Asobi Sport Family Fitness-Working Out With Your Baby

I was first introduced to Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness when the Hubs deployed for the first time post baby.  I looked forward to Saturday classes.  It was one of the most fun workouts I have ever done.  I also came to really enjoy Sarah’s company.  She is one of the most genuine and sweet people I have had the pleasure to know.For me, finding this workout was a way for me to get fitness in, and not worry about what I was going to do with Squish.  Not only would he be part of the workout process, but he enjoyed the song and rhymes throughout the class as well. 

Sarah is visiting here at Our Vegas today for a little Q&A about Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness!

Tell me a little about yourself and your background.

Hello, I’m Sarah Harding.  In addition to being a first-time Mom, I’m the 2x winner of Ms. Fitness USA, a former acrobat for Cirque du Soleil, a nationally certified Pilates instructor and the founder of Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness.  Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness is an educational fitness program that gets Moms & Dads into great shape so they can raise healthier children. And the best part?  You don’t have to leave your baby to workout!  In fact, Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness involves babies.  But it’s more than a Mommy and Me class.  It’s a way of life.  You’ll learn how to perform core building exercises while wearing, bouncing, playing with, soothing, and educating your baby.  There are even gentle exercises for Moms who want to focus on deep breathing and postural alignment while they breastfeed.  Who knew you could build core strength while you nurtured your baby?  Rather than struggling to find child care and fit in a workout by yourself, make exercise symbiotic with parenthood.  Feel your best so you can parent at your best!  These workouts are available for expecting Moms too.  To learn more about the services I offer at Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness, please visit my website: www.asobisport.com
*Update – Sarah is currently expecting twins in June.  She is still continuing Asobi Sport through out her twin pregnancy for as long as she can – and she looks Fabulous!

What is Asobi Sport?

In Japanese language, the word Asobi means “play” or “game.” Everything is more fun when in it’s in the context of a game, right?  If you’re playing a sport, there’s a reason to work hard.  Challenges have a purpose. Asobi Sport™ shows parents how to get creative and make working out a fun family playdate. The classes offered by Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness provide plenty of opportunity to play, laugh, and cuddle with your child.  Parenthood and Exercise don’t have to be called “work” anymore (at least not all of the time!).  Don’t get me wrong, this won’t exactly be easy!  But at least this way we can enjoy the challenge!  Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness makes both parenthood and working out fun, joyful, invigorating, nurturing and rewarding!

 

How did you get it started?

I started wearing my daughter, Emma, in the Moby Wrap when she was only 3 days old.  We instantly fell in love with the tender closeness the Moby provides.  It’s secure, comfortable, stylish, and functional.  I had 2 hands free to wash the dishes (in addition to many other household chores!)  Thanks to the Moby, I could work part-time and teach Pilates while I wore my daughter.  And it

wasn’t long before I discovered I could actually perform Pilates safely while keeping my baby close to my heart, literally!  That’s how Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness was born.  With proper Pilates technique and paying attention to safety protocols outlined by baby carriers like the Moby Wrap, exercise and parenthood can become symbiotic.

 

Why is it important for Mommies to workout and what is the benefit of doing it with your child?

After giving birth to my daughter in 2009, I learned just how physically demanding parenthood is. It’s the most challenging “sport” I’ve ever played. There’s no referee to call a foul. There are few substitutes to take your place when you get injured (especially if you’re breastfeeding). And this game doesn’t stop after 2-4 hours. As parents, it’s imperative that we make time to exercise so that we can stay physically strong and mentally sharp.  Our health affects our relationships.  Our well-being impacts the way we treat others and the way we treat ourselves.  If we don’t exercise, our partners, parents, and children can suffer.  But how can parents squeeze in a workout when their day is already overloaded? That’s why I designed a fitness program for current and expecting parents called, Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness. My program makes exercise and parenthood fun, joyful, nurturing and best of all, symbiotic. You don’t have to leave your baby to get in a great core workout!  Bring your child in a stroller like the Maclaren buggy or wear your baby in a carrier like the Moby Wrap to master the sport of “parenthood!” Hey, the name of this game is simply staying in the game! These are baby friendly Pilates inspired classes that let you focus on your physical well-being while you parent.  At my classes, we’ll perform Pilates inspired movements while we sing, count, laugh, and play with our child.   We’ll raise postural awareness, build core strength and maintain a healthy spine–all in the presence of our children.  Our aim is to combat the baby blues, minimize backaches, reduce and even stop urinary incontinence, increase your energy, enhance your mood, model exercise to your children, meet other like-minded parents, and enjoy being a Mom or Dad!  Don’t let yourself fall into the rut of resenting your child because there is very little YOU time.  Asobi Sport™ Family Fitness gives you that precious you time.  And because these workouts involve your child, that you time quickly becomes sacred bonding time with your family!  Join me, Sarah Harding and the Asobi Sport Family Fitness Program to learn how to raise a healthier child. FAQs are at my website: www.asobisport.com

What is your favorite thing about being a mother?

My favorite thing about being a mother is hearing my daughter, Emma laugh.  Her smile and giggle are infectious!  It’s amazing to watch her grow (and to know that I’m growing and learning right along side her.)  This isn’t to say the growth comes without growing pains!  I understand and appreciate my parents so much more now that I can see their perspective.  I am the youngest of four.  My parents had three boys (all under the age of four and then three years later had me.  It wasn’t until I became a mother, myself, that I realized just how exhausting parenthood could be. Thankfully, it’s also the most exhilarating, rewarding, empowering thing I’ve ever done! I want to make sure I’m enjoying being a Mom and appreciating the growing miracle in my arms–even when (and perhaps especially when) I think I’ve reached my limit.  I’m convinced Moms and Dads don’t get enough credit.  I only have one child to keep out of trouble (so far) but goodness knows I don’t get much rest.  Her physical development continues to astound me. She’s a climber already.  She was nicknamed my “mover and shaker” in the womb and now she’s going faster than I thought a little 18 month old could!  When I told my folks the things she can do and the scares I’ve already had, they laugh and reminisce about why they enrolled me in gymnastics at such an early age. My Dad chuckles and says, “Gymnastics practice was the only place you were allowed to climb on the furniture!” And my Mom chimes in, “Thankfully there was a coach there to keep you safe!”  Well, perhaps gymnastics is in Emma’s future too.  In the meantime, I’ll keep performing my Asobi Sport™ exercises simply so I can keep up with her!  When I manage my stress through exercise, I find myself smiling (regardless of how many times I may have woken up in the night.)  Spending time with my daughter is a gift.  I want to enjoy her, laugh with her, learn from her, and grow with her always!

 

I only have a few minutes during the day to myself, how do I fit in a workout?

The good news is you don’t need a few minutes to yourself to perform the Asobi Sport™ exercises.  Asobi Sport™ is a way of life.  It embraces a  philosophy that promotes incorporating 1-5 min exercises into your daily routine of parenting.  The idea is we can workout while we carry our children.  And if you’re like most parents, you’ll find caring for your child means carrying your child.  So while we soothe, bounce, feed, play with, read to, and even breastfeed our baby, we can simultaneously build core strength, increase postural awareness, and boost our endorphins, energy, and mood.  In other words, anytime you hold your child, you can get stronger and feel better.  I call this philosophy “Jia-Yo!™ ”  In mandarin Chinese, Jia-Yo!™ (spelled jia-you in pinyin) Means “Go! You can do it, Hang in there!”  It literally means “give it more gas!”  It’s a perfect mantra for parents who want to continue to nurture their baby AND promote good health, especially if they’re beginning to run out of steam.  Thankfully, with baby carriers like the

Moby Wrap, caregivers can have two hands available to perform the every day function of parenting as well as incorporate Pilates inspired exercises to minimize back pain and gain core strength. Check out www.asobisport.com to download short video clips or purchase my workout dvd that illustrates how you can perform many 1-5 min exercises through out your busy day of parenting!

 

Asobi Sport offers outdoor workout classes and indoor workshops.  Check out www.asobisport.com for more details about a local class near you. Don’t see a class offered near you?  No problem!  Purchase the Asobi Sport™ workout dvd online to perform at home or take to your next playdate.  If you’d like to teach Asobi Sport™ classes or better your own practice, you can get certified by completing our upcoming Teacher Certification Course.  And don’t forget you can always check out our free forum to get your health and wellness questions answered by me and other experienced parents!  Download Asobi Sport™ exercises and get started building core strength while you parent!

 

You can find Asobi Sport Family Fitness at their website (which is full of fun information).
OR
You head over to the Asobi Sport Family Fitness Facebook page click the LIKE button at the top and thank her for her post on Family and Life in Las Vegas, you can have 4 extra entries into the giveaway of your choice.  Just comment Asobi Sport entry.  Use them all in one giveaway or divide them up, it is up to you!