One day you were hitting F45 daily, the gym twice a week, and running laps of Bondi to Bronte every weekend. Now you find yourself glued to your computer thinking about how far away the fridge is. The joys of self-isolation.Whether you can’t workout because your neighbours complain, or whether you simply can’t motivate yourself to work up a sweat at home, you may now find yourself in the unfortunate position of thinking: “I wonder how long it will take me to get out of shape?”If you’d like to see how to kick your arse into gear (whether by tricking your body into wanting to work out or by reading about the best self-isolation workouts), then hit our fitness section. If you simply have a morbid curiosity about what’s going to happen to your rig, read on.First up: muscles. As fitness trainer Hammad Ahmed recently took to Instagram to explain, how long it takes to lose your gains will depend on how long you have had them: “The average time before muscle loss occurs is 2-3 weeks. Strength can be maintain for up to 4 weeks before it starts to decline,” he wrote.

“This is if you’re someone who is trained. If you were only training for a little bit and are now taking time off, you won’t have the same turn around.”

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A post shared by Hammad Ahmed (@muscleengineered) on Mar 20, 2020 at 7:55pm PDT

Hammad then discussed “the science of detraining,” explaining how “Your muscle fibers get bigger from training and subsequently gain more nuclei. Once you stop training, your nuclei don’t decrease that quickly. the nuclei help resist muscle loss. This is what we call ‘muscle memory.'”⠀As for the point where muscle loss occurs? “3-8 weeks is where the decline occurs,” Hammad says. Then, in order to retrain, it’s a similar story: someone who has been at a high level of fitness for an extended period of time will get it back quicker than someone who had only just got there.

“The science of retraining. Once it’s been about 2-3 weeks you can retrain and make your gains back fairly quickly in comparison to someone who has no training history. You won’t need to go through the process of forming new nuclei.”

Then, when it comes to cardiovascular fitness, let us turn to Carly Ryan from Exercise and Sports Science Australia, who told Medibank something very similar to what we just heard from Hammad about muscle.“We know that the less active you are, the quicker the loss. For example, people who are bed bound can see significant loss of muscle mass and cardiovascular fitness in just one week. If you are still active in your daily activities the loss will be slower,” Carly told Medibank.“Age, gender, and the reason you’ve stopped exercising are also factors to consider. Meaning the effects of deconditioning due to inactivity will vary from person to person,” (Medibank).Breaking it down as simple and general as possible, you’re looking at 1-2 weeks for cardio loss, and 2-3 weeks for strength loss.

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A post shared by Peter O Reilly FRCms P.T. (@p.t.pete) on Mar 25, 2020 at 3:34am PDT

Your workout awaits.

Read Next

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• The Seven Day F45 Bender That Changed My Opinion Of This ‘Fitness Cult’

The post Losing Fitness: How Quickly Your Fitness Goes With No Training appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

With the indefinite period of self-isolation being thrust upon us right now, we’re all going to be spending a lot more time at home. There’s a good chance you’re able to continue working from a home desk, but the grim reality is a lot of us are out of work for the time being.

While you could (and let’s be honest, most likely will) spend your days binge-watching the latest documentaries on Netflix or SBS, a better use of your time could be to hone your domestic skills, such as in the kitchen. With restaurants and pubs being shut down, your kitchen is going to see more action than ever, and rather than just throw a pizza in the oven, how about you cook you and your family or roommates a gourmet dinner instead?

The good news is, there are plenty of online cooking classes that you can enrol in, all from the comfort of your home. And they’re not taught by just any old guy wearing chef whites, but famous faces instead, so you know you’re getting a first-class education.

The online cooking classes come from MasterClass and do require a subscription, but considering you’re probably not going to be going out and spending your money on anything else, there’s never been a better time to invest.

Gordon Ramsay

The famously foul-mouthed British chef has a 20-part online cooking class you can sign up to, where he teaches you from his own kitchen at home. Don’t expect to just be taught how to make dishes such as beef wellington and lobster ravioli, though, as Gordon also takes you through how a kitchen should be set up properly, as well as how to seek out the very finest ingredients.

Explore This MasterClass

Thomas Keller

Thomas Keller is the head chef of award-winning The French Laundry in Napa Valley, California, as well as being a recipient of three Michelin stars in the inaugural guide for New York City in 2005. It’s safe to say he knows his way around a kitchen. Keller has three online cooking classes available to enrol in on Masterclass, with each focusing on a different base ingredient. He’ll show you how to master everything from vegetables to meat to fish in easy-to-follow 12-minute lessons.

Explore This MasterClass

Dominique Ansel

You may not have heard of Dominique before, but the French-born, New York-based pastry chef is responsible for inventing the cronut, so he’s a winner in our book. But if you needed any more convincing that he knows his stuff, he was also named the world’s best pastry chef in 2017. If you were ever put off by the challenging nature of pastry-making, Dominique will teach you the ways in just 17 online cooking classes.

Explore This MasterClass

Massimo Bottura

Massimo is the owner and head chef of Osteria Francescana, which has consistently ranked among the top 5 restaurants in the world in the past decade. The Italian master chef wants to pass on his knowledge to you, teaching you how to give ‘regular’ classic Italian dishes fun and modern twists in his online cooking classes.

Explore This MasterClass

James Suckling

What’s better than being able to cook a gourmet meal? Pairing the perfect wine with it, that’s what. And who better to learn everything there is to know about wine than from the master that is James Suckling. James is regarded as one of the most influential wine critics in the world and has tasted over 200,000 wines in his 40-year career.

In this MasterClass of 11 online cooking classes, James focuses on Tuscan vineyards, discussing their history and what goes into wine production. More importantly, he’ll teach you how to understand the tastes, textures and aromas you experience with each individual bottle of wine.

Explore This MasterClass

Gabriela Cámara

Who doesn’t love a fajita or a plate of nachos? Nobody. But anyone can throw some chilli beef and some cheese on some nacho chips. To learn proper Mexican cooking, you’ll want to enrol in Gabriela Cámara’s online cooking classes available on MasterClass. Gabriela has restaurants in Mexico City and San Francisco which consistently receive rave reviews for their seafood dishes in particular. In her MasterClass, Gabriela will show you how to make her signature tuna tostadas as well as how to amplify the classic salsa dip.

Online Cooking Classes FAQ

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As the Morrison government announced a shutdown of gyms, cafes and pubs, to take effect the Monday just gone, the small businesses of Australia took a rather large gulp. Layoffs and much heartache ensued. That, and trepidation.John Field, owner and head coach of Bondi gym, Agoga hasn’t taken this challenge lying down. While he’s just as nervous as anyone, John is taking a unique tack to the new rules, implementing a solution for his clients and his business which combines both modern technology and old fashioned Australian creative spirit.He has made a registrar of all his equipment, invited members to come and take some home, and is conducting classes – as close to the usual routine, timetable and teachers as possible – via Zoom, a video conferencing technology app.Still, “it’s bloody challenging” being a small business at the moment, John told DMARGE this morning. “This was all thrust upon us really Sunday night, Monday morning. It kind of feels like yesterday went for a week. We’re in a bit of shock at the moment.”

“On Sunday night we changed all their accounts to reflect the fact that they wouldn’t be able to congregate together… so we’ve obviously taken a bit of a hit there – but I think everyone has.”

Though the government has stipulated that, for the moment, boot camps are allowed outside up to 10 people, John and Agoga have chosen “not to go down that route” having seen the “writing on the wall” that classes would have to be reduced further and further.“We’ve established… and we did it on Sunday, a pretty much 100% online focus for our members. To assist along the way we started up a registry of all our equipment. Given that we weren’t going to use it [we figured]  there’s no point it collecting dust.” A big risk, you might think? Not so much: “we’ve got a really strong membership base,” John told DMARGE.“I’ve known them for quite a few years so I had no problem in taking a piece of our gym home and I guess there’s a couple of wins in doing that. One: they have the equipment available for whatever workout we throw their way and two: they’re heavily motivated now but in a couple of weeks time when they’re starting to feel a little bit demotivated then they’ve got that piece of Agoga in their living room and that’ll be a reminder to jump online and sign in again.”Doing this enables Agoga to keep its core principles. As John told us: “Whether we’re open or shut it’s about that community engagement, sharing the education around those movement patterns, keep the body in as prime condition as possible and having a fun engagement with our team.”This involves “getting them to talk to me, even though they’re on mute, via sign language.” This may comprise a “hand across your throat (as in I’m done and can’t push any harder), or the virtual fist bump into the camera at the end of each session.”Agoga will continue to run as close to its existing schedule as usual, which means 24 sessions throughout the week: five Monday to Thursday, four on Friday then three on Saturday and three on Sunday.

“There’s enough chaos [in the world] so we’re trying to mitigate that.”

As for the next step, John told us he was waiting to hear what is set to be announced tonight by the government regarding the situation concerning landlords, renting, mortgages and tenancy agreements. He doesn’t expect anything in particular, but told DMARGE, any kind of assistance for small businesses along these lines would be much appreciated.

“Rather than panic, let the week see itself out and… see what happens when a bit of the dust settles.”

Read Next

• Fitness Expert Reveals How To Trick Your Body Into Wanting To Work Out
• Chris Hemsworth Exercise App Sees “Double Typical Volume” As Australians Work From Home

The post Agoga Gym Bondi: Gym Rents Equipment During Lockdown appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

Many of us are now being forced to work from home due to the global coronavirus pandemic. But that doesn’t mean work can slow down, meetings still need to scheduled, client calls need to be made and colleagues need to have daily and weekly catch-ups.Messaging each other or using apps such as FaceTime is all well and good, but for larger conference calls, only dedicated software will do. That’s where Zoom comes in. There’s a good chance you wouldn’t have heard of it before the Covid-19 virus forced the world into quarantine (we certainly didn’t here at DMARGE), but the app has seen monumental growth in the past couple of months – first time installs increased 213% compared to the week commencing March 2nd – and currently sits atop the free apps chart on Apple’s App Store.

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One reason for its popularity is the ability to see everyone involved with the call at one time. Some other video apps only show the person talking, or just a few of the most recent people to have spoken, in the window view. With colleagues needing to stay closer than ever before, being able to see and check in on one another so easily is paramount.It’s so popular in fact that people are finding new and inventive ways to use it aside from regular video conferencing. We’ve scoured the web to find the interesting new uses people are finding for it, as well as experiencing it for ourselves.https://www.instagram.com/p/B-LKCx6hEUm

PR Demonstrations/Events

We were invited to a Samsung media briefing before the coronavirus put Sydney into lockdown. This meant the event was formally cancelled, but Samsung still needed to show its latest product to us. They invited us to join a Zoom meeting so not only could we still put names to faces of company and PR representatives, but they could still show us the product and give us a full walkthrough of its features.

Gym Sessions

Governments around the world have shut the doors on gyms to help slow down the spread of the virus, but people still need to keep fit. Doing home workouts can often be easier said that done, as we wouldn’t be surprised if you lacked motivation to do some ab crunches in the front room.It’s therefore why some gyms and personal trainers are turning to Zoom so that they can still coach people and provide a curated exercise programme that people can easily follow along with at home. John Field, Bondi Gym Agoga owner and head coach, said, “We started up a registry will all our equipment and decided to lend it out to members.”

“Whether we’re open or shut it’s about that community engagement.”

“So our online [classes] have been all via zoom, so everyone can see me and they can also see each other, which I’ve had tremendous feedback on [like] ‘I thought it would just be like Fb live and just be able to see you, but being able to see everyone else makes us feel like, in a funny way, we’re still in the same room’ [people have said].”

Baptisms

Yes, you read that right, baptisms.Dumbarton United Methodist Church in Washington D.C., USA recently held a congregation service that was streamed live using Zoom. Part of the conference included the baptism of baby boy, with many users logging in to watch the service from their homes (and one user logged in whilst on the beach). Everyone who signed in to watch was also asked to pledge donations online, instead of the usual communion plate.Debbie Woodcock, one member who logged in to watch said, “I have never felt so much in communion with my community of faith as I did this morning while sitting alone in my house!”. The Dumbarton United church will continue to hold sermons online for the foreseeable future.

College Parties

The Atlantic reports that college students in the US are using Zoom to have house parties, with each participant being in their own home. Governments are urging people to not host house parties to minimise the number of large groups hanging out together. Thanks to Zoom, everyone can see other at the same time and you can even change the background surrounding your floating head to pretty much whatever you please, injecting some fun.

Education

Schools have also been affected by the global lockdown, but kids and students still need an education. Zoom is ideal for hosting virtual classrooms, and teachers have even gone to great lengths to put together packs for school children so they still have materials to work with when they’re all in the virtual class together.Harvard students have had to make the adjustment to using Zoom as well, and while many said it wasn’t the same as being in a physical room with each other, some agreed that it actually made it easier to ask their professors and lecturers questions compared to being in an auditorium.The Covid-19 virus is showing no signs of slowing down and a vaccine is still a long way away. Video conferencing software such as Zoom will undoubtedly only get more popular and more and more of us will have no choice but to communicate with one another from the confines of our own homes.

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The post Zoom Video: Unexpected Technology Taking Over The World appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

We’re getting good at hooking business flights to America and Europe thanks to our regular travel with sponsors. The airlines are not always interested in working with publishers, so we review the airlines, business class, food and lounge offerings every chance we get. This week we flew Etihad’s mighty Airbus A380 service to London.

Route: Sydney – Abu Dhabi – London (Return)
Average Cost: $9,000 inc taxes
Travel Class: Business
Seat: 13G / 11G (Rear Facing)

Etihad are based in Abu Dhabi, which is just a short drive from Dubai (the home of Emirates).

1. Etihad have by far the coolest livery of any airline. The livery dropped in 2014 and is inspired by traditional Emirati design patterns, the landscapes of the desert and the geometric shapes found in the modern architecture of Abu Dhabi.

2. The Etihad lounge in Sydney is pretty whack compared to others at the airport. The smell of tomato sauce and chips is not the best way to start a flight but their Piper-Heidsieck champagne is on-point. The staff quietly tell you the flight is ready to board, which is a nice touch.

3. Paperless boarding passes (added to Apple Wallet) of Etihad are a welcome evolution for international travel. Although they do get annoying when airport staff don’t know what to do with them.

4. Onboard service is very good. Staff are super nice—but lack the personal introductions you get with Emirates. They tend to leave you alone unless you ask. A simple smile or nod of the head when they walk past is enough to get their attention.

Note: We didn’t take any random staff photos due to privacy. 

5. Business seat product is very good, but rear facing seats are odd. However… you get used to them and don’t really notice after take off. We were rear facing for all four legs of our journey.

6. Privacy tends to be very good, however the middle rear facing seats lack the divider. This seat also means you can’t see any windows, which may annoy some people. The adjustable side screen (for rear facing passengers only) enables the passenger to get some more privacy.

7. I initially found the seat uncomfortable due to the adjustment settings. Being tall it took some time to adjust. My recommendation would be to get flat as fast as possible.

8. Etihad do not offer additional seat mattresses like Qantas, United and Emirates. This seems like a small addition which would have improved sleep quality… but they have a secret weapon.

9. Massage function is very loud and because of the back-to-front seats you can hear the person behind you reclining.

10. Onboard bathrooms are well designed and have ambient lighting. They kind of remind me of nightclub toilets. The middle toilet in between two smaller ones in the middle of the plane is larger and better for getting changed.

11. No shortage of overhead storage. More than I can remember having in business class.

12. Modern design touches are great. It’s where Etihad leads Emirates. Think a contemporary mix of tradition and technology.

13. Amenities kit by Acqua di Parma is nice: but misses essentials like hair brush and deodorant. I know Acqua di Parma make deodorant so they need to step that up.

14. Entertainment on Etihad system is top notch with many different movie and TV choices across multiple languages. The system itself is very intuitive and the screen is large. Definitely one of the best in its class.

16. We have to congratulate Etihad on breaking with airline tradition and offering business class passengers true a la carte dining. No longer are we forced to eat like cattle 2 hours after take off and 2 hours before landing. On Etihad business class you choose when you eat, anytime… but not anywhere.

17. Etihad lounge in Abu Dhabi was underwhelming, and very similar to that of Sydney. Small selection of food. Long bench style seats around the bar mean people sleep there rather than sit. The outlook onto the badlands of Dubai is rather lacklustre.

18. The bathroom had one cubicle and one shower only. Which meant long queues for a post flight number. Imagine when the lounge is full of grumpy people who need a poop & a shower…

19. They have a conveniently located spa in the arrivals lounge in Abu Dhabi. We recommend booking ahead and using it on your longer layovers.

Etihad A380 Business Class FAQ

RELATED: Insanely Luxurious Ways To Fly To Europe From Australia

The post 19 Things We Loved & Loathed About Etihad's A380 Business Class appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

It’s now common knowledge that the global coronavirus pandemic is having an effect on everyone from all walks of life. Schools are closing, workers are being told to work from home and relationships and dating has had to take a backseat too.

However, in relation to the latter, a global lockdown doesn’t mean people can’t still meet and chat with each other, as online dating sites are now proving vital for people to create and maintain close connections with one another. While many are turning to video calling for virtual dates, other dating sites such as SeekingArrangement has experienced rapid growth in the number of people signing up to its service.

SeekingArrangement isn’t your run-of-the-mill dating platform, however, as its primary focus is to partner sugar babies – young adults usually enrolled at University, with sugar daddies  – wealthy older guys who gift money to someone in return for company. The website claims it is receiving an average of 10,000 new sign-ups per day, and has experienced a 74 per cent growth in users compared to this time last year.

The company doesn’t state the breakdown of sugar babies and sugar daddies within that 10,000 figure, regardless, it’s clear the older gentleman with disposable income is using the quarantine measures being put in place to search for a new partner for when the lockdown is lifted.

Pew Research Center, based in Washington D.C., USA, recently conducted a study and reports, “The importance of making a connection and staying connected during these times is paramount for people susceptible to depression and anxiety,”

“Isolation exacerbates an individual’s level of dissatisfaction with aspects of their personal life, to the extent that they are depression-prone, where isolating them could lead to negative mindsets that get worse the longer they remain isolated.”

So even though people can’t physically head outdoors and meet-up with one another over dinner and drinks, being able to engage and communicate online is now vital to prevent people from spiralling into a depressed state.

• ‘Co-Vating’: Home Isolation Sparks Creative New Dating Trend
• 50-Year-Old Man Reveals The Struggles Of Being A ‘Sugar Daddy’

The post Sugar Daddies Worldwide Seeking ‘Meaningful’ Connection During Lockdown appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

We all know how fast the germs can spread. When we’re in the supermarket we give other shoppers a wide berth. When we’re on a plane or train we remind ourselves not to touch our face. When walking down the street we hold our breath as a jogger passes. After paying for takeaway we sanitize our hands.Then we go for dinner at our parents’ house, or friends’ and let our guard down. While this kind of gathering should now be curtailed (with the new recommendations in place), as little as two weeks ago Australians were still having large scale weddings. Even now, weddings are still allowed (though there are new, significant restrictions on their size).In this atmosphere, we let our guard down. But as the following Mythbusters video shows, these kind of scenarios are one of the worst when it comes to contamination. And before The Glib retort: “If you’re living with your friends or family (or spending time with them) you’re screwed anyway,” – we’d highly encourage you to watch the video.In the video, Adam has a drip attached to his nose, set to leak at the same rate as a usual runny nose. The liquid leaked is invisible to the naked eye, but detectable to UV light. His mission? Infect as many of the unwary guests as possible, without doing anything people don’t usually do at a dinner party. The result: overwhelming success.Though it appears today’s virus spreads even faster than the fake version of a cold this Mythbusters video tested, it proves two crucial points. Firstly: being a germaphobe pays off. And secondly: social distancing is crucial if you want to reduce your infection risk.Both points appear to be resonating with people. Even though the video was published in 2015, people are watching it today.In fact, the top comment is: “Who else is watching this to find out/learn how easy this could spread?”

“Looks like germaphobes will have a higher survival rate….be like the germaphobes.”

“This probably is great timing,” wrote another. “Practice social distancing right now during this time.”For the latest in style, travel and men’s health follow DMARGE on Instagram, Facebook or sign up for our daily newsletter.

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The post MythBusters Germs: Experiment Proves How Easily Germs Are Spread appeared first on DMARGE Australia.

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