Light Hearted Heavy Lifting

Contrary to popular belief, not all gyms are intimidating places!

At Light Hearted, we help people feel confident & at ease in the weight section of the gym!

We are here for anyone who has walked into a gym & felt relegated to the cardio section or, in fact, felt so uneasy they left!

We recognise gyms should feel like spaces that embrace 'work in progress'.

We understand how scary the idea of a gym can be, but we are not your typical 'Gym Bro's'!

Polly (Hello!) is an ex performer & has a background in Theatre, whilst Adam is an ex bio engineer & all-around Martial arts nerd 🤓
(We are also Proud Cat Parents 🐈 😻 🐈‍⬛️ )

Want to find out more about how we are not your typical personal trainers?

Click the link in our bio OR simply email
[email protected]

A non-exercise related Post ...

Three weeks of Cis Het Men ..

In the last 3 weeks, cis men have -

• Followed me on my way home after work (had to call the police for this one).

• Called me a B*tch on the street for grimacing as a response to them looking me up and down.

• Had a man in a van illegally reverse down a 1 one street into me whilst I was cycling (I then got Called a b*tch again). Then drove after me reving the engine, I was forced to then get off my bike and up onto the pavment.

• Beeped at by another white van man, leered at from the window. More body checking, staring etc

• Got followed on my bike whilst cycling to work. When I slowed down they slowed down. Had to ask them to leave me alone. Considered police again here but also had to get to work 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

..

What happened when I shared a toilet with a transwoman in the last 3 weeks-

Nothing.

Normalise Not Loosing Weight for a Wedding (or any big event)!

It's also totally cool if you do want to loose weight, just FYI.
I'm all about you feeling confident, informed & in charge of your own choices regarding your body!
So, to be clear, this post is absolutely not a criticism of anyone making a decision to loose weight for an event!

However, do you feel free to enjoy looking forward to a wedding or a big event without worrying about your body? If you're thinking, Dame it, I don't.... You are not alone!

I think we need to start normalising just showing up to a wedding as ourselves in whatever size or shape we are that day.

I think we should normalise not having to suddenly start exercising way more than we usually would 6 weeks prior to the big day.

I think we should normalise eating what we enjoy and not dieting or ... (and can I get a hell no) to fasting!

It's OK whatever you choose for your body, but oftentimes, it's worth remembering we don't have to make ourselves smaller for anything or anyone!

Big love ❤️

What does it look like to push yourself?

I have heard a lot of women, over the years, tell me that they don't push themselves. I wonder if that's because we are all comparing ourselves to people with completely different standards, genetics, schedules, motivations etc etc & so we are missing the moments where we are actually being pretty impressive!

I've typed up some examples of what it can look like to push ourselves...

•You pushed past a particular weight you've lifted at for a couple of weeks. Eg, 60kg up to 70kg. Maybe your grip struggle. Perhapss you felt more out of breath, but you pushed past those difficulties & hit a new pb.

•You took a shower on a day you felt depressed and very low.
Perhaps pushing yourself was simply getting up and out of bed that day. That's pushing yourself. That's enough.

•You reached out to someone you recently met and organised a coffee even though it felt new and unknown. You pushed yourself to get to know someone.

•You got up earlier than usual to try a morning exercise class. You felt tired but did it anyway. You pushed yourself out of your comfort zone.

•You organised a walk after work. When it came round to it, you felt low on energy but went did the walk regardless. You pushed past the temptation to stay at home.

•You're starving and tempted to order takeout, but you threw something basic together and had a cheaper, healthier meal. You pushed against convenience.

• You made an effort to tidy your home on a day you felt very anxious. You pushed yourself to do a more necessary act of self care.

Pushing yourself looks different on different days, different people, different moments...

Be kind to yourself. You're always doing better than you think.

Some Personal Thoughts...

So much has changed for me since opening our wee studio both personally and professionally.

Here are some thoughts others may relate to ...

• When you become less sad, not everyone will like the happier you & you will grieve the loss of those people. It's probably not personal, but it's OK if it feels it.

• Gratitude may sound like a hippie dippie word, but considering what I'm grateful for has changed my life.

• It is in the small things. Taking the time to be still can re-route your day. Taking the time to notice the fact that the sky may be a deep blue or that someone smiled at you on the way to work... Give those moments your attention.

• In becoming healthier & having more boundaries, you may be confronted with difficult behaviour from others. Just let them go. It is true that people will have benefitted from you not having boundaries. What a pooper! Move on.

• Having anxiety is (for me) a chronic condition. If you relate, It's OK that it flares up with seemingly no reason to. Keep pushing. Get outisde, move your body, breathe.

• If you're a late bloomer due to trauma, allow yourself to feel proud on becoming the 'true you'. Not everyone will understand that having a solid sense of self is a privilege that often comes with a happy, stable family. Maybe you didn't have that, so well done, you worked harder. 👏

• It's OK that mostly everything is pretty darn good. You've never had that and now you do. It's weird
You're expecting it to go wrong. It doesn't have to. It may very well stay good.

What Having a Personal Trainer actually Looks like....

(& what we hope we are able to support you with on your journey with us).

Becoming more skilled at scheduling your time
Developing an important working relationship
Prioritising rest & recovery
Beginning to really believe in yourself
Looking at your relationship with food & starting to repair any previous diet culture damage
Becoming more confident in trying new things
Having higher standards for yourself (in a caring way)
Confidence in knowing you can do hard things
Trusting the process
Setting boundaires
Overcoming gym fear
Welcoming delayed gratification
Developing a relationship between body & mind
To strive for consistency and not perfection
Feeling more confident in your body
Building new friendships
Experiencing having others root for you

✨️

The saying "strong not skinny" is often used to promote body positivity and the idea of focusing on physical strength over a particular body type, usually one that is thin. However, the message can be harmful for several reasons:

🏋🏻‍♀️ Reinforcing body standards: By implying that strength is superior to being "skinny," it still holds up a specific physical ideal as the goal. While promoting strength is a positive message, it might unintentionally suggest that those who are naturally slim or have a different body composition aren't as valuable or healthy. This can contribute to body shaming or the idea that there is one "ideal" body type.

🏋🏻‍♀️Overemphasis on physical appearance: The saying still places focus on how one looks (whether strong or not) rather than emphasizing overall health.

🏋🏻‍♀️Potential pressure to conform: People might feel pressured to fit a certain mold of "strength". The emphasis on being strong can inadvertently contribute to negative mental health or body image issues for those who feel they don't meet the standard.

It is important to remember that everyone's body is different, and strength can come in many forms.

It's great to want to be strong, but that looks different on everyone, which is actually really lovely... that we are all different 🥰😊