’s true because my general manager doesn’t want to spend money on the business purely because she was more worried about her bonus, instead of spending money on the business to make the business more presentable.”

Another reason for the comments is that Bannatyne had trouble keeping employees for up to a year, so they keep hiring new staff which is not good for a business.

Ola explained, “Bannatyne likes to keep people because they have a high staff turnover because they don’t look after their staff that well.” Ola complained that the high staff turnover made the company reluctant to let go of employees who wanted to stay even if they were nonchalant towards work.

As the spa manager, “It was nice, and it was hard trying to manage people”, but Ola struggled because of a particular employee that regularly skipped work without informing anyone, which forced Ola and other employees to work her shifts. In order to fire that employee, Ola had to conduct several meetings to explain and cite evidence on why she had to sack the employee.

According to Ola, “She never comes in.

What’s the point she doesn’t come to work, I don’t need her because I’m not making money. She always makes me tend to the clients. She makes my job really hard.” Ola suspected that some of the other employees knew the company was trying to fix their staff turnover problem by not firing employees unless the absolutely had to and as a result, they didn’t work very hard.

However, Ola believes that if those problems where fixed spa days at Bannatyne Health Club and Spa might be more enjoyable for customers and they would get better reviews and ratings.

For More Customer Ratings & Comments Visit: www.tripadvisor.co.uk

19

MMA - BJJ M UAY THAI with WORLD CLASS COACHES

Ultimate Athlete 28 - 34 Chapel Street Luton, Beds LU1 2SE www.uamma.co.uk 15% Student Discount £50 a month for 6 classes a week Monday

Tuesday

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS - 6.30PM

BOXING - 6.30PM

ICON / MOREFIRE - 8.00PM

KI KICKBOXING- 8.00PM

Wednesday MUAY THAI - 6.30PM ICON / MOREFIRE BJJ - 8.00PM

Thursday

Friday

ICON / MOREFIRE - 11.00AM MUAY THAI - 6.30PM MIXED MARTIAL ARTS - 8.00PM

MUAY THAI - 6.30PM

Saturday

ICON / MOREFIRE BJJ - 8.00PM

ICON / MORE FIRE BJJ - 1.30PM

FiTNESS & HEALTH

MY FiRST EVER MMA CLASS

First hand experience, Learning Mixed Martial Arts at Ultimate Athlete.

D

uring my first Mixed Martial Arts class at Ultimate Athlete, I got a glimpse at some of the skills that make up those ‘easy looking’ moves, I had seen in numerous action movies.

I attended two out of the three mixed martial arts classes they had in a week, the grappling class and the kickboxing class. The Thursday class was definitely not what I expected. I arrived just as the warm-up session ended. Upon removing my sneakers in preparation to join in, what I saw glued my butt to the chair in fear.

The Master was illustrating the drills that would be practiced. It involved a terrifying headlock, lots of close-contact, deadly looking uncomfortable

hugs and pinning sparring your partner to the floor.

MMA definitely wasn’t like the other martial arts I practiced, it was aggressive and there was nothing like personal space.

My attention was stolen for a few seconds when Shaha Hamza, the manager asked me if I was going to join in but all I could mutter was “No, not today.”

I spent the entire session with my gaze glued to live action happening before me.

After wimping out at my first session, I returned determined to take part the following Monday and luckily for me it was the kickboxing MMA class.

Once the class started, I was lost. Everyone was throwing air punches as if they were attacking an invisible enemy. Fortunately, the people practicing around me were nice and explained every step shown. I was paired with two-time MMA champion Dan, a builder who was exhausted from working all day. This worked in my favour because we got to take many breaks, during which I caught my breath.

The class was actually fun and intense, the Master went around correcting moves that were executed incorrectly. The only problem was that there were only two other girls in a gym of about 30 people and they were privately training together for a summer MMA competition.

That day, learned how to do a side kick that switches into push kick, then I kicked the pads a few times. I devoured two 600ml bottles of water during the first forty-five minutes. I kept feeling so exhausted as if I had done several laps around the town centre.

By the time we began the sparring session, I couldn’t continue and the fact that some of the boys were kicking their sparring partners as if he was their nemesis further encouraged me to opt out. So I spent the rest of the session politely attacking a punching bag. At the end of the session, we formed two horizontal lines to perform a weird hand and lap clapping closing greeting led by the Master.

I totally recommend taking martial arts classes at Ultimate Athlete for any beginner that want to learn martial arts fast because you start sparring immediately so you learn from practicing and muscle memory instead of just remembering visual descriptions.

For More Information Visit The Centre at Chapel street or call 07388 397124

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22

FiTNESS & HEALTH

AN ORGANiC SUMMER DIET The first step to a healthy summer body begins with knowing what you eat...

PHOTO CREDITS: RIVERFORD

D

uring smoothie season, the foods we consume are the fuel we use to power our workouts and each movement we make in our daily life, but if that fuel source is contaminated shouldn’t we opt for a purer source since there’s an alternative.

Even if it’s a bit more expensive, aren’t the nutrients each organic meal provides you with worth a few extra pence you might have saved buying conventional produce During an interview, Vanessa Cook, who together with her husband owns the Riverford franchise in the Luton and Milton Keynes area discussed why there is a growth in demand for organic products.

Vanessa said, “People are choosing to go organic for a number of reasons, I think partly because of the lack of pesticides, lack of herbicides, lack of preservatives, but also they are trying to support local businesses.

She emphasised that people also “Want

vegetables that taste of something”, this statement is supported by the results of a study carried out by the British Journal of Nutrition which explains that an organic eater consumes the equivalent of a conventional eater consuming two extra portions of produce.

Vanessa also explained that “People are reducing their meat consumption, which means they need to find some more protein elsewhere and they are finding that if they cook with vegetables and pulses and nuts then they can get their protein that way.”

So this summer eat organic, you can start small, buy organic fruits first especially the ones that you eat the skin or the ones that have thin skin because the harmful chemicals might have seeped in or the crops might not have had enough time to fully develop all its nutrients.

After all, you are what you eat, so eat fresh and organic in order enjoy your food its natural state. The best part is if you order from Riverford you get to choose between a variety of foods and drinks.

For More Information Visit: https://www.riverford.co.uk/

FiTNESS & HEALTH

ONE THING YOU NEED THIS SUMMER PHOTO CREDITS: PIXABAY

IS AN EYE TEST Think you are fully prepped for summer? Did you remember to take an eye test?

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es, you have checked everything on your summer bucket list, down to the swimsuit you won’t be wearing since you hate public pools and the nearest beach is three hours away. Unfortunately, you while you were treating and pampering the rest your the body, you forgot to care for the part you used that allows you see the beauty of summer, your eyes.

However, if you’re reading this, it’s not too late to get them checked up if you’re lucky you might land yourself a free eye test from one of Specsavers street leafleters and if you can’t come to Specsavers, they’ll come test you at home. So don’t wait till you lose your sight or you’re approaching sixty. Take an eye test this summer! Before you join the “Almost 2 million people in the UK living with sight loss” (Royal National Institute of Blind People, 2014) because complete or partial blindness can happen to anyone anytime.

According to Chris Furlonger, the store manager at Specsavers

Dunstable Sainsbury’s, “Some people are classed as partially blind and they may only see movement but complete blindness is when you don’t see anything at all.”

Chris also explained that blindness can be caused by injury to the eye, agerelated conditions, cataracts, macular degeneration, glaucoma etc. He said, “It depends, there are various different conditions that can cause you to go blind right away. Injury to the eye can cause blindness. You could lose your sight due to age-related conditions and that could be a gradual change that’s why it’s vital to come to the opticians because we could then monitor that and refer you to the eye doctor at the hospital if necessary.”

Sadly, even with all technological advancements in 2018, there is still no cure for blindness. According to Chris if “It’s the nerves at the back of the eye that have died because you’ve gone blind, then no there is no cure for that but there is medical research taking place with different implants and computer technology that is helping maybe by-pass that. So there is research going on to see if they can get stimulation but not cure blindness.”

So if you are due for an eye test, haven’t had one in two years, notice changes in your vision like missing patches and halos or even a change in its colour, spare some time to visit an optician. That eye test might be the one that saves your life.

To Find Out More Or Book An Eye Test Visit: www.specsavers.co.uk

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LUTON EVENTS CALENDAR

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Sunday 13th

THE MARQUEE

Free wedding fair & venue open day at Stockwood park 11 am - 3 pm.

Saturday 19th

WELLY WALKS

Can you and your team battle blood-thirsty zombies and break free in time? Location the Luton Mall, hourly slots from 9 am - 4 pm.

Saturday 26th

DARK PARTY

Crows are performing at Edge Nightclub from 8 pm - 1 am.

Tickets available on Facebook.

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Saturday 16th

WELLY WALKS

Go on a walk with other young explorers aged 3-7 years around Stockwood park from 11 am - 12 pm.

Monday 21st and Tuesday 22nd

ESCAPE ROOM Z

Go on a walk with other young explorers aged 3-7 years around Stockwood park from 11 am - 12 pm.

Saturday 16th

SUMMER SOUL BBQ At 6 pm the event starts at Venue 360 with Eli-Conor Naughton and Mick Foster presenting.

LUTON EVENTS CALENDAR Wednesday 20th

Do you have what it takes to be crowned champions in Luton?

Full Word Cup format with at least 4 games guaranteed for each team. Prizes for winners, top scorer and player of the tournament. At PlayFootball Luton from 11 am - 3 pm.

PICNIC IN THE PARK

Saturday 21st Free entry for families with children under 5! It’s hosted by Flying start on 10 am - 2 pm at Wardown Park.

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WELLY WALKS

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Saturday 7th

HIGHTOWN FESTIVAL

Go on a walk with other young explorers aged 3-7 years around Stockwood park from 11 am - 12 pm.

Tuesday 23rd and Friday 27th

ANIMAL EDUTAINMENT

The Hightown festival will return for its 6th year this summer. Starts 1pm - 6pm. Free entry!

Sunday 8th

LUTON 5-A-SIDE WORLD CUP Children aged 5+ will be given the opportunity to learn about and handle some of the animals supervised by Walter, from 9.30 am - 11.30 am. 23th - Leagrave library, 24th - Stopsley library, 25th - Marsh Farm, 27th - Lewsey library,

HOW TO BE FEATURED For Individuals or groups interested in being featured in Lutonian Spotlight contact us via Social media.

Businesses interested in being featured can contact us by email. However, we stop receiving article requests one month before that seasonal issue is released.

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FULL PAGE DESIGNED AD - £60

LUTONiAN SPOTLiGHT

ADVERT SIZES & PRICES

HALF PAGE ADVERTORIALS - £50

FULL PAGE WITHOUT DESIGNED AD - £80

HALF PAGE - £40 Have a unique design that doesn’t match any of our advert pages?

We sell customised advert spaces, email us now to book.

We also offer discounts for advertisers that purchase more than one advert page.

Some advert pages are not sold seasonally but as a year bundle, four adverts for the price of three.

QUARTER PAGE - £20

BOTTOM PAGE BANNER AD - £30 Missed an issue, don’t worry.

Past issues are archived on our issuu page, “Lutonian Spotlight.”

Or check out a copy at your local launderettes, surgeries and waiting rooms. You could also email us if you are interested in having free copies delivered to you.

EMAIL: LUTONIANSPOTLIGHT@GMAIL.COM

CANDLES DIFFUSERS ORGANIC SERUMS

A Crackling Fireplace In A Jar!

www.emberscandle.co.uk 07866 489439