Wellness Guru: Jane Wake

Our Wellness Guru this week also happens to be Lorraine Kelly's (of UTV fame) personal trainer and has some fantastic tips on the importance of focusing on living healthy and making sure to do those pelvic floor exercises your Mum always warned you about.

1. Tell us about yourself Jane, and how you got to be where you are today?

I started out as a Business Student but qualified as a fitness coach at 19 and funded my way through uni by teaching exercise classes. I knew then that I wasn’t destined to sit at a desk all day so I switched to Sports Management and then ended up doing a Masters degree in Sports.

2. Tell us what you eat across the day to stay healthy

I train clients/teach classes early from 6am, 3 or 4 days a week, so I often go out without breakfast but with a bag of nuts and or a banana in my hand! Some mornings I get to come back to take kids to school or am at home and will eat breakfast with the kids which is always a smoothie. Smoothies are the only way I can get enough veg and protein in my kids and its a good way for me to get it too! I try to keep to one coffee a day and aim to time it before a workout.

Lunch is less of an event for me, it depends on what Im doing so sometimes I'll grab nuts or if I've come home after being out and active all morning, avocado and chicken on sour dough toast is my favourite way to reload! I spend most of the afternoon at my desk but I also teach or have meetings later in the day so food will be dictated by that. If cooking at home dinner is often salmon and greens or I love a really good piece of organic steak with grilled tomatoes, mushrooms and of course a glass of red wine. If I'm eating out I always go for fish as I'm rubbish at cooking it at home.

3. What inspires you?

Kids inspire me more than ever. Looking at my own kids – I am inspired to move more and be better in all that I do so that I can be a great role model for them. I am also a volunteer coach for kids and they drive me and inspire me in many aspects of my work because they are the people that need good sporting and active role models – it’s for them that I want to work with adults who can be great influencers on children. My clients are predominantly Mums but some dads too! Many are celebs! But it’s the fact that they are Parents and or teachers and educators which makes them the most important influencers when it comes to inspiring the next generation.

4. What’s your goal in life?

I've always been very goal driven – looking to the future and the next big thing but one thing I am not so good at doing is living for the here and now – so my new goal is to focus more on that – the here and now!

5. What does Wellness mean to you?

Wellness to me means complete awareness of mind body and soul. It’s rare you get all 3 in perfect balance - life throws you curve balls and no one can ever be perfect - but if you can be aware of all 3 – this can bring you great happiness and that's good enough for me! For years I thought very outwardly about my physicality and it wasn’t until I started to work with pre and postnatal women that I realised our strength and focus really comes from the inside – it's why my work with INNOVO™ and teaching women about InnovoTherapy is so important as its helping women to become more connected with themselves.

6. What advice would you give to a person looking to transform their life?

Don't focus on the bigger picture - if you look to far ahead in what you want to achieve it will seem too impossible and can set you to fail. Write down instead all the things that you can do that can help you get there – I have this big list of little things that I keep in a book. They are all small but are things that can help me get to where I want to be. Each day I pull out 3 things and write them down in that days diary. I choose the things that I know I can achieve – it might be something as simple as cleaning a pair of shoes, doing your pelvic floor exercises! Or writing a thank you card to someone. But the point is they can be crossed off that big list and before you know it – you have got where you want to be.

7.Tell us how you became interested in pelvic floor exercises and why you're trying to draw awareness to how important they are?

When I was pregnant with my first child I was aware of the need to do pelvic floor exercises but I thought that as I exercised so much I was invincible and that I didn’t really need to focus on them much. After my son was born my pelvic floor took a bit of a whack , I also resumed running probably sooner that I should have done. I was the official trainer for lots of celebs on the London marathon and it was my job to run between them all and make sure they got round. All that running really took its toll on my pelvic floor – so, like any exercise programme I have ever devised, I decided to go to the nth degree with it! That’s why I am passionate to shout about the pelvic floor and encourage all women to do their exercises whether kegals on the go or using devices such as INNOVO™ which helps strengthen your muscle and give you back control.

8. Tell us your Top 3 Tips for Wellness?

1. Every time you sit down, think of when you can next stand up and MOVE!

2. If something doesn’t bring you happiness, switch it up until it does

3. Don't focus on food or diets instead focus on how food makes you feel – whether its emotional or physical, LISTEN to what your body is telling you. if there's any negative attachment – say no.

9. So what’s next in your career/life?

At the moment I am working with quite a lot of women who need specific help often during or after childbirth but I would really like to help more women and men and be able to shout out about the pelvic floor to a wider audience – hopefully with INNOVO™ we can spread the word to the world! Watch this space!

For more information on INNOVO visit www.restorethefloor.com

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