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Healthy Together Wyndham: A kick out of fitness

10/03/2015

Killing time while waiting for the kids to finish their dance classes, swimming lessons or footy training is an experience with which every parent is familiar.

So a karate school in Tarneit has developed a plan to encourage parents to switch off their smart phones and get fit with their children.

Working with Wyndham council’s Healthy Together Wyndham team, Nippon-Den Kempo karate school at Tarneit Community Learning Centre is offering parents the opportunity to train with their children.

Council community well-being portfolio holder Bob Fairclough said the program was a fantastic way for parents to take an active role in their children’s health and fitness.

“This is a terrific idea to encourage parents, who would otherwise be sitting or standing around, to get active alongside their children and become healthy role models for them,” he said.

“The karate school is also encouraging healthier food choices and providing information about better nutrition.”

Nippon-Den Kempo was one of the recipients of the council’s Healthy Together Grants, which support community initiatives to improve health across Wyndham.

Nutritionist Sandra Stephens, whose husband, Mark, is one of the school’s instructors, was behind the idea.

“We don’t want the parents to be sitting around when they come to see their children train, so we are giving them the opportunity to train alongside them,” she said. “You don’t need any background in karate and you don’t need to be super fit. For those who don’t like the idea of karate, we will also run some walk and talk groups.

“This idea flowed on from my own decision to try karate with my seven and eight-year-old sons. I thought that if I show them that while some things are difficult to do, you don’t give up, you keep trying, it would give them more confidence. We also want to offer healthy food at the tournaments the school runs and get away from the soft drink and pizzas.

“Once a term, we will hold cultural nights where parents can cook healthy food together from one of the many cultures represented at Nippon-Den Kempo.

“We’re getting the kids involved, too, through a better nutrition challenge. They’ll each receive a food diary to record the fruit and vegies they eat each day, and there’ll be prizes for the winners.”