20 fun family activities for 2016!  

Put aside the fitness crazes and lifestyle changes – these fun activities are easy to take part in and take place at six Vivacity Leisure Centres across the city. With a great range of activities on offer for every age and ability, there’s a session to benefit every single member of the family 

1 Ducklings Baby and Toddler Swimming Sessions
Working at your child’s pace, Ducklings parent-and-baby swim sessions are designed to build early-years water confidence. These sessions help develop young children’s basic motor skills whilst exploring the fun of learning to swim. Enjoy a completely new swimming experience where babies and toddlers enjoy being introduced to the pool environment through song and play. Watch their confidence grow as they learn to swim and love the water too. These sessions also provide a fantastic foundation for the Learn-to-Swim stages for older children. Sessions are available at three Vivacity pools for babies aged 3+ months.

2 Inflatable Zorbs Family Fun
Come along to Peterborough’s most exciting pool session, guaranteed to leave the kids smiling! A unique twist on your Sunday family swim, you and the kids can enjoy the giant inflatables and floats. Take a tumble in the two-man Rollerz, water-walk in the one-man Zorbs or race around in the crazy mini-boats at the Regional Pool every Sunday 2.00pm – 6.00pm. Or if you are looking for a real challenge enjoy your own version of ‘It’s a knockout’ on the huge inflatable obstacle course at Jack Hunt Pool Sunday 1.00pm – 3.00pm. Both sessions run every Sunday.

3 Kid’s Fitness Classes, Karate and Junior-Gym Sessions
Not sure what to do with the kids when you want to go to the gym? Why not take them along? Vivacity offer a range of fun, instructor-led classes for children. Kick-start your child’s love for exercise at an early age and you can help reduce the likelihood of health problems in later life. Vivacity believe it is important to engage and excite all children through regular activity, which is why they offer Junior-Gym sessions as well as Kid’s Circuits, Kid’s Zumba and Kid’s Karate classes, including beginners and advanced levels.

4 Rollers Roller-Skating 4 Family Fun
Loved by children and adults alike, the award-winning Rollers roller-skating sessions are a popular family activity and great fun for all! Two weekend rollerskating sessions are available at Werrington and Bushfield Leisure Centres. These fun sessions offer great lighting, music and atmosphere where both children and adults can enjoy skating to the latest music. So if you love mixing fun and music come along to these energy-filled sessions – every Saturday at Werrington Leisure Centre from 5.00pm-8.00pm and every 1st Sunday of the month 10.00am-1.00pm at Bushfield Leisure Centre.

5 ‘Us Girls’ Teen Club
For most teenage girls the secret to being happy is socialising, feeling good about themselves and having fun. ‘Us Girls’ is a free social club for teenage girls aged 12-19 who can come along and make a new circle of friends. This national programme owes its popularity to its no-pressure environment great social buzz and engaging programme of activity – plus it’s free at three convenient locations.

6 Outreach Archery
If you’re looking for a sport that requires skill and technique whilst providing a fun challenge, then archery is for you! This inclusive and social sport attracts young and old alike and is perfect for all ages and ability – a fact which has helped make it one of the UK’s fastest growing sports. Outreach Archery is a fully inclusive sport and one of nine disability-friendly sports provided by Vivacity. To help promote this great sport these sessions are also offered on an ‘outreach’ basis, so if you can’t come to their regular sessions they can come to you!

7 Peterborough Adapted Cycling Scheme
The Peterborough Adapted Cycling Scheme (PACS) provides a range of specially adapted bikes to allow adults and children with limited mobility and disabilities to enjoy cycling. This friendly club is run by qualified cycling coaches and experienced disabled cyclists who are always on hand to offer help and advice. Open sessions are available at the scenic Ferry Meadows and at the athletics track next to the Regional Fitness & Swimming Centre.

8 Personal Training
Are you looking to get back in to shape? Do you have a special occasion or a big birthday coming up? Then 2016 is the year to kick-start your fitness regime – and one of the most effective ways is with a Personal Trainer These fitness experts will give you the motivation, focus and training know-how to help you achieve your fitness and weight loss goals – quickly! Personal Trainers are fully qualified to help you get the most out of your workout – in or out of the gym environment. As well as designing you a bespoke fitness programme Personal Trainers are experts in offering nutritional advice – an area where many people struggle.

9 Adult Swimming Lessons
It is never too late to learn how to swim so why not make 2016 the year you start? Swimming offers so many physical and psychological benefits; feeling confident and safe in and around water, being able to swim with friends and family, and being able to enjoy taking a dip safely on your summer holidays. Surprisingly 20% of adults don’t know how to swim, so you are not alone. Swimming also offers incredible health and fitness benefits and can be an ideal sport if you are trying to increase your mobility or recovering from an injury. Vivacity’s adult swim school includes free swimming outside of class time so you can increase your confidence in your own time – available at three Vivacity pools across the city.

10 Swimfit
If the gym’s not your thing then why not try Swimfit! An alternative way to work out in the pool and great to keep you enthused and challenged during your swim. Whether your goal is to lose weight, to tone or just to improve your technique Swimfit is the perfect motivational tool and what’s best… it’s FREE. Pick up your FREE Swimfit programme. the next time you swim at Peterborough’s most popular pool – the Regional Fitness & Swimming Centre.

11 Aqua-Relax and Pool-Based Fitness Classes
If you like the idea of getting back in the pool, why not try a low-impact Aqua-Fitness class? Whether you’d like to get fit, tone up or just find a class you love then Vivacity have five great pool-based classes to choose from including Aqua-Fit Shallow, Aqua-Fit Deep, Aqua-Zumba, Aqua-Natal and new Aqua-Relax. Aqua-Relax is a stress relieving class which encourages gentle movements and stretches in a warmer, more relaxing pool environment with gently-soothing music to ease away your daily stresses. Every Friday 7.00pm – 8.00pm at the Regional Fitness & Swimming Centre.

12 Great Fitness Class Programme
Vivacity offers over 200 low-impact and high-energy fitness classes every week at six centres across the city. Taught by some of the best instructors these sessions ensure you incorporate fun and variety into your fitness routine. Classes take place in modern dance, exercise and spin studios and there’s something to suit every age, ability and mood, with a huge range of different classes on offer. 9/10 people prefer exercising in a class rather than alone, so pop along and discover a class you love! Try one of thepopular classes which include Les Mills® Body Pump, Body Balance, Body Jam, Insanity®, Zumba, Yoga or Studio Cycling with many more on offer.

13 Studio Cycling (Spin)
Get your pulse racing by taking part in a studio cycling class! Join the instructor on your own personal cycling journey as you battle harsh terrain by turning up the intensity on your bike before standing up-and-out of your seat to sprint to the top of a huge hill. Studio Cycling is the ultimate activity to burn body fat, with a great programme set to a fantastic soundtrack. One of Vivacity’s most popular classes with over 30 sessions every week!

14 Functional Training
Want to get involved in the latest big fitness trend? Improve your strength, stability, mobility and power using natural movement of your body to improve everyday performance. Guided sessions offer you a circuit-type workout around specially designed ‘X-Cube’ fitness frames. No matter your fitness goal this popular training method has something to offer as you perform smooth movements working both your muscles and joints, where you can work at a pace that suits your fitness Angela, Shelia and Pat, 65, 66 and 73. level, energy and ability.

15 High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)
Cue high knees, mountain climbers and burpees! High intensity training is proving very popular due to it being a very effective form of training which uses your body-strengthto- weight ratio to stimulate your muscles. Exercises are fast, frequent and intense with small periods of rest in between, and an effective way to quickly increase your overall strength, stamina and cardiovascular fitness. A recent report shows HIIT to be effective exercise in controlling type 2 diabetes. HIIT also forms the basis of popular exercise classes such as Insanity® and Metafit.

16 The Embankment Sports & Athletics Arena
Don’t let the winter months keep you from getting a regular dose of exercise. At the Embankment Sports & Athletics Arena you can enjoy a great range of outdoor activities including a range of athletics and cycling. The track is home to two well established athletic clubs; the Nene Valley Harriers and Peterborough Athletics Club as well as Fenland Clarion Cycling Club. Time yourself running around the 400m track, test your skills at long-jump or try your hand at discus or javelin throwing at this fantastic facility – a great opportunity to try something different.

17 Nordic Walking
There’s a brand new fitness craze sweeping the UK and the best part is anyone can do it! Nordic Walking is a hugely popular Scandinavian sport which uses 90% of your skeletal muscles and burns 46% more calories than normal walking! Using specialised walking poles you propel yourself along to turn this simple sport into a full-body workout. This activity is especially beneficial for people with neck, shoulder and back problems as well as those with medical conditions. Nordic Walking is part of the popular Walking for Health Scheme, a free programme of 11 guided walks across the city – find your local walk at
vivacity-peterborough.com/walkingforhealth

18 Lifestyle Membership
Are you living with a health condition, either physical or psychological that makes regular exercise difficult? Do you find it hard to find the right support, advice and the motivation to keep active? If your answer is yes you can find the help you need with the Vivacity Lifestyle Membership Scheme. Perhaps you are living with a long-term condition or injury, diabetes, hypertension or stress-related illness? This specialised threemonth course is run by a team of trained and qualified instructors who will support you through a structured programme of activity to help you make the right lifestyle choices and show you how to incorporate physical activity into your daily life. You can be referred onto this exercise programme by your GP or Healthcare Professional.

19 Exercise for Musculoskeletal Conditions
Living with arthritis, osteoporosis or general joint pain need not be an obstacle to being active. If you are living with any of these conditions, light aerobic, strengthening and stretching exercises can help significantly improve your quality of life. Exercise can increase synovial fluid production to keep joints healthy and increase bone density. This can lead to significant health benefits, including increased joint range and stronger ligaments. So if this is a concern to you joining a Vivacity Health class could be a positive step in the right direction. Every Thursday at 11.00am-12.00 am at Hampton Leisure Centre with a range of nine other specialist classes on offer. “Since coming to this class I have learnt specific exercise techniques to manage the symptoms of my Rheumatoid Arthritis. I have seen a great improvement in my strength and stamina meaning I can now take regular walks which has vastly improved my quality of life.” Miriam, 70.

20 Zumba Gold
Exercise is important regardless of age and keeping active will help increase your energy and strength. If you are looking for a fun, easy to take up activity with lots of social interaction then Vivacity’s Zumba Gold could be just your thing! Enjoy an energetic but gentle workout which will have you moving your hips to some classic songs. As you dance the time away, you will improve your fitness whilst having a great time and making a new circle of friends.

For more information visit vivacity-peterborough.com/20for2016