Our Sporting Life

Grassroots and amateur sports magazine

Proud Sponsors of the Saddleworth 3Ds U9 Whites

We’re over the moon to sponsor the kit for an under 9s football team this season. The Saddleworth 3Ds U9s Whites are playing their football in the East Manchester Junior Football League!

Good luck, 3Ds!

u9 whites

The Latest
treadmill
fitness
Andy

4 Tips for Staying Active While Working from Home

Work from home has been an immense change since Covid enabling flexibility and much more convenience than a daily commute. But many remote workers note it means they move less. So how can you stay active while working from home? Here are some tips.

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solo female hiker in winter
Hiking Blog
Stacey MacNaught

7 Reasons to LOVE Winter Hiking in the UK

Winter hiking can be brutal. And for those of us (erm, me) who particularly love hiking on warm days with loads of long daylight hours, winter might not be our favourite season. But here are 7 reasons to love hiking in the UK in winter.

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female hiker looking at a map in the mountains
Hiking Blog
Stacey MacNaught

Hiking Time Calculator using Naismith’s Rule

Here’s a handy little hiking time calculator based on Naismith’s rule! How accurate is it? Well, as ever, these things depend on your own fitness and so forth. But I’ve always found Naismith’s rule to be a handy benchmark to aim for in terms of time for any given route.

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portable power banks for charging while hiking
Hiking Blog
Stacey MacNaught

Best Portable Charging Banks for Hiking

Traditionalists may not like it! But personally, I don’t like to risk being stuck on a hill or mountain with a dead phone or head torch battery. So I like to carry a portable charging device (or 2, or 3) with me. Here are the best portable charging banks for hiking that I’ve used. (And I’ve used a lot, by the way).

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Our Writers and Editors

It’s really important to us that our content is created by people who know and love their topics. So we source contributions from external experts as well as having our own in house writers who cover their own areas of expertise. If ever we’re offering up health or fitness advice, we want to know it’s coming from someone qualified to give it. So we work with doctors and personal trainers as well. Some of our writers and listed below.

Stacey MacNaught

Stacey MacNaught

Hiker & football coach

Stacey is a keen hiker and mountain ridge walker. She’s also a grassroots football coach for an U8s team.

Christopher Czermak

Tennis player & coach

Christopher is an enthusiastic tennis player and qualified coach. He’s been playing since the age of 6 and now shares his love of the sport with other aspiring players. 

Dr Andres Maldonado

Dr Andres Maldonado

Doctor

Andres Maldonado is a a doctor currently located in Venezuela and working at the country’s International Unit of Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery. He writes for us on anything health related.

Melanie Gilder

personal trainer

Melanie Gilder is a qualified personal trainer and dance teacher who specialises in female fitness. She works with clients to achieve improved fitness as well as weight loss. She writes for us on fitness tips and advice

Our Footballing Life

Football. From 6 year olds running around on a Sunday morning to the mighty England women’s team selling out stadiums, football has a special place in our hearts. Here’s where we share articles, features and news on football.

Read them all. 

Our Hiking Life

Hiking. From gentle flat trails to mountain ridges, getting out on foot can be the most relaxing or the most exhilarating way to experience the scenery around you. We love a good hike. And in our hiking blog, we share trails, reviews, hints and tips on all things hiking.

 Read them all. 

Research

Our Statistics and Research

womens football statistics illustration

Women’s and Girl’s Football Statistics UK

The momentum behind women’s football is phenomenal. But how many women play football? How many played as children? And what are the audience sizes like? We take a look in our 2023 round up of women’s and girl’s football statistics.

Everything You Need to Know About Under 10s Football in England

There are specific rules, set out by the Football Association, that must be followed when playing football at under 10s level. “Mini Soccer” is played by all children up to the age of 10. All you need to know about the sport for children at this age is set out below – from how many players on a team to the size of the pitch, goals and even the size of the ball that is used.

2 Children playing under 9s football

Everything You Need to Know About Under 9s Football in England

Football at under 9s in England follows the laws of Mini Soccer. These laws entail the maximum playing time for children, how many players can play in a match and even the size of the ball that should be used. If you want to get your child involved in Football and they are in this age group, here is all you need to know.

under 8s football goalkeeper

Everything You Need to Know About Under 8s Football in England

Under 8s football adheres to the FA laws of “Mini Soccer,” which determine the age of players, time limits on games and other things too. Got a child going into under 8s football or considering it? Here’s everything you need to know about football at this level in England.