Tag: fitness

Children, Education, Exercise, Families, Family Life

Fit To Dance With Disney On Ice And Ashley Banjo

by thejoyoffiveLeave a Comment on Fit To Dance With Disney On Ice And Ashley Banjo

Last week I got to have a few hours on my own with Oscar to visit Danceworks in West London to take part in a ‘Fit To Dance’ workshop with some lovely performers from Disney On Ice and the dishy Ashley Banjo!

Oscar skipped his way along Oxford Street telling me how excited he was about going to sing and dance until he was confronted with a room full of strangers and his thoughts of being star of the show soon dwindled.

Luckily enough the super friendly skaters made all the children feel at ease and after warming up and a little to much participation from me he soon soon got into the swing of things and was happy to join in independently.

‘Fit To Dance’ is a way to encourage children to dance through the use of story telling which in turn helps them to use their imagination and improve their fitness levels in a fun way.

They got together in a group to chose the story they would like to recreate through dance and each picked a character at be throughout the performance.

With characters named and a story plot in place the children were running, jumping, twirling and whirling around the hall to their hearts content.

After a few practice runs they donned their fancy dress and showed the audience their work.

Oscar was extremely happy with himself and still had a pretty big treat to come.

Fed and watered the children all gathered by the door to await the arrival of two very special guests…Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

Their eyes literally lit up and such excitement filled the room.

They all got the chance to meet the cuddly pair and it was certainly a very special treat.

We couldn’t let the afternoon pass without getting a snap of Ashley Banjo too which certainly made my girls very jealous when we arrived home.

The ‘Fit To Dance’ program is available online and is certainly worth taking a look at and trying out at home for yourself.

With Disney On Ice’s Passport To Adventure currently on tour this would really be the perfect way to get yourself ready in the the run up to the show.

Blogging, Diet, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Food, Gym, Healthy Eating

As My Blog Grows So Does My Waistline

by thejoyoffive10 Comments on As My Blog Grows So Does My Waistline

It is coming up to nearly two years since I started my blog and my love for it is a strong as the moment I hit publish on my first post which now seems like a lifetime ago!

Blogging has bought me so many wonderful opportunities and I never in a million years thought it would be something that I could turn into a job and I am absolutely over the moon that my little pipe dream has become a reality.

The only downside to staring this journey has been my ever increasing waistline!

All my time and energy are being engulfed by my family and my blog and my passion for exercise has fallen to the wayside and been replaced with a far more sedentary lifestyle. 

I was always a five times a week girl when it came to training in the gym and this would always be a priority, which in turn managed to keep my love for food under control.

In the past two years I have managed to gain a considerable amount of weight that has been really getting me down…yet apart from some sporadic training I have done little about it.

With the New Year started I have decided that with some organisation and getting my butt out of bed they little earlier in the morning I have the ability to give just as much effort to losing weight as I do to my blog and I’m feeling really positive about the changes I have been making.

Last year I attempted to get my old self back by tracking my progress on here.

This was an epic fail so this time I am going to put less pressure on myself, throw away the scales and just get back to a healthier and happier new me.

Wish me luck X

Diet, Exercise, Fitness, Gym, Healthy Eating, Uncategorized

A New Me For Christmas:Week One

by thejoyoffive16 Comments on A New Me For Christmas:Week One

As a personal trainer by trade it has taken me a while to pluck up the courage and write this post.

Since baby number five I have had a really bad relationship with food and have not yet got back to anywhere near my pre pregnancy weight.  I’m still training as that will always be a passion of mine, but you can never out train a bad diet.

I had issues with food through my teenage years and still cant shake the feast or famine approach I have to eating sometimes.

I wrote a post about holiday weight gain a couple of weeks back and have finally this week got back to the normally of the school run and am going to get myself back into a healthy eating regime and exercise plan.

As I said this is a hard post to write as I’m really unhappy with my body image at the moment and it’s all due to my lack of self discipline that I’m eager to get back.   Hopefully by tracking my weight, body fat and measurements I will get myself back on track and inspire others to do the same.

Each week I will post my goals for the week ahead, a picture so that I can see physical changes and how I have done with my weights and measurements.

By putting it out their for you all to see I hope this will give me the motivation I need and let you see regardless of your occupation we are all human and sometimes we go off track but it’s possible for anyone to go and be the best that possibly can be!

Week One

Weight – 10.6 Stone

BMI – 23

Body Fat – 28.5

Goals

At least 4lbs weight loss

Interval train at least three times

Cut out all refined sugars and wheat.  Both of which have a negative affect on me.

Complete a food diary everyday

Cut down on caffeine
  

Children, Exercise, Families, Fish, Fitness, Parks, Pregnancy

The Sun Was Shining On The Baby Race

by thejoyoffive7 Comments on The Sun Was Shining On The Baby Race

I felt terrible this morning as I woke the house up at 6am on a Sunday to make our way to Bluewater for me to take part in Tommys Baby Race again this year.  It was a wonderfully sunny morning and the promise of a trip to the playground and the Lego shop at Bluewater was enough for them to forgive me.

This will be my third year of competing in this race and I love every minute of it.

We arrived to the lovely ladies from Baby Sensory putting on a warm up for the toddlers.  Number four was to interested in the balloon man to take part but number five loved the bubbles and beach ball throwing!!
      

To warm up the Mums and Dads the super energetic Buggfit leader took to the stage and gave us all an upbeat, fun warm up, and my husband and children always find their massively uncoordinated mother hilarious to watch!


Once the warm up was complete it was time to make our way over to the start line.  The route had changed this year and it was to complete six laps of the beautiful lake.  This was better for the children as there were bubble machines and music on the way round plus lots of ducks to spot.  I also found it an easier course too,  which can’t be bad.


I’m not sure how long it took me to complete the course as I was trying to keep number four from getting in the way of the start as we set off but I was over the moon to come in second place and receive a much appreciated goodie bag, voucher for my place to spend at Bluewater and best of all a much needed complementary bottle of water.


I take part in this race for so many reasons.  Firstly as it is for a wonderful  charity that brings hope to so many families out there. I like to hope that the money I raise each year will go to helping more people during times that I can’t even begin to imagine being in.  It is a real day out for all the family and whilst I am taking part the children can play in the playground and take a walk around the lake looking for fish and feeding the ducks.  My husbands favourite part of the day is going into the fantastic shopping centre and getting a big breakfast which is his reward for the early start!


           I would like to thank everyone that has taken the time to sponsor me this year and if anybody is still wanting to donate to my Just Giving page it will still be open for another few months.

There are still several Baby Races being put on by Tommys across the county this year if anyone feels like joining in after reading this post, or I would be more than happy for some company when I take part again next year.

Antenatal Exercise, Exercise, Pregnancy

Exercise In Pregnancy Was A Must For Me

by thejoyoffive28 Comments on Exercise In Pregnancy Was A Must For Me

  
Exercise in pregnancy is a much talked about subject with many pros and cons and lots of contrasting information being thrown around.

During my first pregnancy I had very little information on the benefits of exercise and just followed the age old rule of eating for two and putting your feet up.  I gained quite a lot of weight and had a seventeen hour labour which resulted in a forceps and ventouse delivery.

With my second and third I was much more careful with my diet, swam a few times a week and walked regularly.  These deliveries were a lot shorter and were much more straightforward with little pain relief.

I was convinced that keeping active during pregnancy was a factor in this and from here I grew a passion for the subject and went back to college to retrain as a personal trainer specialising in pre and antenatal exercise.

I found the training fascinating and went on to open my own personal training company geared towards mummy’s and mummy’s to be.

During this time I have had another two children with great pregnancies and good labours.  I even managed to have a water birth with my last which is not normally allowed as there are higher risks with your fifth labour.

Here are few benefits of keeping fit and healthy whist carrying your precious cargo.

Smaller Weight Gain

Let’s face it one of the things we all dread during pregnancy is putting on to much weight.  You should not be training to lose weight during this time but keeping it stable during your pregnancy will make it much easier to get back into shape after the birth.

Keeps Your Enery levels Up

Pregnancy can really take its toll on you and the last thing you probably want to do is get up and start jumping yourself around, but even twenty minutes of raising your heart rate can give you a real burst of energy for the rest of the day.

Less Likely To Need Intervention During Labour

You are 75% less likely to need the use of forceps and 55% less likely to have to have an episiotomy; which lets face it we would all rather avoid.

Give You the Energy To Get Through Labour

I’m sure if you signed yourself up for a marathon you would never think about going into it with no training.  Well labour is called that for a reason.  It’s a long hard slog that takes both mental and physical energy.  You need the strength to get yourself through it.

Keep Those Happy Hormones Flowing

Exercise releases endorphins that make you feel happy!  What could you need more when you’ve had a hard day and things are taking there toll.

Reduce The Risk Of Gestational Diabetes

Your can reduce the risk of developing gestational diabetes by up to 27%.  This is a condition during pregnancy that can cause problems for both mother and baby; so if it can be avoided by getting up and exercising a little everyday it is so worth it.

To me exercise is as important during your pregnancy as your midwife check ups and antenatal classes.  It offers so much that it really shouldn’t be over looked.

If you are already a regular exerciser then it is fine to continue your usual routine and for those of you that are not active it’s never to late.  It’s not advisable to start a new exercise program whilst pregnant but gentle exercise such a walking and swimming are completely fine and if nothing else give you some much needed me time.