Hayley Kinnaird and Elle Leggatt are new mums who are looking to get back to their former fitness after recently giving birth.
Their local football club, Doncaster Rovers, are helping them. And the pair take their babies along too.
“I was part of the pilot course,” said Hayley. “I joined when my son was about five-and-a-half months – he’s about seven months now.”
She heard about the sessions at a local fitness group and attends every week.
“It was bit daunting thinking that this was Doncaster Rovers – a football club,” said Elle. “But once you get into the swing of attending the sessions, you’re put at ease because although the baby is your priority, you’re also a priority.”
She describes the sessions as “a good balance between mental health and physical health,” something that Hayley agrees on.
“We go at our own pace and the support’s there if you need help on how to do a certain exercise. It’s been good to have that support network from other mums as well – that’s been really beneficial.”
Their story highlights the experiences of many people around the country who live in the same area as an EFL club running similar schemes in their local community.
“Doncaster is Yorkshire’s second most deprived district, we designed the course to offer something to mums who can’t afford to pay for the baby groups or a session with a personal trainer,” explained Doncaster’s health and wellbeing co-ordinator Lauren Platts.
“Mums soon after birth need very low-impact exercises, and, for some, it’s not safe to exercise so they just come along to enjoy the social aspect. They can take it at their own pace.”
Sometimes the exercise is just a walk round Doncaster’s Eco-Power Stadium or a session with resistance bands. There is also a mental health midwife who talks to the mums, and regular sessions on nutrition.
“Not a lot of mums have the confidence after giving birth to go and join a gym,” said Lauren, who notes that nearly 600,000 women give birth in the UK each year.
“Everybody here is on the same wavelength – they’ve all had a baby so there’s the mental health side of it. It’s not just the physical aspect of having a baby.”
Doncaster full-back Tommy Rowe said he was “honoured” to be asked to come down and take part. “I have three young children myself,” he said. “Me and my wife know first-hand what these people are going through, especially when we’ve been going through an age of Covid.”
Rowe joined in the session, joking that he felt “a little sore” afterwards, although he was amazed how the babies stayed still and silent on the floor as their mums worked with glute bands.
“Sometimes the hardest bit is to actually go there,” he added. “But this is open to the general public – we want to hear each other’s stories.”