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Check out this cool Austin company that’s in the business of getting moms in shape!! Want to try it out for FREE!!? Read on… at the end you’ll find a great Giveaway!!

Can you tell us a little bit about Total Mommy Fitness?

Total Mommy Fitness provides personal training and nutritional counseling for moms in a way that makes it fun and realistic for their busy lives. We incorporate the kids into the workouts when they want to participate, and travel to their location to make fitness feasible. Whether it is their home, the playground, a nearby track or gym, our trainers go to each mom’s desired location.

How long has Total Mommy Fitness been open?

I began Total Mommy Fitness a few years ago after looking for a resource for a pregnant client and not being able to find one. My vision is to grow nationwide to be able reach as many moms as possible with this important information.

I was able to begin that expansion this year after word-of-mouth began to spread about Total Mommy Fitness and it was time for me to bring on other trainers. I have been working hard to find great trainers to join the team, formalize our branding and marketing effort to support our rapid growth, and make sure women know that we are now available all over Austin.

Is there only one Austin location or is the program available to moms all over Austin?

Programs are available all over Austin, including Steiner Ranch, and we are continuing to expand.

Do you have to be in good shape already to start in a program or is it open to all fitness
levels?

Total Mommy Fitness is absolutely available to all fitness levels. Our programs are highly individualized, designed with the needs and goals of each mom in mind.

Do you also offer nutritional counseling?

Nutrition is a vital part of the Total Mommy Fitness programs. We understand that moms will not be able to reach their goals or live a healthy life with exercise alone, so we incorporate nutritional counseling into each and every program. Moms can even come along with us to the grocery store to learn what to look for on food labels, understand the common myths about foods that are marketed as ‘healthy’, and find better versions of their favorite foods and snacks. Total Mommy Fitness does not encourage calorie counting or eliminating any foods all together. We take a very ‘keep it simple’ approach to both nutrition and exercise.

You work with pregnant women to ensure that they are in the best of health during this important time in their lives. Do you also work with post-natal moms to help recover from and get back into shape after childbirth?

Yes, many women come to us right after they have their baby, or even years later when they would like help with their exercise and nutrition. Women often put their health on hold while putting all of their focus on their family. Moms do not have to sacrifice their health and well-being in exchange for their families’. We help moms include fitness into their current lifestyle.

How do you incorporate children into a mom’s workout routine? Let’s say one of your clients has a newborn and a three year old… is it possible to incorporate the kids into the activities?

Total Mommy Fitness programs are unique from gyms and other trainers because children of all ages are encouraged to be included in the mom’s fitness program. We understand the importance of children growing up seeing their parents’ living healthy. If the child is an infant they are either held by the mom or the trainer during the workout, or are often times napping nearby. As moms know, toddlers do whatever they feel like doing. We allow them to participate as little or as much as they want to. They can be the resistance in an exercise, they can mimic what their mom is doing, or they can simply run around in circles while their mom does push ups and squats. All we care about is that they are there, they see their mom being healthy, and they have fun.

There are many women out there who feel like they shouldn’t exercise once they get pregnant out of fear of hurting the baby. Can you tell us why that is and what you can do in the beginning to exercise without causing any harm to the pregnancy?

The answer to this question could be a book, but in a nutshell the recommendations prior to the 1990s were very conservative because research had not been done on the subject of prenatal exercise. Since doctors did not know the answers their attitude was ‘better safe than sorry’ and recommended that women take it easy. There has since been a ton of research on the subject and it has all said that women can and should stay physically active before, during and after their pregnancies. The benefits of doing so are astounding. For liability reasons many obstetricians hesitate telling women that it is okay to exercise.
The best advice I can give women who want to remain active throughout their pregnancy is to start prior. It is much easier to maintain your fitness level and physique when you are fit going into it. Though, it is never too late to start even if you are already pregnant and have never exercised a day in your life.

Do you offer packages or is there only one option to choose from as a new member?

We realize that there are moms with different needs and goals in different stages of motherhood. There are many options for moms to participate in a Total Mommy Fitness program. Moms can get their workouts online, include their entire family, one-on-one sessions in-home or at the park, and now even in small group training with their kids at a couple local gyms in Austin. Total Mommy Fitness does not require a membership, we simple charge for the programs. They are all outlined on our site: http://totalmommyfitness.com/programs.html

How long are the programs?

Total Mommy Fitness programs range from a single session to 20+ session packages that include a grocery store trip, online training, phone coaching and a list of other features.

Tell us a little bit about yourself…

Name: Tatum Rebelle

What inspired you to become a personal trainer?

I have had a lifelong fascination of the human body and a passion for helping others. I grew up being very active and playing sports, and any time I picked up a book it was something health related. It just seemed like a perfect fit, and there is absolutely nothing else I would rather do than what I am doing with Total Mommy Fitness.

How has your life changed since you decided to work primarily with moms and pregnant women?

My life has completely changed. Total Mommy Fitness has been the most challenging and rewarding experience I have ever had. I have met some of my best friends and gotten to be a part of such an incredible time in women’s lives. Working with moms has also required a lot of flexibility and creativity when it comes to training. Pregnancy and post-partum exercise presents unique challenges that keep me continually learning.

I started my training career working with a lot of men and athletes, and spent time in the Army as a Drill Sergeant, and have since dedicated my career to helping moms. So, needless to say, it has been quite a different experience from where it all began. Athletic and general fitness trainers are a dime-a-dozen, and most do not know the first thing about prenatal exercise. There are so many myths that are still passed on as truth; it is necessary for mom’s to get the best and most current information available. This is what we provide.

Are you from Austin? If not, where are you from and how did you end up here?
What do you like about living in Austin?

I grew up in Scottsdale, AZ and lived in Dallas and Fort Worth for a while during college. I ended up in Austin because it by far the coolest town in the country. It seemed like the perfect fit for both Total Mommy Fitness and myself. People are friendly, the culture is diverse, and fitness is a part of part of the community. I am definitely home.

Tell us what a typical day is like for you? Do you workout all day long with clients?

I don’t think I would ever describe any of my days as typical. Expanding Total Mommy Fitness has made me focus on the business side of things more than I used to, but I still train clients as well as speak to groups of moms about fitness and nutrition, meet with other local business owners, hire and train the other fitness coaches, work with the Mayor’s Fitness Council, volunteer with Big Brothers, Big Sisters, and a list of other things. Somewhere in the mix of all of that I squeeze in time for schoolwork for the MBA that I am working on.
All of my clients are different, so my training style is different with each of them. I will certainly workout with moms sometimes to push them harder than they would push themselves. My workout often comes more from kid juggling while the mom works out.
Most kids associate me with playtime. We have a lot of fun.

Do you prefer to workout in the gym or outside in a natural setting?

I absolutely love being outside. I get out every chance I get. I have two dogs that are my exercise buddies, so we do a lot of dog park workouts. I truly believe that fitness should be fun, and does not have to be structured. Just getting out and playing with them in the fresh air makes my day.

If there’s one message that you could share with other women, what would it be?

Do something physically active every day, no matter how small and insignificant if may seem.

That’s excellent advice, Tatum! Thanks for devoting so much time to getting us mamas in shape. If you’d like to try Total Mommy Fitness out for FREE, just leave a comment here. If you are the winner. you’ll receive:

Two sessions of training if you live in Austin!!

or

Two months of online training if you live outside of Austin!!

A winner will be chosen Friday, September 20th and will be notified by email.

Posted by livemom on Monday, September 15th, 2008 at 9:32 am You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.