By Gemma West
Tennis sessions supporting women reaching menopause are among the latest new ideas and practices being adopted by Leicestershire sports centres as part of the Active Together programme.
Neil Roberts, Chairman of the Hinckley Town Tennis Club, co-founded Feel Good Tennis last year to combine physical activity, wellbeing and tennis.
The Feel Good Tennis programme ran its first Perimenopause and Menopause Tennis session on April 18 and has its next one planned for Wednesday next week (MAY29).
The event merges learning to play tennis and allowing those present to become further informed on menopause and its symptoms.
The 90-minute sessions are split in two, with tennis coaching taking place in the first half, and support from wellbeing and nutritional experts for the remainder.
Neil highlighted how well the cohort responded to the event, mentioning that the eight spots were filled with very short notice in less than a week.
“Feedback from this cohort has been extremely positive,” he said. “People enjoy the group activity, with space to discuss their own experiences and coping mechanisms.”
One participant also commented on Facebook: “Can highly recommend as part of the first cohort! Every aspect has been informative, fun and a lovely, caring environment too.”
To be able to put together a space that caters to all needs, attendees are given a journal to note down any questions or thoughts they have through the week to have a strong basis of discussion for the next week.
Neil said he is happy to be supportive when it comes to being a solution for discussions about menopause and the benefits of tennis.
The club runs on feedback, with many participants of the peri/menopause tennis requesting elective menopause and the impacts of medical procedures as topics of discussion.
From mindfulness to stress on key workers, the Feel Good programme rotates its focus frequently meaning it is able to cover as many topics as they see fit.
Visit www.feelgoodtennis.co.uk/ for further information.
