"A chair-based exercise program from British Gymnastics sees remarkable results." - British Gymnastics Foundation Manager, Patrick Bonner.
In 2015 British Gymnastics received funding for a new program to aid in the health and fitness of older individuals, especially those living with dementia. With over 150 participants in their program at the time and close research conducted by Age UK, it was shown that there could be great improvements to an individuals physical, mental and cognitive abilities. Those involved in the British Gymnastics program reported better posture, movement and memory recall. The older participants really appeared to benefit the most from the program. "Improvements ranged from participants being able to use their hands again to feed themselves, do crafts and play bingo as well as socializing with friends and family. One woman has now regained her independence and moved back in to her own home." - Patrick Bonner In 2018, there was an estimated 436, 366 Australians living with dementia. It is important to continue to look after our health as we age. Once we reach middle age we tend to ease off our physical fitness due to aches and pains. In doing this we could be allowing ourselves to become more susceptible to illnesses which can result in the decline of our motor function. By staying active mentally and physically can we can prevent ourselves from struggling as we get older. In 2019 FCGC will be introducing a Move for Life 50+ program. We are so excited to be offering this program, and we really believe it will offer invaluable health benefits to all participants. Our program has been lovingly created to be introductory, adaptive and progressive. Participants will be able to use the gym equipment in new ways to aid in the strengthening of their joints, ligaments and muscles over the course of the program. All elements of the program can be adapted to work for any individual so everybody will get the MOST out of their time. There is zero experience needed and no physical requirements. The only thing required is your willingness to improve your overall health! Best of all, Tuition for Move For Life is currently FREE! So why not gather some friends, or tell a beloved family member about our program. And we will see you in the Gym! Signing off for now, Coach Maygan. Looking for something else? Move for Life 55+ information can be found here. Sport England Article can be found here.
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Anybody who has any experience with toddlers and young children knows that they can be beautifully melodramatic at the best/worst of times. To us, their behavioral "outburst" can seem so pointless and unreasonable... but the irony behind that is that it is ENTIRELY purposeful.
Have you ever been speaking and been interrupted by a wide-eyed eager child who just HAS to tell you that they went to a birthday party two months ago? As coaches this is something that we experience often. It only takes one child to start talking about their experience and it almost becomes a free for all story time for everybody who has also been to a birthday party recently. This is because they are all developing right on Que. They have now entered "The Egocentric Stage." This means that they believe everybody thinks, feels and see's exactly like they do. This isn't a bad thing! This is just how they will learn. They need to experience the world through themselves first, before they can process other peoples feelings. Egocentricity is unavoidable and fighting against it will prove fruitless. Instead expecting it and having educational tactics ahead of time to redirect the behavior will prepare you all for success! During this stage children have not yet grasped the concept of "intentions". To them everything is deliberate. If you comfort a child by saying it was "an accident", that means essentially nothing to them. They don't understand yet what that means. If an action happened to them... it was supposed to happen, because it has effected them and nobody else. At least according to them. Instead redirecting their response to one of their own PERSONAL experiences can facilitate them in understanding. If a class mate has accidentally hit them on the head passing by, relating this to a time they accidentally knocked something or someone can be a great way to redirect and calm them. Another common scenario is when children have some form of disagreement about who is playing with what. You will most likely have one of them come running over to you telling you that they WON'T let THEM play with THEIR toy. As easy as it would be to sort the situation out for yourself, this is a very important lesson opportunity in communication, bargaining and object possession. Instead, think about how you might be able to direct both children to a resolution. Do they need to use their words explaining what they want? Should they come to the conclusion of taking it in turns themselves or can you guide them to it? Do they understand that maybe the toy doesn't belong to them? It might take longer and it might feel like you are talking in circles... but trust me it will be worth it in the long run! Being egocentric doesn't mean the child is unkind or selfish. It is literally the purest form of personal discovery and personal development. Once they have learnt all their is to know about themselves, they will have the skill set to learn about those around them. Just remember what is logical to us... is not for them. Not yet. But with your patience and guidance it will be one day. Do you have any children that are currently going through this? Let me know what you think in the comments below. Signing off for now, Coach Maygan Would you like to read more about the developmental stages? Here are some good reading resources: "My Grandma's Dog Died - How ego-centrism shows up in preschool classes." "Piaget's 4 Stages of Cognitive Development" We all know that gymnastics is great, and we love it! We also know that it teaches lots of physical skills to all those involved. A gymnast who has discovered new movement patterns, pathways and more can leave the gym feeling like they have learnt something. But what about the more important stuff? The skills that will stay with you for the rest of your life? By that I don't mean can you still put your foot on your head in 30 years time. All though that would be incredibly impressive.
I'm talking about those fantastic SKILLS FOR LIFE, that we pride ourselves on teaching. The emotional and mental developmental skills our gymnasts might not even realize they are learning. Those skills! I have asked a few of our amazing coaches to share what they have learnt through Gymnastics. So I thought I would share them with you also! "Coaches, what is one thing you have learnt from being a part of gymnastics?" Coach Saskia - Resilience. I have learnt how to take my time. People might get a skill before me, and that's ok. You need to wait and keep trying. "You're on a different time schedule to everybody else (when it comes to skills)". Coach Judy - "That I can do things if i set my mind to it!" Coach Toby - "How to adapt to different situations." Flexibility in all aspects of life. Emotional flexibility, physical and mental. Especially being flexible when it comes to time management. Being able to change things in the moment to be extra beneficial. Coach Thomas - "How to fall with style!" Being able to get up from a fall both physically and metaphorically. Coach Kelesa - Discipline. Growing up in gymnastics taught me I had to be there for my teammates. I had to get up early on the weekends, and train really hard. I had people counting on me. "Coming from an Acro background I couldn't miss any training session because all my teammates would be there and it would be bad for them." We all have things that we will take away from our gymnastics experience. They will become individual to us and only we will be able to have that particular experience. This is why sharing our knowledge and applying it to our coaching is vital for us. We really want to help our gymnasts along in their own personal journeys. Who know's what they might learn!? Did you want to see more blog posts like this? Do YOU have any questions you would like to ask the coaches? Let me know in the comments and I will be sure to make a blog post about it in the future! Signing off for now, Coach Maygan. Gymnastics is an incredibly social sport. Without communication, the sport just wouldn't be the same. If you are going to compare gymnastics to other sports, you will almost certainly find it difficult. Gymnastics requires you to focus and listen to every part of your body, as well as everything your coach is saying. Not only that... everything your team mates are saying, the cheers from the spectators, the feedback from the judges and the encouragement from your family.
You wouldn't necessarily imagine that by going in to train, you are really going in to have a personal conversation with your body and all its little muscles, nerves and neuron pathways... but you will be! You might not consider you will be learning by observing others attempt skills of their own... but you will be! On top of all that, you will have endless opportunities to talk to your coach. Your coach will have a treasure trove of knowledge for you. Open communication about how you are progressing with a skill or drill will only help you to IMPROVE your over all gymnastics. The coach is the "eyes" so to speak, and the gymnast can't always "see" what their body is doing in a skill. A coach will be able to guide and help a gymnast who is willing to adapt, learn and listen to help them achieve their goals. We all love having a good catch up with our friends, even if we only just saw them yesterday! The more you enjoy who you are training with, the more likely you are to feel motivated. Get to know ALL of your team mates. I know that can sound scary, but trust me it will do everybody involved a whole world of good. We've all had that uneasy feeling before, when our best friend isn't at class for the day... and you feel lost and uneasy. That can really impact your progress, motivation and enjoyment of gymnastics. Unfortunately we can't always guarantee we will have the same training partner every session. The more you speak to all your gymnast friends and enjoy what each of them has to offer... the more cohesive the class will feel! Remember that everybody is there for the same reason: The enjoyment of Gymnastics. No matter a gymnasts own personal motivations, it all can be simplified to the very basic foundation that is, ENJOYMENT for what they do. What do you think of this weeks blog post, do you agree? Leave a comment to let me know of any positives to SOCIAL sports I may have left out! Signing off for now, Coach Maygan. Are you running out of ideas for the kids over the summer school holidays? Not sure how a school holiday program works, or how your kids would enjoy it? Did you know we run an extensive school holiday program right here at FCGC?! Trying to keep the kids entertained and active over the holiday period can be a challenge, especially if you have to return to work before the youngsters go back to school. We all want to keep our kids happy, healthy and engaged! One of the best ways we can initiate this, is to allow them personal time to develop and explore in a safe environment. Allowing a child to participate in a school holiday program, can boost a child's learning capacity in nearly all aspects of the social, personal, physical and emotional development. A child participating in our program will develop communication skills with others, leadership skills, group interaction skills, safe play skills as well as confidence and many more important skills for life! FCGC's school holiday program has been created with an array of participants in mind. We truly believe we offer a unique program for all those involved. Each day of FCGC's school holiday program has been designed so all children will get the most out of their experience. Our weekday programs offer multiple different themes, all with new exciting activities! From arts & crafts, to science experiments, food creations, brain teasers and more. Each individual experience should be special, fun and over all educational in many ways. The best part is, they will be having so much fun they will hardly notice they are learning as they play and create! Our gym time and free play sessions will also allow them plenty of time to get all their sillies out - so to speak! Movement is the biggest facilitator for learning, for all gymnasts big or small, new or experienced. Rest assured your little gymnast will have plenty of opportunities to practise new and old skills, run, jump, climb and more! Does this sound like the perfect program for you? I think it does too! Check out our School Holidays Program tab on our website or click HERE for more info. We can't wait to see you over the holidays!
Signing off for now, Coach Maygan. |
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