A great idea.
Late last year I met Jackie and Becky. They were 2 Mums with a fantastic idea. For their full story check out the links below, but the short version is that they were working on a new online health and fitness program for mums. An online program that can be done at home, without having to worry about childcare, is particularly appealing to a busy Mum. But Jackie and Becky had noticed that so many of the existing online diet and exercise programs are just not suitable for mums. Strict meal plans, strict training routines, exercises that are not always safe for a new mum, an unnecessary focus on weightloss and no thought to modelling true health to our children are hallmarks of every online health and fitness program I have seen. It might be possible for a while, but life, especially with kids, inevitably gets in the way and it’s back to old habits.
Especially for Mums.
Jackie and Becky wanted to create a program tailored specifically to Mums and were looking for a likeminded dietitian to join the team to provide evidenced-based advice that works in the busy world of a mum. After a couple of meetings, and by meetings I mean catching up in a park and chatting while our kids ran riot on the play equipment, I signed up as the Consultant Dietitian to Body Beyond Birth. I am so pleased to announce that after months and months of hard work Body Beyond Birth is now set to launch.
This is not a weight loss program.
It’s not a program that you just do for a few weeks and then stop. It’s a place where you will find ideas and support to integrate healthier habits into your busy life, for life. As part of my role in the program I have developed some sample meal plans and guides about how much of different foods a woman’s body is likely to need each day to be healthy. I have developed tools to assist in creating new healthy eating habits day-by-day. But there are no strict rules, no weigh-ins, no ‘diets’ in the popular sense of the word. Obviously, for many women, changing to healthier eating habits and including regular exercise in their life will lead to some weight loss and a more toned body. While this will be a real positive for many, we don’t measure success in kilograms lost.
Measures that matter.
Success is being able to jump on the trampoline or dance with your kids without worrying about wetting yourself. Success is being able to load your kids in and out of the car without your back hurting. Success is being able to model and teach healthy eating and healthy living habits to your kids as they grow. For some, success will be feeling fit and strong enough after birth, to do it all again!
Taking care of yourself, is part of taking care of your family.
Body Beyond Birth is about caring for our bodies because we love and respect them, not because we hate them. It is about recognising that pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding changes our bodies, but that we can be strong, fit and happy with these changes. I am really proud to be involved in a program that will help mums everywhere take care of their bodies. I believe that a happy, healthy mum can have a profound positive impact on the physical and emotional health of her whole family. And this is true for all mums, not just first time mums, not just new mums.
So if you are, or know of, a mum who needs a little help in living a healthier lifestyle, consider joining us at Body Beyond Birth.
For more information about the program, and to meet co-founders, Becky and Jackie, check out bodybeyondbirth.com, find us on Facebook or come and have a chat at the Pregnancy, Babies and Children’s Expo in Sydney on May 23-25.
Recent Comments