Health Exercise Nutrition (HEN) case study
Prior to becoming pregnant, Erin always really enjoyed walking as a way to clear her mind and get out of the house. However, Erin really found a passion for moving...
Prior to becoming pregnant, Erin always really enjoyed walking as a way to clear her mind and get out of the house. However, Erin really found a passion for moving and being even more active when she was pregnant and was referred to a pre and post-natal programme called “HEN”.
The programme takes place both before and after pregnancy and lasts for approximately 6-9 weeks, it includes an exercise class with Zoe Oakley, a personal trainer who specialises in pre and postnatal exercise and covers a number of other topics including healthy eating and portion control. Erin started the course when she was heavily pregnant, just two weeks from giving birth and she loved the course so much she also attended the post-natal programme too.
As part of the post-natal programme, mums attend a 45 minute exercise session with their baby which are tailored specifically to meet the needs of all the mums in the session (from those who are 2-4 weeks after birth right up to mums who are a year post-partum) the sessions are a mix of strength training, weight lifting, pelvic floor strengthening and are explained and adapted for each individual.
Following the course, Erin wanted to continue regularly moving and she joined gym to continue strength training and has lost four and half stone, reduced her visceral fat by 50 percent and reduced her resting heartbeat, she feels the healthiest version of herself and is committed to continuing and being a great model for her young daughter Daisy (2).
Erin said:
“I found a real love for the gym and strengthening my body before and after pregnancy thanks to the HEN programme, the weight loss has been great but I also enjoy the community side of things, if I have a bad day, I know I can decompress at the gym and the endorphins really help me feel good.
“I now go to the Hanger gym in Weston-super-Mare three days a week and if I can’t fit a gym session into my week, I will do a quick 15 minute YouTube exercise video and I feel much better for doing it.
“If you are thinking about trying something, I would just say go for it, everything can be amended to suit you and you won’t lose anything by going, I know at the start it can feel like a chore and when I started I did not have a clue about the terminology and the weights but everyone is so welcoming and everything can be adapted. I can lift weights now that I couldn’t lift a year ago and that is so satisfying.
“I never envisaged doing this in my maternity leave. However, after moving my body it felt so much better and now, I look forward to my gym days, its important for me and it’s also really important for me to show my daughter the importance of moving.
“I used to have palpitations all the time and my resting heart beat was 85-90, it is now down to 60, which is massive, I sleep better and I am more regulated and not as tired anymore, my quality of sleep has also improved and I am also more aware of what I am eating (as what you put in is what you get out).
“I recently weighed myself and measured my visceral fat (the weight you cannot see that is around your organs) and mine has reduced from 8 to 4 and I feel like this is also really important, its not just about the weight loss its about helping your body and its organs to function better”.
“My advice is to show up for yourself, by doing little things everyday, this can become your new normal. Just give it a go, you might end up falling in love with it, you might not be ready or you might try something else, everybody can do hard things, just find your own rhythm and your own way.”
