An 85-year-old whose life changed when he adopted a vegan diet in his 60s and then started to exercise in his 80s is now challenging himself to complete one million press-ups before his 90th birthday and 100 ultramarathons before his 100th birthday entirely “fuelled by plants”. Paul Youd, who lives with his wife Teresa, 75, in Taunton, Somerset, decided to take up running in his 40s, but gave up after six weeks as his knees were “so sore” due to his arthritis – he said “everything was painful” and he “couldn’t shake hands, change gears, pull up the duvet or hold a kettle”. The grandfather-of-five then bought a bicycle to reduce the strain on his joints, but it was not until he decided to eliminate meat in his 60s to “avoid mad cow disease” and later try a completely vegan diet that he said he noticed incredible health benefits, including reduced inflammation. Paul, a keen animal rights activist who formerly worked in the RAF and Royal Australian Air Force and later became a bread maker, teaching at local schools and launching his own blog called No Bread Is An Island, said he initially eliminated meat and cheese from his diet, before giving up all animal products. He then decided he wanted to learn how to do a press-up aged 80, and has since set himself a target of doing one million before he turns 90, completing more than 650,000 so far. Now, aged 85, he is on a mission to take part in 100 ultramarathons before his 100th birthday and is raising money for the vegan campaigning charity Viva!. “You don’t know what you’re capable of until you actually try it,” Paul said. “Try something and get outside of that comfort zone, otherwise it’s stultifying. “I’m living my best life – who’d have thought it? “I’m now 85 and I’m living my best life, I really am.” Paul worked in communications in the RAF and Royal Australian Air Force and as a radio officer in the Government Communications Headquarters – otherwise known as GCHQ – before taking early retirement in 1993. He then decided to train as a teacher, specifically to fulfil his passion for bread making, which he said is “a tool for family learning”, and ended up teaching until the Covid pandemic. It was at this point, aged 80, that Paul’s fitness journey began. “I looked at home exercises and started doing lots of those, but mainly press-ups, and I’ve been doing press-ups ever since really,” Paul explained. “I’ve got this challenge to do a million press-ups between the ages of 80 and 90.” Prior to the first lockdown, Paul could not perform one press-up – but he now does 1,000 every three days while listening to the news or a podcast, and has done more than 650,000 so far. After previously failing to take up running in his 40s owing to the pain caused by his arthritis – the common condition that causes pain and inflammation in a joint – he decided to try again in his 80s as he said his vegan diet, which he adopted in his 60s, had “changed (his) life”. A vegan diet is based on plants, such as vegetables, grains, nuts and fruits, the NHS says. Vegans do not eat foods that come from animals, including dairy products and eggs, and Paul said his mantra at the time was: “I don’t want another animal to die so that I can live.” Paul realised he was no longer in pain while chasing one of his grandsons around the dining room table, and this prompted him to start running around his garden. Soon enough, Paul improved his stamina and after three months he said he felt “confident to do a 10k every day, for 10 days, to raise money”. “I thought that I was going to get more tired as the week went on, but I didn’t,” Paul explained. “I got stronger and in the end I did 110k rather than the 100k I’d set myself.” The father-of-two said he quickly became “addicted” to running and wanted to “keep up this level of fitness”, so he was advised to look into ultramarathons – endurance running races or treks beyond the standard marathon distance of 26.2 miles (42.2km). Paul then completed his first ultramarathon in July 2021 – the Devon Coast to Coast, which is approximately 100km long – and said he has been “hooked” ever since. He said he loves “the euphoria” and “freedom” he experiences while running. “I just thought, I can do this,” Paul said. “I realise I should have been a runner all along because I just fell into it, I love it. “It’s a feeling of freedom and it’s a feeling of accomplishment – I’ve gone out and done this. “I’ve never ever regretted going out and training … and sometimes you get to that state of mind where you think, gosh, I could run forever, and it’s a good feeling.” Paul has completed nine ultramarathons so far and has a collection of medals on display in his home, but wants to do 91 more before turning 100 – all supported by his family and wife Teresa, who says he is “determined”. Being a vegan and animal rights activist, he said his motivation to keep going is “the desire to see animals not hurt or tortured”. He added: “If I can do anything to mitigate or alleviate that, then I will.” Some of Paul’s ultramarathon races will be virtual, where he will cover the full distance using an app, while the others will be at a specified location. He completed a 250km simulated trip from Russia to Lapland before Christmas last year using the exercise tracking app Strava to measure his distance. To maintain his fitness levels, Paul runs or walks every weekday, covering a distance of 60km per week on average, and uses a kettlebell for strength and conditioning exercises. He said he takes no medication and wants to maintain his health for as long as possible, as he does not want to “bother the NHS or the care system”. He follows a strictly vegan diet and will usually have a fruit smoothie every day – comprising kale, spinach, dates, blueberries and bananas – along with flax seeds, nuts and “lots of leafy green vegetables, beans, lentils and legumes”. He also takes beetroot juice as a performance enhancer. Paul, who still bakes bread in his spare time, said he has realised “ultramarathons are within his comfort zone” – something he never thought he would say – and he would encourage anyone else to take up running or try a vegan diet as the results for him have been “remarkable”. “We can all do much more than we think we can,” Paul said. “If I’d have recognised the fact that we can all do more than we think we can many years ago, if I’d have done that, who knows what would have happened? “But I got there in the end.” Read More Robert De Niro reveals he’s welcomed seventh child at 79-years-old Woman flew 900 miles in wrong direction due to last-minute gate change Four ‘red flag’ bowel cancer symptoms that can show two years before diagnosis Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

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Yoga and breathing control, in combination with aerobic training, can help improve lung function in adults with asthma, a new study suggests. The findings highlight the importance of integrating appropriate exercise training into asthma management plans, researchers say. The study indicates how specific types of exercise training can be effective in enhancing lung function for adults with the condition. Lead author Shuangtao Xing, an associate professor at the School of Physical Education at Henan Normal University in China, said: “Breathing training combined with aerobic training, and yoga training, appear to be particularly advantageous – offering potential avenues for effective treatment approaches. These findings should provide valuable insight for healthcare professionals prescribing exercise training for the management of adult asthma patients Shuangtao Xing, Henan Normal University “Larger, well-designed randomised controlled trials are now needed to more accurately estimate the benefits of exercise training for individuals with asthma. “These findings should provide valuable insight for healthcare professionals prescribing exercise training for the management of adult asthma patients. “However, it is essential to consider individual factors, such as family history, duration of the condition, and environmental influences, when designing exercise rehabilitation programmes. “Tailoring interventions to individual physical and mental health conditions, with careful consideration of exercise intensity, frequency and duration, is important for optimising treatment outcomes.” Asthma is a chronic lung condition that affects around 339 million people worldwide, causing symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and chest tightness. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) states that in the UK, more than eight million people, or approximately 12% of the population, have been diagnosed with asthma. However, some may have grown out of the condition, and around 5.4 million people are receiving asthma treatment. In the past, exercise was considered a potential risk factor for people with the condition, as it was believed to trigger or worsen acute asthma attacks. However, recent studies have revealed that exercise training can actually enhance lung function and exercise capacity in adult patients. To address challenges posed by variations in the specific exercises featured in research, researchers compared results from multiple treatments across 28 studies, including 2,155 patients. They examined the effects of breathing training, aerobic training – which increases the rate at which oxygen inhaled is passed on from the lungs and heart to the bloodstream – relaxation training, yoga training, and breathing combined with aerobic training, on lung function. All five types of exercise demonstrated greater effectiveness in improving lung function, the study found. Specifically, the researchers found that breathing training, aerobic training, relaxation training, yoga training, and breathing combined with aerobic training, led to improvements in the amount of air that a person could force out of their lungs in one second (FEV1), and the levels of air flowing out of the lungs (PEF). Aerobic training, breathing training, yoga training and breathing combined with aerobic training, improved the level of the amount of air that could be forcibly exhaled from the lungs after the deepest breath possible was taken (FVC). Breathing training, aerobic training and yoga training improved the FEV1/FVC ratio, the study published in the Annals of Medicine journal found. The researchers highlight that the majority of patients in the study were under 60 years of age, so exercise interventions may yield different responses in older people. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live 7 ways to ease back-to-school worries What is the best type of facial for your age range? King Charles reshuffles military roles with new duties for William and Kate

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Nottingham Forest boss Steve Cooper believes his side are heading in the right direction despite their trip to Crystal Palace ending in a “disappointing” goalless draw. Cooper’s men had their chances at Selhurst Park, where Morgan Gibbs-White saw a shot come back off a post and a sprightly Murillo was denied more than once by Eagles goalkeeper Sam Johnstone. In the end, it was a closer result than some had perhaps expected from a Palace squad that, already mired in an injury crisis, saw both Jeffrey Schlupp and Jairo Riedewald forced off either side of half-time. Cooper said: “We’re definitely the team that, if anyone deserved to win it was us. That was clear, with the chances in the game, so there’s a little feeling of disappointment in the dressing room for sure, but also knowing that performances and results like this last year were so hard to come by. “So the fact that we looked like that tonight and the way we have played means that beyond the small disappointment of not winning, we see a team that’s growing and hopefully on an upward trajectory. “I have to bear that in mind. We want to be winning games, especially when we have chances like we did tonight, how we played in the first half and how we ended the game. “But I think we’ve also got to respect that we kept a clean sheet, and for us to play like that I think is something that overall will be a real positive.” Roy Hodgson, who managed his 400th Premier League contest on Saturday, admitted he has rarely, if ever, experienced an injury crisis quite like the one plaguing the Eagles. Having already been forced to make three changes to his line-up from Palace’s 1-0 victory over Manchester United due to injuries to Eberechi Eze, Joel Ward and Cheick Doucoure, the 76-year-old was forced into two more on Saturday evening. As Schlupp hobbled off the pitch, Hodgson elected to bring on 21-year-old Jesurun Rak-Sakyi, who before the Forest encounter had played just nine Premier League minutes for Palace. Rak-Sakyi, who had a disappointing Carabao Cup outing at Old Trafford last week, was a silver lining for Palace and received a warm reception from the home support after he delivered dangerous crosses into the area and tried twice to hand his side an opener. Ultimately neither side could take advantage of what few chances they had created, but the Palace boss was full of praise for his young substitute, who returned from a loan spell at Charlton at the end of last season. Hodgson, who compared Rak-Sakyi to the injured Michael Olise, said: “I was delighted for him. There were a lot of clubs interested in taking him again. “I had to fight with him a little bit to persuade him that if he really wants to be a Premier League player he is in the best place and chances will come, and today he got that chance and I think he took it extremely well. “He didn’t just do well on the ball, he also did his defensive work. Of course when you’ve got wingers, talented wingers, that is one of the things you ask questions about: is he going to be good on the ball for those few moments he’s got it, but also what is he going to be like when we’re working hard to stop them doing something with it?” Read More Owen Farrell relieved his shot clock blunder did not cost England victory Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest play out goalless draw at Selhurst Park Jonathan Taylor ends speculation over his future by committing to the Colts Andoni Iraola admits he has to prove his reputation as Bournemouth struggle Erik ten Hag wants Man Utd late show to be ‘a turning point’ Marco Silva hails ‘class’ Willian after Fulham beat Sheffield United