Chris’s KiActiv® story
Here at KiActiv® we love helping people make positive steps towards achieving their personal health-related goals. Taking control of your own health has never been easier, but don’t just take our word for it! Chris wanted to share her experience of KiActiv® Health and how it has helped her to find the value in her everyday movement, which has benefitted both her physical and mental health.
Chris came to KiActiv® expressing that she wanted to lose weight and had struggled to lose weight in the past. She suffered from chronic pain in her feet which held her back from participating in exercise, but she was keen to change her lifestyle for the better.
Chris quickly grasped the concept of everyday movement, as she had previously thought only vigorous, structured exercise was beneficial. She has two young children and two dogs who keep her busy and was surprised at how much her day-to-day activities were contributing to her overall activity levels. From here, she began to identify where she could add in more activity, even from just “pottering” around the house, cleaning, and gardening.
“It was really good to see that all movement counts, it gave me the confidence to do more… I don’t even have to go to the gym, even just washing the car counts”.
Alongside KiActiv®, Chris decided to make some changes to her diet to help with her weight loss and managed to lose an impressive 22.5 lbs (13% of her body weight!) across the 12 weeks. She found that she was more conscious of her activity levels, and that the more she moved, the easier it was to lose weight and achieve her personal goals. She enjoyed using the tagging and planning features on her online KiActiv® dashboard and commented that both were very useful tools to improve her motivation to change and sustain her new healthy behaviours.
At the midway point of the 12-week programme, Chris felt that her fitness level had improved significantly, and also noticed that she felt a lot more energetic than before. This is when she decided to start incorporating more exercise into her daily routine, as she had hugely improved her confidence around physical activity and exercise, simply by starting out with smaller, more manageable daily activities.
Towards the end of the programme, Chris contracted COVID-19. Despite being stuck indoors, she still managed to stick to her planned daily activities in and around the house. Once she had recovered, and with her new found understanding and confidence regarding her physical activity, Chris decided to take up the Couch to 5K initiative alongside her daughters. She reported that she didn’t get any pain in her feet, which she put down to her weight loss and had also commented on an improvement in her overall mood.
“Since we’ve been chatting you’ve given me the confidence to plan things and exercise.”
“I would never have been able to do this before, I wouldn’t have had the energy… Now I’m like, I can do it… I wouldn’t be where I am today without our sessions”.
By her final session, Chris was able to run for 28 minutes without stopping, which she never imagined she would be able to do. In the past she had found it difficult to find a balance when it came to activity and weight loss, but now she has been able to find that balance. She felt like she had found a new routine that was sustainable, and is hoping to continue her new way of life long into the future
“For the first time in my whole life I feel like I have a good balance… It doesn’t phase me now… you have started me off on something I never thought I would be able to do!”
At the end of 12-weeks Chris provided us with this testimonial:
“The KiActiv® Health programme has been absolutely brilliant for me. I was nervous at first, the nerves soon disappeared as soon as I spoke with my consultant. She was incredibly encouraging, she asked all the right questions which helped me to really think about movement in a different way, any movement at all is great and the benefits are there to see: physically on my own health chart, but also in the way I now look and the new confidence that I have gained.
I started off with little movement targets and have gradually built up. I am now regularly planning my exercise into my week and find myself looking forward to it, as my time and when I have finished it, I feel amazing.
I now have no aches, sleep well and have lots more energy.
The programme has worked really well with regular catch ups, this really helps with motivation and encouragement, especially at the beginning when starting out always seems tricky and a lot of thinking is required, for example: looking at the chart “this is where I am, what would I like to achieve?”
Sophie was like having my own personal trainer and it felt like supportive teamwork.
I looked forward to my regular calls, planning and updates and will miss them, however I now have the skills to ensure I continue with making sure movement and exercise is part of my life.
Movement has gone from a subconscious guilt, in the back of my mind, to a conscious pride, in what I have achieved so far and in the possibilities of what I will achieve in the future.
I would highly recommend KiActiv®. I have achieved soo much in a relatively short time and feel that everyone could benefit from this program. The mix of being able to see my activity, planning it and the encouragement from my consultant is just the best combination. I feel incredibly lucky to have been on the programme and it has improved so many aspects of my life. Thank you.”
We are committed to establishing everyday physical activity as the foundation of a healthy lifestyle and helping you to recognise that every move you make matters for your health and wellbeing. If you would like to learn more about getting started, to join hundreds of people just like Chris in taking control of their own health, you can register your interest here.
