David Lloyd:Our Family Fitness Journey Three Months On

Its hard to believe that we are already three months into the new year. Although this year I didn’t set myself any solid resolutions I made life goals that I wanted to implement without the pressure of that huge list of resolutions I normally draw up for myself and things have certainly been moving in the right direction.

My wish to be more organised hasn’t really taken shape yet and is still very much a work in progress but my biggest wish and greatest achievement so far is to find my love of fitness again and share it with the whole family.

Back at the beginning of January I was invited by David Lloyd to try out my local club with the whole family. As a Mum of five over the years my priorities have shifted and making time to exercise had firmly taken a back seat. This for me has caused a huge weight gain, taken a big hit to my self confidence and had an adverse affect on both my physical and mental health.

I’ve never been one to make excuses about not having time to get things done and always want to maximise every hour of the day so making exercise something for the whole family to enjoy was a real no brainer.

David Lloyd has to be the most family friendly gym I have ever come across. With a dedicated soft play area for the family, creche facilities and endless amounts of clubs and sports for them to take part in you really are spoilt for choice.

On weekdays it is just me and Oscar at home so a few days a week he would pop into the creche for an hour allowing me to get into the gym and workout. I have been doing my own workouts mixed with some FUSE sessions on the gym floor lead by super motivational instructors and group cycling classes that are easy to book online as and when you need to.

After a play in the gym Oscar loved to let off some steam in the soft play or head off for a swim in the beautiful pool.

If my days were to busy with work then the after school clubs were the perfect answer. Both Frankie and Oscar loved the active kids sessions when they got to run about to their heats content or the craft sessions for when they wanted something a little calmer.

The biggest hit however was the friday Movie Night where the boys got a whole two hours to chill out while I spent some quality time with Izzy to train in the gym together, take a few lengths in the pool and sneak off for a cheeky sauna!

The pool has in fact been a huge hit and we have spent many a weekend as a family splashing around for a few hours followed by a bite to eat in the cafe which offers a huge range of dishes such as simple and healthy salmon and vegetables to juicy burgers and fruity smoothies.

In the majority of gyms the actual gym floor is off limits to children and in some respects I can understand this as nobody wants noisy children under your feet when you are trying to get on with your training.

David Lloyd however have cleverly put on classes to take part in as a whole family such as the family circuit class that I did many times with Izzy. The class was made fun and appealing to the children but was also hard enough to give the adults a real workout too!

The children have also loved trying their hand at tennis which is something that I’m really not a master of but was lovely to see the kids taking part in as it really is exercise in disguise.

At the end of these three months we have all gained so much from our time at David Lloyd. We how have a competent swimmer in Oscar, Izzy has a new found love of circuit style training, Frankie is set to become the next Andy Murray and we have prized Archie away from his beloved Xbox and he has actually enjoyed spending time with us.

For me though the benefits have come by the bucketload. Spending quality time as a family, watching the joy of their faces as they accomplish new challenges and even getting to spend a few cheeky nights with the hubby for a date night.

But I really have saved the best until last as over these three months I have managed to keep up and thoroughly enjoy training several times a week which has made me drop an amazing two and a half stone and two dress sizes, boost my confidence no end and improved my physical and metal health ten fold.

David Lloyd health clubs really do offer more than just a gym. It has been our second home and be it pushing my body to the limits in the gym to kicking back with a coffee there really is some thing for everyone to enjoy.

*We were given a family membership for the purpose of this review and they are all my own, honest opinions.