Love fitness, love family, love life
Get Active! Do it for you. Do it for your family.
Being regularly active is a great way to lead a healthy and happy life. Even though family life is busy and can be exhausting, it is important to remember to make some time for you.
On these web pages you will find everything you need to get more active including a free diary!
Come along to a ladies only free and friendly session to learn how you can become more active and help you get started. Don’t worry if you miss the start date – you can pop along anytime to receive advice and support.
High Wycombe
Castlefield Community Centre in Rutland Avenue
Every Thursday starting from the 14 January until the 17 March – 9.30-11am
Aylesbury
Healthy Living Centre at Walton Court Shopping Centre in Hannon Road
Every Tuesday starting from the 12th January until the 15th March – 10-11.30am
Register to receive a free activity diary
Please register with us and we will send you the diary via email.
An activity diary is available to help you be more active, stay motivated and keep track of your progress. You can use this diary to record any physical activity you do throughout the week – this includes things like brisk walking, using the stairs, or even gardening. This diary helps you make a commitment to get you more active and can either be filled in and saved on your computer at home, or printed and stuck on the fridge!
If you would like more information about this programme please email Sam Parker
For your children
What you do provides an important role model for your children. Did you know that children of inactive parents are more likely to be inactive themselves? Or that children are more likely to get better exam results if they’re regularly active?
For you
- It keeps you feeling happy and confident and can be fun to do with a friend, or family members
- It helps you manage your weight and is one of the best ways to reduce your chance of getting heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, dementia and some cancers
- It strengthens your bones and muscles and reduces stress, anxiety and depression
In general, adults should aim to be active every day. Over a week, activity should add up to at least 150 minutes, or 2 ½ hours. One way to break this down is half an hour each day for 5 days of the week. Even 10 minute bursts of activity count towards your target, and can be the easiest way to fit activity into your day!
Remember, doing some activity is better than none, and the key is to do activity that raises your heart rate, makes you breathe faster and feel warmer. One way to tell if you’re being active at the right level is if you can still talk, but you can’t sing the words to a song.
Record your current levels of activity on the chart – are you doing 150 minutes of activity a week? Ask a friend or family member to do the same thing and compare the results.
Brisk walking remains one of the simplest ways to achieve your physical activity target. Why not walk briskly to the shops, to post that letter or to see family/friends? In fact, walking with a friend is a great way to stay in touch and become healthier. There are lots of ideas to consider and help you get started below.
Monitoring your progress
Build on the activity that you are already doing. When you are trying to makes changes to your behaviour it really helps to set yourself a realistic goal and keep a note of how you are doing. Remember to start slowly and work up your activity week by week. Request our diary template to set your goals and record your activity.
Some simple exercises to do around the house
Squat time Emptying the dishwasher? Unpacking the shopping? Putting away the washing? Don’t bend down – Squat! Try to do five each time and you’ll be surprised how many you can do across the day.
Hit the floor Watch your favourite show from the floor or even get the kids doing it with you, while doing crunches, cycle your legs and leg lifts.
Sit and Stretch Got a minute to sit down? Take some chair time to sit up straight. Raise your arms, gently rotate your body, roll your neck, stretch your arms, shrug those shoulders – and get creative!
Use those stairs Got five minutes? Run up and down your stairs! Got another five to spare? Hit those stairs again!
Wakeup call Good Morning! Get up and start doing some arm circles – the most effective do-anywhere (well almost anywhere) exercises.
Five a day in a different way Have a daily goal like complete “five push ups” by the time you brush your teeth at night
Get the kids jumping For parents stuck at home in the evenings, do activities with the kids at the top of every hour like jumping jacks
The golden rule is to do as much as you are able. Remember something is better than nothing and every little bit counts!
Park Play When you take your kids to the park don’t sit on the bench and watch. Jog, jump, slide and play right alongside your family. Or even take a frisbee, football or cricket bat and take advantage of the green spaces near you.
Bus hopper If you regularly take the bus why not get off a stop earlier and walk the rest – may be a way to best the traffic too!
Grow some sunflowers, tomatoes blueberries. Or any fruit, flower, shrub or veggie that takes your fancy. Gardening combines the miracle of growing beautiful (and tasty!) things with getting outdoors in the fresh air and moving your body. So get out there and start planting, weeding, watering and harvesting!
Don’t let the shopping weigh you down Turn going to the shops into your own work out, walking to and from the shops is a good workout in it self – but if you have shopping bags to carry why not try doing some arm lifts with them?
Don’t avoid the hills Live near a hill and always avoided walking up it? Start slow and power on through, time yourself so when you come to do it again try and knock off 30secs/1 minute every time.
Time Credits are a great way to be rewarded for helping other people in your community become more active. The more time you give to help others, the more Time Credits you can earn.
You can earn Time Credits by buddying up with someone who is not currently very active. Go walking with them or do some gardening together - whatever activities you both enjoy! You can earn half a Time Credit for each block of 30 minute activity. Why not aim to earn 8 Time Credits for buddying someone else for 8 hours by the end of your 8 week challenge?
How to spend your Time Credits
In March 2016, there will be a family activity session held where you will be able to spend your Time Credits. If you have earned 4 credits then you will get free entry to the session. If you have earned all 8, then you will be able to attend with your child (or other child relative), a friend and the friend’ s child!
You can also spend your Time Credits on many other services across Bucks and beyond including events, training and leisure activities.
Alternatively, you can donate any Time Credits you have earned so that other community members can come along to the activity.
Last reviewed: 22/02/2016
