The summer holidays are the perfect time to get out and about and become more active.

If your goal is improved fitness, follow this advice from sports therapist Ed Pratt.

1 Know why you’re doing it

BEFORE you start, sit down and have a serious think about why you want to get fit, advises Ed Pratt, of the Teesside Sports Injury Centre. “Some people say they’re doing it for their children, or for their partner, but at the end of the day, you have to be doing it for yourself for it to be successful,”

he says.

“For some, getting fit may be about weight loss. For others it may be a case of toning up, and for many, it will be about improving their general health.”

2 Get checked out

IT’S vital you see your GP if you’re about to embark on a get fit campaign if you have any health conditions.

It may also be worth getting checked out if you have had a sedentary lifestyle for a number of years.

Going straight from a desk-bound job to pounding the streets isn’t a good idea and could spoil your fitness regime before it’s even got properly started, leaving you injured and unmotivated.

3 Choose your sport

IF you take up something you love, you’re far more likely to stick to it.

Don’t make the mistake of enrolling for aerobics classes just because you feel you should. If you like dance, check out your local dance studios or classes. If you’re competitive, go to your local football, hockey, netball or rugby club and see if you can join a team. If you like being alone, think about walking or running.

“Getting these things sorted from the start will make sure you have a sport that you will enjoy all year,”

advises Ed.

4 Decide on your goal

SOME people like to set goals so they have a major event to aim for with their training. If you like running, it may be a 10k charity race or a half marathon.

Maybe there’s a swimming event or a cycle race you’d like to take part in – or you could combine all three with a triathlon. If your goal is to lose weight, you need to remember a simple equation. If the calories in are greater than the calories you use, you will put on weight. It isn’t enough to stick to a diet. You have to include exercise if you want to get fit and stay fit.

5 Use the ten per cent rule

ONCE you’ve started your new regime, you can gradually increase what you’re doing by ten per cent each week. For example, if you run 8k an hour, step it up so you’re running 10k in the same time within a fortnight. That way, you’ll progress gradually and be at less risk of injury than if you jump straight in at the deep end.

6 Avoid the dangers

IF you start off by doing too much, too soon, you will put too much stress on the muscles and this may lead to injury. Once you have aches and pains from exercise, you’ll be put off and less likely to continue.

Make sure you always warm up before exercise – if you run, walk for the first half mile – and do some stretches afterwards. Always give muscles a chance to rest after a workout – overworking them is a major cause of injury. Also, make sure you have the right equipment for the sport.

7 Troubleshoot

IF you have aches and pains, don’t leave them for weeks before you get help, advises Ed, who specialises in helping clients in their teens up to 80-year-olds to maintain fitness.

At a first consultation, a sports therapist will take a full history and will examine the injury as well as gait and posture. If appropriate, they will show clients some exercises that can be done safely at home.

Subsequent appointments will involve treating the injury with massage and mobilisation, which will relieve stress and muscular tension. If a client is relaxed, there’s a higher chance of better movement in a joint anyway. This also works for tight necks and shoulders from sitting at computers and desks, adds Ed.

■ Ed Pratt is a sports therapist with Teesside Sports Injury Centre. He works from Hambleton Leisure Centre in Northallerton and Bedale Leisure Centre. Call 01677-427272 or 07837-276444 or visit teesside-sports-injurycentre.

org for more information.

An initial consultation costs £30, with follow-up charges of £25 for an hour and £15 for 30 minutes.

Gift vouchers are also available.

How beastly is your salad?

IF you think salad is always a healthy option, think again, says Which? after it found a salad sold at a supermarket containing more calories than a Big Mac and fries.

The consumer organisation bought a selection of 20 prepacked salads on the high street and found that Smedleys Atlantic Prawn Marie Rose Salad, £1.49 (300g), which was on sale at Morrisons, contained 855 calories and 66.3g fat, which is more than a McDonald’s Big Mac and medium fries and 70 per cent of the fat a man should eat in a day.

Another unhealthy option was Asda Chicken Caesar Pasta Salad, £2 (297g), which contained 43g of fat, nearly as much as six Cadbury’s Creme eggs.

Mayonnaise or creamy sauces were often the reason many of the salads were so surprisingly high in calories and fat. Mayonnaise dressing was the second biggest ingredient (27 per cent) in an M&S Pasta with Tomato and Basil Chicken salad, £3.20 (380g), which had 760 calories and 46g fat.

Sainsbury’s Tomato & Basil Chicken salad, £2.95 (350g), was also comparatively high in fat.

The label specified that it had no mayo but the ingredients list revealed that it contained egg yolk, oil and white wine vinegar – the same ingredients as mayonnaise.

Another potentially confusing label was on a Tesco Tuna Layered Salad. At a glance, it seems the salad contains 275 calories and 20.5g fat – but this is for half the pack. If you eat the whole 350g pack (a reasonable amount for one person), you would consume 550 calories and 41g fat.

Which? wants food companies to adopt one label so that shoppers can see at a glance levels of fat, sugar and salt. Definitive research by the Food Standards Agency shows that a combined label including traffic light colours, guideline daily amounts, grams of nutrients per portion and the words high, medium and low works best for consumers.

Martyn Hocking, editor of Which? magazine, says: “If you thought your high-street salad was healthy, you could be in for a surprise. Which? has found that there were large differences between the amount of fat, saturated fat, salt and calories in prepackaged salads. Check the label or you could end up with egg on your face.

“This latest research backs up what we’ve been saying for ages – a clear, consistent labelling scheme is important to help people spot how much fat, sugar and salt is in the food they’re buying.”

■ You can work out how healthy your salad is with the Which? food shopping card at which.co.uk/shoppingcard