Amy Mason aka @fitteamum (Fitness Powerhouse!)
If you’d have told me back when I was at school that I’d be writing a blog post about how empowering fitness is, I’d have laughed in your face.... not really... I was a goody two shoes and not about to be rude! I would have probably nodded politely, then rolled my eyes secretly. I was the girl that would try and use period pains as an excuse to not do PE. (Though now I realise that a bit of exercise is the best cure for that!)
Roll forward 10 years...
I’d been very fortunate that despite my terrible diet and minimal exercise, I had a fairly slim physique prior to children. I didn’t gain a lot of weight during pregnancies, mainly due to having SPD both times, I was very aware of my lack of activity, so I was a little more careful with what I ate. I’ve put together my fitness journey below to share with you my motivation, what I’ve done so far and so you can also get a feel of timescale. Change doesn’t happen overnight. Learn, build, improve, grow, aspire, achieve.
Autumn 2015
2 little munchkins later this mummy wanted to feel more like ‘herself’.
Luckily for me there was a local Mummyfit group, so I could take my boys with me while doing body weight and aerobic exercises. Not only did this help me become fitter, but provided a great social experience for me. Mummies in the same position, who understood exactly what I was going through, and knew why star jumps weren’t my favourite exercise! It was great as well that my children could see me exercise and you’ll often see the kids showing up their mums with their perfect squat form! You ever looked at a baby squat? Those bubbas have got great form and depth! I still go to these classes twice a week and my youngest who loves to add to the challenge when I squat, sitting on me when I do hip raises or simply pushing me down while I try and hold a plank!
Spring 2016
Next I discovered Park Run! A free, timed 5k run at our local park. My best friend had done it the previous week with her buggy... good for her with just one baby! I had a baby and a toddler to push round! So in my second hand Mothercare Urban detour, side by side double buggy, she dragged me down one Saturday morning and I slogged my way round in about 40 minutes! At first I didn’t enjoy it, it was hard, but it was good for me! 2 years on and my double buggy PB (with a Phil and Teds tandem double) with twice as much kiddy weight is 30.31! And a fair few sub 30 with the single buggy and a solo PB of 26.30.
Winter 2016
Then life got interesting.... my baby started walking! I no longer had a baby and a toddler, I had a toddler and a pre-schooler! Carrying them became harder, pushing them became more work and catching them was tricky! I needed to improve my strength and fitness if I was to keep up with them as they grew. It was around this time I considered returning to the working world. I applied to be an officer in the RAF; this meant passing a fitness test. A bleep test, at least 10 push ups and 32 sit ups in a minute. However, because I wanted to prove girls are as good as boys, I’d set myself the target to reach the male minimum of 20 push ups and 36 sit ups in a minute. Roll on officer selection at Cranwell the next summer: I made it through day one of tests and team work scenarios, which meant it was fitness test time! Bleep test, pass. Sit ups, 38. Push ups, 43! I have never felt as strong as that moment! A room of 20 candidates, only 8 females and I achieved the highest score on the push up test, scoring higher than a man who had previously been in the navy! That feeling of strength gave me such confidence, made me realise what I could do if I put the work in... even if I didn’t make the final cut! Bye bye RAF, but hello strong and confident Amy!
Spring 2017
Unfortunately, not everyone has that feeling. In this same year, a dear friend took his life. This lead to me raise money for some charities close to his heart. I signed up for Tough Mudder and Aberdeen Half Marathon. He would have wet himself laughing if I’d have told him I was going to run a half marathon!
Summer 2017
Tough Mudder was amazing! Such camaraderie and such fun! Our team helped so much, being the genuinely most lovely group of people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. Without the common ground of Tough Mudder I would never otherwise have socialised with them and I’m sad thinking about my life without those nutters in it now! We decided to dress as super heroes, so naturally I had to be Wonder Woman!
This year (yes we’re doing it again) we are going as Disney princesses, so I’m sporting a 7-8 year Moana outfit! See what fun fitness is?!
The half marathon was much more a mental battle. First, committing to the training. I had to do a lot of my training with the buggy as I simply didn’t have the time to run solo. I discovered some great social media groups like Running with Buggies and Run Mummy Run which gave me motivation, advice and support. (If you’re a female and run, totally go check out Run Mummy Run by the way. Never come across a more positive social media group. An excellent example of women empowering women!) Eventually the runs became my me-time. On a Sunday morning I’d head out first thing and just run. That time became my peace. Running down country lanes, the sun rising, the air fresh and crisp. No one calling for mummy, no cleaning to do, no sibling fights to break up. I enjoyed running solo, sans music, as my mind could just roll through all my thoughts. It was like active mindfulness. Nothing to think about except steady breathing, one foot in front of the other and whatever waves of thought decided to flow into my head.
Come the day of the marathon, the sun is blazing, not a breeze to be felt. My time was not what I was hoping for, my hips were killing, I cried at the end. However, there were definite positives: my friend Milli, who did Tough Mudder with me came to cheer. At mile 10 there she was with bells on. Literally. She shook her tambourine and maracas with gusto! She cheered on every runner right till the end and I think I ran the fastest of the whole HM down the hill towards her for a well needed cuddle! My husband also ran that day... not the race, but around Aberdeen, in the heat, loaded with enough snacks to sink a ship and the kids in the buggy! Poor bloke was nearly as exhausted as me, but I was so appreciative of his support. I was disheartened at first by my time, but then I stopoed being so hard on myself. I’d just ran 13.1 miles for goodness sake! In midday heat and through a much hillier and uneven course than I’d preempted. Who knew Aberdeen was so hilly!? I looked back at my heart rate for the race, and I was at peak for over 75% of it... what does this mean to non runner? It means I really couldn’t have given it much more without risk of collapsing! Go me! Stop beating yourself up, you’re amazing! #selflove
Autumn 2017
After these events I let running take a back seat for a while and worked on my strength again. This meant cracking out my good friend Betty Rocker. I recommend this 30 day challenge to all my friends starting out with their fitness. It’s such a doable challenge with 20 minute variable workouts sent each day in an email. For free! (www.makefatcrychallenge.com) They can be done at home, I even did a lot of the workout with the kids about and joining in. I love when my kids join in too. I never weigh myself, or even measure myself, but I let my kids know that I workout so that I can be strong and keep picking them up as they get bigger. My boys want to be strong like mummy too, so they like to join in. I love that I’m setting a good example to my kids; showing them that it’s fun to lead a healthy life without crazy dieting or excessive behaviour. My 4 year old has already done his first Park Run and shows me how he does his exercises like mummy. So cute!
Present Day
Now my usual routine is Mummyfit on a Tuesday and Thursday, Gym on a Wednesday, ParkRun on a Saturday, with a dog walk everyday too. There’s no real aim with my fitness anymore other than the keep me sane. I want to stay fit for Tough Mudder obviously, and I still want my boys to see me as a role model and be able to keep up with them. However, it’s more than physical for me now. My fitness regime gives me a sense of achievement, a sense of worth. I enjoy feeling like the slim, younger me. I enjoy inspiring others to start their fitness journey. I enjoy motivating others who are already exercising. I enjoy the buzz I get after a good workout and I’d be lying if I didn’t like the confidence boost I get when others say I’m looking good! Who doesn’t like a compliment? Oh and cake... I get to eat all the cake!
Additionally, I’m still a stay at home mum. I feel like I should be doing something! Not for my kids, but for me. I’m not earning money, but I do feel like I’m doing something worthwhile by keeping fit, some sort of purpose or drive. I’m never going to be the best, the fastest, the strongest, but it’s good for me, physically and mentally. It gives me confidence, it gives me a buzz of happy hormones, it keeps me healthy, it helps me socialise. Fitness helps me be the best version of me. And if it makes a happy mummy, it in turn makes for a happy husband, happy children and a happy life.
Check out more of my journey on my Instagram, @fitteamum (I quite like tea too!)
https://www.instagram.com/fitteamum/
