Fit Your Life

Research shows that up to half of the functional decline we experience between age 30 and 70 is due to lack of physical activity. HALF! Wild. It is also proven that children with active parents are more likely to be active themselves. By increasing our heart rates for a minimum of 150 minutes (or 2.5 hours) per week, we can significantly decrease our risk (and therefore also our children’s risk) of over 25 chronic health conditions, including coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, breast cancer, colon cancer, Type 2 diabetes, and osteoporosis. Now, this all sounds well and good…but I know what you are thinking. HOW are you going to come up with 150 minutes per week to move your body enough to sweat and discover these amazing health benefits while continuing to be the best mom, wife, friend, colleague, and/or whatever other roles you carry each week? I am going to go through my best three tips on how to begin shifting your mindset on creating healthy habits while raising chil...

I am not a mountain expert, and I most certainly am not a parenting expert. What I am though is someone who loves exploring, learning, and a good challenge. Five things that adventures in both the mountains and parenting have taught me: A few nerves are a good thing: they keep the adrenaline high and your ego in check. Be prepared, but keep an open mind: there will always be unpredictable circumstances that we cannot control.  Find joy in the peaceful moments: take a deep breath and soak it all in.  Quality time is so incredibly important: as an entire family, one-on-one with your spouse and each child, as well as with yourself. The biggest adventures make the best stories: enjoy the journey and all of the energy you poured into it!  Last week I had the amazing opportunity to take our 5-year old daughter on an overnight hike in Kananaskis. I was nervous and excited. I was nervous to not have my husband joining us (as I had not yet done a backpacking trip without hi...

Good morning Mamas! How are you feeling today? Rested? Exhausted? Exhilarated after the weekend? Dreading something upcoming this week? However you currently feel, do you know that by moving for 30 minutes today, you will feel better?! Thank you to Annika, of Born To Be Adventurous , who has asked me to lead this month’s Real Talk Series! Each week, on Monday, I post something related to motherhood and staying fit! Make sure to check out her amazing Born To Be Adventurous Mamas Facebook group where you can read all my posts, share with other adventuring mamas what is keeping you active, and also plan meet-ups in your community! Research shows that up to half of the functional decline we experience between age 30 and 70 is due to lack of physical activity. HALF! Wild. It is also proven that children with active parents are more likely to be active themselves. By increasing our heart rates for a minimum of 2.5 hours per week, we can significantly decrease our risk (and theref...

We are open!!! What an amazing day celebrating Fit Your Life 's third birthday and the official opening of our new studio space.  The day was filled with mini sweat sessions to sample our new Signature Classes, delicious treats from a few of our favourite places, hot coffee to sip on while meeting new friends and catching up with old ones, and of course many sweaty hugs! We are incredibly grateful for the many that were able to share the day with us in person and also for all of the incredible love that was sent via digital means! It is true what they say, it takes a village and we feel extremely blessed to have you as part of ours! For those who have not had the chance to pop in  yet, Edmonton's first studio dedicated to prenatal and postpartum fitness is located on the second floor at 6563 Gateway Blvd NW. Check our our new Signature Classes here and the full schedule here . Register for your class here! Here are a few photos of Fit Your Life's third birthday an...

Just over three years ago, the idea of Fit Your Life bringing specialized fitness classes to the women of Edmonton was born as a result of the desire to combine my passion, curiosity, and interest of the immense physical and emotional changes that occur during the pre- and postnatal periods and how an increased level of fitness can affect this beautiful transformation. When I think about all that I have learned in the last three years, I smile. Welcomed advice from business-savvy friends and support from those who navigate social media with more finesse than I have made this learning curve more enjoyable!  36 months ago, Fit Your Life group fitness classes began by offering a six week pre-registered session for both Mom & Me Fit and Prenatal Fit; with four and seven participants, respectively. Since that time, 400+ women have attended classes, we have welcomed over 100 Fit Babies, and we have inspired so many to find their best self amongst the chaos that can be the ...

I love early morning workouts. Seriously. Yes, I have always been known as a morning person and really prefer to do anything first thing in the morning rather than in the evening! After becoming a mom, my routine had to shift and expectations had to change. As an early riser, I have began raising early risers, so if I want to fully embrace the morning and exercise alone I must wake at 5am! Is this easy? No! do I do this every day? No way! Am I thankful when I do? Heck yes! Exercising first thing in the morning boosts my energy, mood, and patience for the entire day. How does one come to make this a sustainable habit - to get up early and move first thing in the morning? Here are my best tips!! Prepare for success a) Set out your workout and your “regular” outfits the night before. This way you don’t have to think about your clothes in the morning – just get dressed! b) Have your coffee and breakfast ready. We grind our beans and prep our coffee maker at nigh...

This has been a humbling journey for me. Not only seeing a physiotherapist for assessment and treatment, but also journaling about my journey through this blog series. Writing about my experience has allowed me to reflect and dig deeper into learning about my own body. My last blog post explained my initial assessment with Bounce Back Physical Therapy and diagnoses. If you didn’t read it yet you can find it here ! I want to now take you on my journey through my “homework”, three follow-up visits, and what being “discharged” means to me. Homework At each appointment – the initial and follow-ups – Jillian gave me a series of stretches, exercises, and tips to implement into my daily routine. As the list grew, I would often feel overwhelmed with how to sneak it all in. What made it feel more manageable was when I remembered our discussion about how it’s okay to be imperfect and really that our goal is to have perfect alignment and engagement available to us. I actually came t...

It has been two months since my first appointment at Bounce Back Physical Therapy with Jillian Palmer.  I have had some ups and downs with my recovery but overall I have been loving the experience.  I have loved learning more about how my body functions and being able to apply what I'm learning from a women's health expert to my classes. Over the course of this two month span I have had appointments every two weeks to try to find a solution for the symptoms I was experiencing.   If you want to know more about the beginning part of my journey, my symptoms and diagnoses, or Kellie’s journey, please click here and read the first four posts in our series.   I’m going to take you back to where I left off after my last post and share with you my experience of trying to find better function in my pelvic floor and close the abdominal separation I have.   I feel like Jillian, or any physio therapist for that matter, is like Sherlock Holmes, trying to sol...