http://www.thepunch.com.au/author-bios/roy-eccleston/ Roy Eccleston is editor of SA Weekend at The Advertiser in Adelaide. He’s a former Washington correspondent for The Australian where he worked for almost 20 years, including stints as Queensland Bureau Chief and foreign affairs writer in Canberra. He’s covered two Olympic Games, and wrote the final cover for the now-defunct magazine The Bulletin . His work has appeared in Time, Australian Geographic, and The Weekend Australian magazine. He has won numerous awards for writing about health, and was the National Press Club of Australia’s health reporter of the year in 2007. en Copyright 2013 The Punch penberthyd@newsltd.com.au penberthyd@newsltd.com.au Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:10 +0000 Thu, 14 Mar 2013 19:00:10 +0000 Politics, opinion, world news, sports news, latest news, views, Barack Obama, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Nathan Rees, Malcolm Turnbull, Peter Garrett, Barnaby Joyce, Australian, federal politics, opinion polls, election, The Punch, thepunch, punch ExpressionEngine 1.6.7 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 15 http://www.thepunch.com.au/images/punch-logo-rss.png http://www.thepunch.com.au/ 144 70 Politics, political opinion, world news, sports news and the latest news and views updated live, daily on The Punch - Australia's best conversation. Search The Punch keywords http://www.thepunch.com.au/search/ http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/youre-wasting-your-money-on-expensive-running-shoes/ I’ve no idea how Usain Bolt started his brilliant running career as a kid in Jamaica but I’d be pretty confident the world’s fastest man did a lot of his early charging around in bare feet. It doesn’t seem to have done him any harm. In fact, when it comes to running, it may be that bare is best. At least that’s what Craig Richards thinks, and he’s spent a lot of time studying the pros and cons of sports footwear. And here’s a warning – anyone who’s just forked out a few hundred bucks for a new pair of running shoes, stop reading now. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/youre-wasting-your-money-on-expensive-running-shoes/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/youre-wasting-your-money-on-expensive-running-shoes/#item947 Tue, 18 Aug 2009 19:35:37 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/why-the-hospital-will-kill-you-before-a-plane-crash-does/ Mostly flying doesn’t bother me, although there was a time when just the thought of a trip to the airport would make me break out in a sweat. My head would suddenly fill with all the possible bad things that could happen, notwithstanding the fact they rarely do. On the other hand, I rarely worry about a visit to the doctor, and while I’d rather not see the inside of a hospital ward, I don’t get the chills at the thought of it. Sure I know there’s chance of something going wrong in even the best-run hospital, but how bad can things really be? feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/why-the-hospital-will-kill-you-before-a-plane-crash-does/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/why-the-hospital-will-kill-you-before-a-plane-crash-does/#item801 Mon, 03 Aug 2009 19:40:12 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-modest-drinkers-guide-to-growing-back-brain-cells/ For those like me who’ve wondered (worried) about how many innocent brain cells they’ve wiped out at the pub over the years, the most exciting news in ages is that, just maybe, our brains are smarter than we are. How so? The evidence is growing that the brain isn’t a fixed collection of a few billion neurones, but a living laboratory that can make its own new cells. And while that is not an excuse to wipe them out with that fourth martini, it does open up a whole new way of understanding the human mind. It’s all part of an evolving area of science which views our brains as plastic. And no, we’re not talking that hard coloured stuff they make Lego out of. The idea is that your brain is changeable. And one way to encourage it to do make the right changes is– and here we get radical – thinking in the right way. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-modest-drinkers-guide-to-growing-back-brain-cells/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-modest-drinkers-guide-to-growing-back-brain-cells/#item672 Mon, 20 Jul 2009 19:41:17 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-eight-minute-abs-six-minutes-is-enough-exercise/ If you’re like me - and hopefully you’re not, since that would make you a lazy couch potato with a strong dislike for exercise - then you’ll no doubt be heartily cheered by the efforts of a bunch of amphibious rats somewhere in Japan. Apparently two groups of these rats were set different tasks. The unlucky ones got to paddle in a pool for six hours, with a brief break halfway through. The ‘lucky’ ones got to carry a load of weight and struggle hard for twenty seconds before being lifted from the water for ten seconds, and then thrown back in. Clearly, some people have a strange idea of fun. But for the rats, there were some interesting changes. The ones that exercised for six hours got fitter. But, and this is the good news bit, so did the rats which did twenty seconds hard work, followed by ten seconds break – repeated over just four and a half minutes of swimming. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-eight-minute-abs-six-minutes-is-enough-exercise/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/forget-eight-minute-abs-six-minutes-is-enough-exercise/#item547 Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:50:17 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-secret-to-living-longer-more-orgasms/ Most things that are good for you tend to be unpleasant. I’m thinking broccoli, exercise, less booze. But there’s good news at last. The key to a longer life is more orgasms. No, we’re not necessarily talking about more intercourse, although there’s nothing wrong with that. This isn’t about the perfect partner who boosts obscure chemicals in your brain, cuts stress, and keeps you going well into the next century. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-secret-to-living-longer-more-orgasms/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/the-secret-to-living-longer-more-orgasms/#item415 Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:50:22 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/piece-by-roy-ecclestone-about-breathing/ It’s the first thing we do, and the last, but most of the time we tend to ignore it - at our peril. I’m talking about breathing, and if we took it more seriously, we’d make our lives a lot better. For instance:  While it’s tough to have any sympathy for snorers, there’s growing evidence that some of them are paying dearly for keeping everyone awake at night. Research shows that some kinds of snoring cuts off oxygen to the brain for anything from ten seconds to a minute in extreme cases - and while it isn’t clear the extent of damage is done, that’s definitely got to hurt. feedback@thepunch.com.au (Roy Eccleston) Article http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/piece-by-roy-ecclestone-about-breathing/#comments http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/piece-by-roy-ecclestone-about-breathing/#item267 Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:40:13 +0000 Roy Eccleston | Author bios | The Punch