Fat loss. Weight. Fat. Shape. Size. Body image. Diets.
They’ve all become politicised or loaded terms.
It can feel a bit uncomfortable.
We all have bits of our lives which we feel sensitive about.
Our upbringing, personal circumstances, experiences or choices put a unique skew on our version of the world. But if I feel offended by someone’s comment on one of my sensitive areas, it’s not their fault. And if they’re coming from a place of kindness, or sharing what they know in order to benefit or help me, then perhaps I need to let my guard down a little in order to learn and grow.
Of course, that is never comfortable.
I can remember, when I’d put on weight after University (I was 11 stone) and my dad, trying to cheer me up, brought me a Battenburg cake. I shouted at him and then cried. Now whilst his methods of trying to cheer me up weren’t well thought through, he was trying to be nice and I was clearly being very sensitive!
Fit School
Over the past six years, Chris and I have grown Fit School from a couple of Pilates and fitness groups to a bigger, more established business with a membership and a community. We aren’t perfect! But at our heart is sharing a non BS approach to fitness, health and lifestyle. And caring about it being done right.
Why don’t we stick to just Pilates or just fitness? Well it wouldn’t be credible for us.
Whilst Pilates is a fantastic form of exercise, for us it needs to be a part of an overall picture of health and fitness. That’s why we brought in run club, our strength training hub, our one-off workshops, nutrition workshops and the fat loss hub.
Download our cheat sheet: 23 ways to burn 100 calories
Our vision for Fit School was always that gradually our members would learn and perhaps want to dip their toes into different aspects of what we offer in order to find the balance that worked for them. It’s optional, but it’s there.
Whilst we promote the notion that any movement is better than none and that 30-minutes of daily activity is enough for most people to make a significant difference to their health and fitness, there are some circumstances when you might need more or something different.
Lifestyle Choices
Here are a few situations in which we’d need to discuss a more refined approach to your lifestyle choices:
- Injuries
- Chronic health conditions
- A high risk of osteoporosis
- Arthritis
- History of disease
- Pre or post natal
- Breast cancer treatment and survival
- Mental health conditions
- Training goals (wants a specific marathon time)
- High blood pressure
- Obesity or being overweight
- Being underweight
Whilst I [it’s me, Karen writing this] would often rather take the gentle, encouraging approach, Chris tends towards the no nonsense, tell it like it is approach. Call him Simon Cowell of fitness without the high waist.
In discussions over what and how we offer what we do, we meet somewhere in the middle. And hopefully this comes across in our approach. I suppose you could say we care in different ways.
Being overweight
Being overweight, however you got there, is an indication that your health risks are higher than someone considered to be a ‘healthy weight’ (there are many metrics to measure this). Carrying excess fat puts a strain on your body, your organs, your circulatory system and your overall health. You don’t need us to go into the many risk factors associated with excess weight. That doesn’t mean we don’t care how it makes you feel.
And whilst excess fat might be a symptom of medication, menopause, grief, depression, illness or injury, it is still an indicator that all is not well in your body. We’re sympathetic to the causes and very aware that everyone comes to us from a different place and head space but we would be doing you a disservice not to acknowledge the health risks and us a disservice not to offer you the opportunity to learn from what we know from 15+ years of doing what we do.
But we also know the fastest way to improve your marathon time and reduce joint stress, is to shed some weight.
We aren’t fresh out of college or fitness school. Between us we have experience as trainers, as people stuck behind desks, as parents and as individuals struggling at times with what life throws at us. Sometimes, really struggling.
So when we offer fat loss courses it is not a judgement, it is an option. And for many who have asked for us to put them on, it is the beginning of a solution.
We know, from experience, what can be achieved through following our guidelines. The main benefit will be health rather than just fitting your clothes better.
To not offer it would be like being a bakery school without the tricky sourdough lesson.
And whilst cake is definitely not the solution to losing weight, it would always be on the table with a cup of tea if you needed a listening ear.
We have a brilliant new cheat sheet: 23 ways to burn 100 calories which you can download here