If you’ve ever pushed yourself through a hard workout, you’ve probably “felt the burn.” It’s that familiar sensation of pain and exhaustion in the muscles, where they almost feel like they’re on fire.

This feeling has long been said to be caused by a build-up of lactic acid in the muscles. In fact, this remains a common explanation from recreational exercisers to elite athletes.

But this belief is wrong – and lactic acid actually has nothing to do with the burn we feel when we exercise.

The origins of the lactic acid myth go back to the early 1900s. Scientists discovered that when they electrically stimulated the muscles of amphibians, lactic acid accumulated. This happened both when the muscles lacked oxygen and when they were stimulated until they fatigued.

Based on this, and the understanding of biochemistry at the time, it was concluded that when muscles work hard and they aren’t getting enough oxygen, lactic acid accumulates and muscle fatigue develops.

However, this early work never explicitly said that lactic acid caused muscle fatigue. Rather, it said that muscle fatigue is accompanied by increases in lactic acid. Just because two things happen at the same time does not mean one thing causes the other. But the misapplication of cause-and-effect led to the birth of the lactic acid theory of muscle fatigue.

Lactic acid accumulation was thought to cause muscle pain and fatigue in two main ways: by impairing some of the processes involved in muscle contraction, and by reducing the muscles’ ability to generate energy. Both effects were thought to be due to lactic acid making our muscles more acidic, which could also cause sensations of pain and burning.

But as our knowledge of biochemistry improved, by the end of the 20th century we discovered some things that cast doubt on the lactic acid theory.

First, the normal pH of our body tissues means that lactic acid actually cannot exist in our bodies; nearly all of it is broken down into lactate and hydrogen. These chemicals are produced in our bodies all the time, but in much larger amounts when we do hard exercise.

Lactate is produced within our muscles through the process of glycolysis, which converts glucose (sugar) into energy. Hydrogen is also produced within our muscles when we’re more active and exercise intensely.

Second, while lactic acid and lactate sound similar, there’s a big difference. If lactic acid were to exist in our body, it would make our muscles more acidic – but lactate does the opposite.

Lactate production actually makes our muscles less acidic by consuming hydrogen. This is important because it’s hydrogen, not lactate, that increases muscle acidity.

So in short, lactate doesn’t increase acidity in our muscles when we exercise. It actually reduces acidity, which helps us exercise harder, for longer.

Lactate production also isn’t proof that our muscles have run out of oxygen, as is sometimes believed. We produce and use lactate when oxygen is abundant – including at rest.

Lactate can also be used as fuel for our muscles, heart and brain – both when we’re exercising and resting. New research is also shedding light on a much broader range of benefits that lactate brings, such as immune system regulation, reducing inflammation and wound healing.

But as can be expected with something as complex as the human body, lactate’s role isn’t always straightforward.

Lactate appears to play a small part in the complex process of muscle fatigue in combination with other substances that are produced by the body during hard exercise. But lactate alone has very little detrimental effect on exercise performance.

What’s actually going on?

The question of what actually causes our muscles to burn during intense exercise is something that’s still being studied. But it appears to come down to what triggers our nerves.

Specialised nerves in and around our muscles detect substances produced when we exercise. These nerves connect to areas of our brain responsible for sensations of muscle pain, as well as the emotional responses associated with these sensations. The harder we exercise, the more of these substances we produce and the faster the nerves fire.

So the burning sensation in our muscles during hard exercise is due to the increased stimulation of these nerves. The nerves likely respond to a combination of different substances the body produces during exercise, rather than any single one.

Muscles soreness in the hours and days after a workout is also not caused by “lactic acid” – nor is it caused by lactate. Lactate returns to resting levels within about 30-90 minutes after intensive exercise. That’s long before the typical peak in muscle soreness that occurs one to three days following a hard or new workout. The causes of post-workout soreness are not fully understood, but likely relate to increased sensitivity of nerves to contraction, stretching, and compression of our muscles.

As persistent as the lactic acid myth is, it’s just that: a myth. It’s an example of how easily a single, misunderstood view can be passed on and become an unchallenged “fact”.

So the next time you find your muscles burning during a workout, just remember: it’s not lactic acid.

The El Niño weather phenomenon could bring about freezing conditions and snow this winter

UK households are being urged to stock up on vital food and essential items before winter arrives, should concerns that a severely cold, snow-filled season triggered by the El Niño weather phenomenon prove correct.

Climate specialists have warned a polar vortex could bring harsher conditions and snowfall across the UK this winter, as the El Niño weather phenomenon drives temperatures down. El Niño has been a major contributor to this year’s scorching conditions, with the warming of the ocean’s surface having a substantial impact on global weather systems, producing temperatures significantly above the seasonal average.

It is widely thought to have played a role in the UK’s five record-breaking heatwaves witnessed during the summer. While nothing can be confirmed at this point, the El Niño weather front triggers changes in high and low pressure systems.

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The stability of a polar vortex – the mass of cold air that typically circulates above the North and South poles – is vulnerable to disruption from high-altitude jet streams. When destabilised, it can push freezing temperatures and snowfall into the US and throughout Europe.

According to USA Today, El Niño can interact with the polar vortex, reports the Express.

It reports: “The polar vortex above the Arctic is linked to the jet stream. Both can be impacted by El Niño, and bring about changes in our weather patterns, said Darryn Waugh, a professor in Earth and Planetary Sciences at Johns Hopkins University.

“El Niño drives changes in the high- and low-pressure patterns in the troposphere, the lowest layer of Earth’s atmosphere where weather happens, said Amy Butler, a physicist at NOAA’s Chemical Sciences Laboratory.”

The Met Office states that a hot summer doesn’t guarantee a cold winter, and that this supposed direct correlation is merely a misconception. Nevertheless, the El Niño phenomenon could potentially be responsible for the UK experiencing freezing conditions this approaching winter, although this remains uncertain.

In its most recent weather blog released this week, the forecaster explained: “Through the latter part of the winter, following a peak in El Niño, the stratospheric polar vortex (SPV) can become weaker, leading to an increased chance of Sudden Stratospheric Warming (SSW) events unfurling, increasing the potential for cold weather.

“However, significant as El Niño is, it is important to emphasise that it alone does not determine precise weather patterns and other outcomes remain possible.”

Government warning

The warning comes as the Government is preparing to launch a nationwide campaign to ensure the public is informed about essential supplies, evacuation routes and emergency contacts, following an official survey revealing that just 13% of people consider their household to be largely or wholly prepared for a disaster.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis has stated his intention to make communities as resilient as possible, acknowledging that the country is likely to face “a number of challenges” in the coming months.

When questioned about whether the public should be concerned about El Niño – which could heighten the risk of storms this autumn and winter – Mr Jarvis said: “Well, it’s been quite a tough summer. The prime minister has made a commitment to do a wildfire summit and we’ll be honouring that commitment.

A body has been found in the search for an 18-year-old man named George. The body was recovered on Sunday morning from water at a coastal location near Newport, according to a statement from Avon and Somerset Police.

George, from Portishead, a seaside town in north Somerset, went missing from that area at around 8.20pm on September 17. In the following days there was a large-scale search by the police, coastguard, RNLI and other services.

Read more here.

The police prevented the Orange Order from making a controversial parade down a road which had previously been blocked by protesters.

A group of men tried to march from Drumcree Church down the mainly-nationalist Garvaghy Road in Portadown in the early hours of Monday but a line of police Land Rovers stood in the way.

They had been unable to make the permitted parade on Sunday morning because protesters had gathered on the Garvaghy Road. The stand-off continued throughout Sunday, with the Orangemen waiting at the church, around a mile from the road, for the go-ahead from police.

Sinn Féin First Minister Michelle O’Neill joined the protest, prompting Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Gavin Robinson to accuse her of acting unlawfully.

Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant called for “compromise”.

Breandán Mac Cionnaith, from the Garvaghy Road Residents Coalition, said he was meeting the secretary of state and chief constable on Monday and that he would not prejudge those conversations.

Nigel Dawson, who is the Orange Order’s Portadown district master, told BBC News NI there was frustration.

He said they had a legal right to parade down the Garvaghy Road and the police should facilitate their route.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MP Carla Lockhart, who came back to Drumcree in the early hours of Monday, said the Police Service of Northern Ireland’s chief constable needed “to take a grip of this very quickly or his position will become untenable”.

The Drumcree parade, which in the 1990s sparked some of the most serious disorder in Northern Ireland’s history, was due to go ahead for the first time in 30 years after a series of legal challenges.

Since 1998, the Orange Order had been banned from completing its Drumcree march – and until this year had been repeatedly refused permission to finish the route by the Parades Commission, which was set up to adjudicate disputes.

The Orange Order is a Protestant pro-British organisation, while the area where it wants to walk – specifically along the Garvaghy Road – is largely Catholic and predominantly inhabited by pro-Irish nationalists.

Live updates on roadworks and traffic incidents in Darlington, Bishop Auckland, Durham, and the wider North East, including the A66, A19, A1(M), A1, A167, and the A69 this morning (September 28).

Public transport service updates from bus services, train services, including LNER, Cross Country, TransPennine, and Northern Rail.

Updates from the Tyne and Wear Metro and the latest from Teesside and Newcastle Airports.

We’ll also be bringing you the latest hour-by-hour weather forecast for the region.

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Travel disruptions

The A1044 Low Lane is closed both ways after a bridge was struck by a vehicle from Glaisdale Road to Barwick Lane in Low Leven. Traffic is heavy.

Train disruptions

There are currently no rail disruptions at this time.

What will the weather be like in the North East today?

The day will be mild and dry, with sunny spells as temperatures rise.

Today: Misty and cool at first, but temperatures will rise from around 11am as the sun comes out, with cloudier spells around midday. Maximum temperature 18°C.

Tonight: Clear skies will continue, with mild temperatures until around 10pm before it turns noticeably cooler. Minimum temperature 5°C.

Are there any roadworks in Darlington?

You can see a full list of road closures in and around the town on The Northern Echo’s website.

Spotted an incident?

Let us know about it.

Email: newsdesk@nne.co.uk.

A judge granted anonymity to a serial burglar fighting his fifth deportation by claiming he is in danger from an Albanian crime gang – only for the criminal to share a video of himself at court. 

The man has been convicted of multiple crimes in the UK and repeatedly deported by the Home Office before sneaking back into the country. 

He has now appealed against his latest order and applied for asylum on the basis his life could be at risk if he returns to Albania.  

During a hearing last week at Taylor House Immigration Tribunal Centre in central London, the Albanian claimed he had been forced to flee to the UK because it was ‘too easy’ for his enemies to track him down elsewhere in Europe.

The man, who is in his 30s and has a child in Britain with an estranged partner, also claimed his mental health had suffered as a result of previous media coverage of his case.

Yet on the day of the hearing, he posted a video on social media that appeared to show him sitting in a waiting area at the court, which he identified by name in the caption.

As well as revealing his location, the footage appears to violate a ban on photography and filming inside court buildings. Anyone found to have broken the rules can be prosecuted for contempt of court and face a prison sentence of up to two years.

The man’s representative, Eric Fripp, told the court he was entitled to anonymity because he was pursuing an asylum claim on protection grounds. 

This request was granted by Judge Ravinder Bagral. The Press was not given an opportunity to challenge the anonymity order during the hearing, although the Daily Mail has since applied for it to be revoked.

A representative of the court confirmed after the September 15 hearing that the application had been received and was under consideration. 

Alan Mendoza, Executive Director of the Henry Jackson Society, criticised the decision to hide the man’s identity from the public.

‘Open justice exists so the public can see how decisions are made in their name.

‘Granting anonymity to a career criminal who films himself in court for social media while facing his fifth deportation, over a threat he never reported to police, makes a mockery of that principle. The public deserves better.’

Khdeeja Khan, representing the Home Office, said the man had committed a string of burglaries while living in the UK, including after each of the four times he had illegally re-entered the UK after being deported.

She asked him in court: ‘Do you accept you have continuously committed serious crimes in the UK involving burglaries? Do you accept continually breaching UK border laws and breaching a deportation order four times? 

The man accepted that his offences were ‘very serious’ but claimed he had been ‘forced’ to return to the UK illegally because of fears for his safety.

He told the court he had first arrived in the UK aged 13 before falling into the clutches of a powerful Albanian crime gang that forced him to carry out burglaries. He claimed that when he later tried to leave the gang, both he and his family became targets.

Each time he was deported to Albania, he said he learned gang members were looking for him and left again within two to three weeks. He said he initially tried to settle elsewhere in Europe before they discovered his whereabouts there too.

He said the gang had initially tried to track him down in the UK, but that there had been no problems here for more than a year and he believed they had given up, making Britain the only place where he felt safe.

He told the court: ‘The gang has been in contact in Albania. They kidnapped me and once put a knife to my neck. I was lucky to get away. I tried to stay in Europe, but in Europe it was too easy to find me there, so I had to come here.’

He also told the hearing it was too dangerous to return because his family had become embroiled in an Albanian blood feud, during which his uncle was shot two years ago, but ‘corrupt local police’ had ‘closed the case’.

Ms Khan suggested there was no evidence to support his claims that he was at risk in Albania and noted that he had not reported any threats to police in either Albania or the UK.

He replied: ‘The reason I didn’t report anything in Albania is because the police are corrupt and the gang is very powerful with the police around there.’

Ms Khan also noted the man’s prolific social media use – including regular photos showing him in luxury cars and drinking in nightclubs – and questioned why he would continually draw attention to himself online if he was really in fear of a gang. 

In response, he claimed he ‘felt safe’ in the UK, but acknowledged the posts could be viewed anywhere in the world.

The case was adjourned pending Judge Bagral’s ruling.

Several European cities, such as Amsterdam, Venice and Barcelona, brought in taxes to try and curb visitor numbers, to stop themselves being swamped and to curb the harm over-tourism causes, but that has not happened — their tourist traffic has continued to rise. That, though, is not London’s problem — it is not intended to lower tourism but to raise revenue.

The Labour conference is being dogged by rumours of a snap election despite Andy Burnham declaring the idea ‘dead’.

Another megapoll has suggested the party’s position has significantly improved as the gathering in Liverpool begins.

The research, by non-profit More in Common, found that if the country went to the polls Labour would have 250 MPs, some 140 more than it estimated in July.

That would be far ahead of Reform on 147 seats, which is 146 fewer than the projection from just three months ago – although still a huge jump from 2024. The Tories are predicted to be close behind on 125.

Although Labour would still be well short of a Commons majority if the poll was reflected at a real election, they could govern with support from the Lib Dems’ 63 MPs and 27 from the SNP.

The prospect of such a ‘rainbow coalition’ has caused alarm on the Right, with fears that Mr Burnham could offer major concessions such as a fresh Scottish independence referendum. 

Accounting for tactical voting, Labour could secure an extra 25 seats, according to More in Common. That would mean it could have a majority solely with backing from the Lib Dems. 

Andy Burnham used a set round of pre-conference broadcast interviews on Friday to say he was ‘knocking dead’ rumours of an election before 2029

Those dynamics could mean Reform falling to 117 seats, and being leapfrogged by the Tories on 132. 

Gambling on an election now would be a massive risk for the PM, with the Government currently holding an historic majority and nearly three years left in the Parliament.

Those in favour of the idea hope that Labour would improve its position during a campaign. 

Mr Burnham used a set round of pre-conference broadcast interviews on Friday to say he was ‘knocking dead’ rumours of an election before 2029.

Speaking to the BBC in Liverpool this morning he suggested a social care plan will need to be in place before a ballot, as he is determined to put one in the manifesto. 

The More in Common research uses the ‘MRP’ technique of mapping poll findings on to the demographic characteristics of individual areas. 

Nearly 16,000 adults were interviewed between August 21 and September 21. 

Luke Tryl, More in Common’s UK Director, said: ‘On the eve of last year’s Labour Party Conference, our MRP projected Reform could get close to a three figure majority, while both Labour and the Conservatives dropped to below triple figures.

‘Fast forward to today, and it is clear the electoral landscape has transformed dramatically with Andy Burnham as Prime Minister.’

However, he highlighted that ‘volatility has become the new watch word of our electoral system’, with almost half of the seats estimated to be won on margins of less than 5 per cent.

The snapshot reflects a shift in support for parties since Mr Burnham became PM

A year ago Reform were seen as on track for a landslide victory 

‘The other clear message of these numbers is that tactical voting, of the sort we have already seen play out in by-elections, could have an outsized impact on the numbers – giving a Lib-Lab coalition the numbers for a majority and allowing the Tories to leapfrog Reform,’ Mr Tryl added.

He said the poll suggested Mr Burnham was ‘sensible’ to rule out an early election.

Mr Tryl continued: ‘While Labour is off its death bed, the party’s recovery is far from complete. 

‘To call a poll the Prime Minister would have had to be willing to risk the careers of scores of his colleagues including his Chancellor and Foreign Secretary, while even small shifts in the current numbers would have left him vulnerable to having a stint in Downing Street only longer than that of Liz Truss.’

At the 2024 general election Labour won 411 seats, followed by the Tories on 121 and the Lib Dems on 72.

READ MORE

Labour shambles as Andy Burnham refuses to back Heathrow expansion

PM faces Labour conference civil war after Rayner ‘drive-by shooting’ on migration – as Left revolts

CHRISTIAN CALGIE: My sources say PM’s plan is so radical, he’ll have to gamble on an early election 

American Bruce Cameron Williams was given the brooch on a visit to Inverness in 1983.

A US resident was delighted when a Highland Games expert helped to solve the mystery of his 181-year-old family heirloom.

Bruce Cameron Williams, 77, was gifted the silver plaid brooch by a distant relative while he was on a visit to Inverness back in 1983.

The front is engraved with thistles, the initials “D.C.H.F.S.” and the date “1845”, while the other side has the words “To Jas. McPherson” and “for Pibrochs.”

Pibroch means music played on the bagpipes and the relative told Mr Williams, who plays the pipes, she was happy to pass it on to him to keep it in the family and in the hands of a piper.

Mr Williams has displayed the brooch for more than four decades but has spent many years trying to solve the mystery of what the initials stand for.

The enigma was finally solved when he recently got in touch with the Royal Scottish Highland Games Association (RSHGA).

Alasdair MacDonald at the association was quickly able to tell him that the initials stand for the awarding body Dunkeld Caledonian Highland Friendly Society.

An association spokesman said: “Alasdair was also able to point to a press article from the Perthshire Advertiser of July 10 1845 which reported that at the meeting of that society, a ‘handsome silver brooch’ was presented for ‘Pibroch to J. McPherson, Fonab’.

“In a twist to the tale, it was also reported that he was judged to be the ‘best attired Highlander’ and awarded ‘a silver-mounted Snuff-Mull’.

Further research revealed Jas McPherson was one of the pipers to Lord Glenlyon of Blair Atholl.

Mr Williams, who lives in New York state, said: “I have displayed the silver Pibroch prize brooch for over 40 years, always wondering what the initials were trying to tell me.

“I wrote to everyone I could think of for information, and in later years Googled again and again, but was never successful.

“Then one recent day, I located online the Royal Scottish Highland Games Association, sent an email requesting help, and in less than 24 hours had the most remarkable response from one of their members, Alasdair MacDonald.”

Mr Williams said he had been convinced the brooch must have been a prize awarded at a Highland Games as it was clearly not regimental, and said he is “thrilled” to finally know its origins.

He added: “I have always treasured this brooch because of what it is, and the way it was given to me from the most distant of Inverness relatives on that exceedingly moving Remembrance Day Sunday along the banks of the River Ness.

“Now, over 40 years later, I am enjoying it all the more thanks to the helpful people at the Royal Scottish Highland Games Association, and in particular to their scholarly, professional and friendly expert, Alasdair MacDonald.

“To say that I am grateful is inadequate: I am thrilled with the information, and overwhelmed by the responsiveness of Mr MacDonald and the RSHGA.”

Mr Williams is interested in eventually returning the brooch to Scotland and hopes an appropriate place can be found where it could be displayed.

Mr MacDonald said he was happy to help identify the brooch’s inscription.

“As soon as I saw it, within a minute I had the results because I knew what it stood for,” he said.

“I’ve got the history of 1,616 different Highland Games so anybody who wants to know the history of Highland Games, I can spit it out instantly because I’ve got all the history.”

Iain Watt, director of the Royal Scottish Highland Games Association, said: “It’s nice to be able to help people out with these queries which reach back to another time – times change but the Highland Games carry on.”

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Adam Bradbury and Kaymn Glasgow hoped to live the high life with gold chains, holidays, hotel stays and buying vehicles, York Crown Court heard.

Today both are starting years in jail.

Zarreen Alam-Cheetham, prosecuting, said the pair took over the home of a vulnerable drug user in Selby in late 2022 and used it as their base to sell crack cocaine and heroin.

They messaged each other about making thousands of pounds of money and recruiting staff for their trade in poor-quality drugs.

But police, concerned about the drug addict, went to his home in early 2023 to check on his welfare and caught the pair there with drugs worth up to £860 on the streets of Selby.

They also found £630 in cash and drug-dealing paraphernalia.

The Recorder of York, Judge Sean Morris, said messages on their mobile phones showed the pair had gone to Selby “to make a killing and get out.”

Dealers like them got their money from burglars, robbers and thieves.

“You are the source of a vast amount of hideous crime,” he told them.

Bradbury, 27, of School Street, Dewsbury, and Kaymn Glasgow, 27, of Crowtrees Crescent, Brighouses, both pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of heroin, being concerned in the supply of crack cocaine and having criminal cash.

Glasgow, who pleaded guilty shortly before he was due to be tried and whom the court heard was sentenced in Carlisle last year for drug dealing in Cumbria following his Selby crimes, was jailed for four years and nine months.

County lines drug dealer Adam Bradbury (Image: North Yorkshire Police)

Bradbury, who pleaded guilty at an earlier stage, was jailed for three and a half years.

His barrister Andrew Semple said he had sold drugs out of greed.

He had had a difficult background and had used alcohol and drugs from an early age.

The death of a friend had led to his drug habit spiralling out of control and him running up drug debts.

Bradbury was immature and the pair had used a “lot of hyperbole and gangster talk” in their messages to each other.

County lines drug dealer Kaymn Glasgow (Image: North Yorkshire Police)

Glasgow claimed in the witness box that he had been manipulated into dealing by violent drug dealers to whom he owed money.

But the judge didn’t believe him, saying he contradicted himself in evidence.

He had also been boxing since he was 12 and knew how to look after himself.

For Glasgow, Imran Khan said he had struggled with finding a direction in life after dropping out of university and been mixing with the wrong people when he committed the crimes.

Since his arrest, he had changed his life and was now trying to show others it was possible for people with a bad past to reform themselves.