Did you know that exercise can benefit you and your family in so many ways! It can help you

• Improve your heart and lung health – build your stamina and breathe more easily

• Overcome stress – so that you sleep better

• Tone up and strengthen your muscles, making the everyday tasks in life easier

• Reduce your risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke and some cancers

• Lower your blood pressure

• Manage chronic conditions such as osteoporosis, diabetes and arthritis

• Meet new people and make new friends

• Have more zest for life – research shows that regular exercise improves mood, and can be as effective as anti-depressants or psychological therapies for mild depression*

• Manage and maintain your weight

• Manage your cholesterol levels**

• Improve your mobility, flexibility, balance and co-ordination

* Royal College of Psychiatrists
** British Heart Foundation

How much exercise?

Government guidelines say that to maintain health, we should do 30 minutes of moderate activity at least 5 times a week. This can be a variety of activities – brisk walking, cycling and aerobic exercise all count towards this. The thirty minutes a day can be accumulated in three 10-minute bursts or two sessions of 15 minutes.

The four signs of moderate level activity

• You feel warmer

• Your heart is beating faster

• Your breathing is heavier

• You can still have a conversation. If talking is difficult, you need to slow it down.

Is more better?

The government guidelines are a minimum to maintain health and reduce risk of chronic disease! So, for example, to help with initial weight loss, 60 minutes a day accumulated moderate activity as above, will be more beneficial.

Starting out
No matter what your fitness levels, you can improve. In fact the good news is that the more unfit you are, the quicker you will see a result, in terms of improved stamina, easier breathing and general mobility.

If you are unused to taking regular exercise, check with your doctor before you start. Begin slowly, with just a few minutes’ walking at a comfortable pace twice a week. Over a few weeks, increase your time and frequency until you are accumulating 30 minutes a day. Make sure that you take a few minutes at a comfortable pace to warm up your muscles and prepare your body for the moderate activity ahead.
Soon, you’ll find that you can cover the same distance in a shorter time, and you’ll be ready to take on additional activity, such as a Fitness League class, where you’ll be working on your mobility, strength and stamina, as well as improving your posture.

Doing a range of different activities enhances the effect of regular exercise, and a Fitness League class is an enjoyable way of incorporating aerobic, strengthening and mobility exercise into your healthy lifestyle.

A regular exerciser already?

In a Fitness League class you will get a fusion of the best of many exercise trends - pilates, aerobics and dance.   Having achieved good posture through our specially designed exercises then you will test it in movement.  It is one thing to stand well, but to keep good body alignment and control as you move into fun dance routines is another matter!   You will challenge your body, make it stronger and more efficient at the same time as having a lot of fun!  You will leave the class two inches taller and with your spirits uplifted too!