00:15Hello and welcome to Made in Kent live on KMTV. I'm Jay Blakeslee and this is the show where we
00:21explore the world of businesses and creators throughout the county. This week we're examining
00:26the fitness and well-being businesses and communities. Whether you're looking to improve
00:30your physical or mental health, Kent has a wide range of activities to explore from yoga
00:35to paddleboarding. But first up this week, our reporter Alia Pritchard visited Finding
00:40Flow Yoga to speak with Tara Flynn and Kim Rojas-Powell about their business and how physical
00:45activity can help support your mental health. Let's take a look.
00:48In the UK there are around 4,900 yoga studios which are attended by thousands of people
00:53weekly. But what is it about yoga that makes it so popular?
00:57To find out more, I'm visiting Tara's studio here at Whitspool to talk to Tara and Kim about
01:02their business.
01:03So I started doing yoga when I was a teenager, more for the physical benefits of it. And
01:08then I had gone to a class and the teacher ended up making me feel quite bad about myself.
01:14And so for many years I didn't practice. And then about six years ago I started practicing
01:20online. I was doing it for the physical benefits but it actually ended up really impacting my
01:25mental health. You know, I've always felt less flexible than other people at yoga classes so
01:32I find that, yeah, it helps me de-stress and definitely has a benefit for my mental health
01:37as well. There's no mirrors in here. It's not about coming somewhere where you're trying
01:41to perform or you're trying to do something a certain way. It really is about helping people
01:46to understand their own bodies and then find what works for them. You don't have to have
01:51a membership somewhere. You don't have to go somewhere that has lots of equipment. You
01:54can literally do it outside, by yourself, anytime, anywhere.
01:59Kim and Tara aim to use yoga and physical movements as a preventative measure against
02:03mental health and to mitigate family crises.
02:06There's a major reason why having businesses like this in Kent is so important. The rates
02:11of mental health struggles and challenges, we know that services and we know that support
02:17is really stretched and preventative intervention is a way of mitigating that, hopefully.
02:23They also told us about their newest programmes they are developing for schools here in Kent.
02:28So, Family Transitions is a 12-week in-school programme and it's designed for kids in primary
02:34school whose families are going through any major change, so separation, divorce, bereavement,
02:40illness and it uses movement, mindfulness and creativity to basically deal with change.
02:47We are currently fundraising on Space Hive, so the total that we need to raise is just
02:52over 17,000 and we've raised just over half. We're going to go in and offer a CPD training
02:59to teachers so that it's not just one group of kids that gets the benefit and then we leave,
03:04it's really then a whole school approach that they can keep delivering over and over.
03:08Tara was even kind enough to let me try out some stretches for myself and I must say I
03:13did feel quite relaxed after. Alia Pritchard for KMTV.
03:18Next, commercial gyms can sometimes be intimidating and overwhelming for beginners due to overcrowding
03:24and lack of equipment. So what about a more personal and calm environment? That ethos is what
03:30lots of independent gyms pride themselves on supplying to their clients. Our reporter Joel Fletcher visited
03:36Relentless Gyms in Sittingbourne and Sisu Fitness in Rochester to find out more about independent gym
03:41cultures. Last year, LeisureDB released a report about the UK fitness industry stating that despite
03:48rising operational costs, the business continues to expand with the market value surpassing 6 billion.
03:55So when it comes to opening a physical space, I think it's really important, unlike myself when I first
04:01opened a gym to think you know it all because you really don't and once you get going you have
04:06to
04:06ask for help for you know all sorts of things that you don't know. So it is to almost not
04:12go in too
04:13cocky and confident and actually think you know it all. You know seeing people make the progress that
04:17they come to you for having made no progress in for like years in gyms and then suddenly they start
04:22seeing everything they want to, yeah it's great. Sisu Fitness which has offered its services for eight years
04:26and Relentless Gyms which had its grand opening this year both pride themselves on their differences
04:32to commercial gyms and their own uniqueness. The advantage for being more independent is I think
04:38you have more of a connection with people where big commercial gyms they have memberships you know
04:43in the thousands where you're almost just a direct debit a transaction and you can go and like no one
04:50will
04:50even know your name where here's very very different we have such a nurturing process when people come on
04:55board and we have a golden rule like every coach has to know everyone's name. I think that's probably
05:01where we separate ourselves from commercial gyms in that even in our busy times you know you will
05:06always be able to get on equipment there's always going to be someone on hand to be able to talk
05:09to
05:09if you have if you need any advice. Data seems to suggest that demand for alternative gyms and fitness
05:15facilities like this is increasing due to their capability to offer a more personal and premium experience.
05:23We've got a bit more of a community feel to here everyone sort of knows each other here it's
05:27um yeah it's really good place to train. We see the same people day in day out we get to
05:32know what
05:32their goals are we get to know what they're trying to work towards we can help them you know we
05:37give
05:37them guidance. Our demographic tends to kind of fall between people that have maybe gone to the gym
05:42done a little bit kind of lost their way a little bit maybe not seen results and that's when they
05:46kind of get in touch with us and they get that real coaching aspect. People who generally get into fitness
05:51and
05:52have a real passion for it either they've gone through like their own journey or they really
05:56enjoy helping people so i think a lot of people within fitness are very passionate about what they
06:01do. Joel Fletcher for KMTV. And now a look at a sport that is sure to float your boat or
06:09should we say
06:09board. We sent our reporters Leo Davana and Ethan Materingay to explore the world of paddle boarding.
06:15They visited SUP with us in Maidstone to learn about the sport and its growing community here in Kent.
06:21Let's see how they got on. Paddle boarding is a beginner friendly sport consisting of a river,
06:27a paddle, a board and you. In 2022 paddle boarding participation rose to over 3 million people in the
06:35UK and has continued to steadily grow since. Kent is no exception. We spoke to Helen Matthews about her
06:43paddle boarding business. So started out just doing the odd few lessons you know and advertising loads and
06:49then gradually word of mouth spread and the more lessons i gave the more reviews i got and people
06:54were just telling their friends so i just got more and more clients and there's also been quite a big
07:00sort of promotion on social media and the news about this growing sport and how it's so good for women
07:06because it's not it doesn't rely on strength or any sort of physical ability you just need to be able
07:11to stand up.
07:12We also spoke to Andrew Stoatsbury about how paddle boarding is essential to the community and how
07:19it's personally helped him. I've been paddling on the medway for seven years for me it's been absolutely
07:27essential. Paddle boarding has given me the resilience and the core strength to overcome an operation four
07:37years ago which wouldn't have gone as well without being fit and having this opportunity to just have
07:45a mindful experience. Once you've had a lesson you will then be advised what size board is better for
07:51you because the different heights and sizes of people would depend on the size of the board and
07:55also what type of paddle boarding you're going to be doing if you're going to be a lot of sea
07:58work with
07:59surfing you want a much shorter board like a 10 foot board if you're going to be doing river paddles
08:04just
08:05and it's straight line paddles up a river or around a lake you want a longer board because it's easier
08:10for the cruising. I find the simplicity of paddle boarding is just right for me when you're on a board
08:17you're standing up you can see over the the hedges you can see over the banks in a kayak you're
08:24right
08:24down here and really all you're seeing is the plain of the water getting in and out on a paddle
08:31board is
08:32so much easier any sort of water sport brings attention to our rivers and blue spaces if you
08:39don't use it you'll lose it. And in an effort to encourage more people to use it we were invited
08:45to
08:45try out the sport ourselves.
08:52Leo Davana and Ethan Meteringue for KMTV. Now let's take a moment to delve deeper into the figures and
09:00statistics of Kent's fitness and well-being sector. Joining me this week to bring us to deep dive is
09:06Kami Akandero.
09:14Hiya Kami. Hi. So what is Kent's fitness looking like? The Active Live survey recorded the rates
09:21of sports club memberships in 2025 of people aged 16 and over who participated at least twice a month.
09:27They found that Kent was slightly below the UK average at just over 38% with England sitting at just
09:33over 40%. And what are the benefits of physical activity? A London School of Economics study from
09:402017 found those who play specifically team sports reported higher life satisfaction. This is largely due
09:47to the social and psychological benefits of team membership such as a sense of belonging and developing
09:52social identity. In general participants of sports report higher levels of self-esteem and happiness
09:58compared to non-participants. And of course we saw some of our reporters try paddle boarding earlier.
10:06Why might it have grown in popularity recently?
10:12The sport did see a sharp increase during the pandemic. Paddle UK reported membership rose from
10:1732% to 90,000 in 18 months around 2020 and 2021. Training and events from the British Stand Up
10:25Paddle
10:26Association has likely helped this trend. Paddle boarding works the whole body whilst having
10:31no strain on the joints, making it accessible for various fitness levels. Balancing on the board targets core
10:36muscles while the strokes build the upper body power and the legs stay active for stability. Recent data from
10:422022 indicates that 13.2 million UK adults tried boating activities including paddle boarding which is up
10:503% from the previous year. Wonderful. And where might people try to find some water sports?
10:59Memberships like Paddle UK provide a license and insurance but you will need your own gear. However, there are
11:05water sports centres in Medway and Chatham that hold events which provide all the necessary equipment.
11:10There are actually less of these centres in Medway since the pandemic with Arathusa Ventures Centre at
11:15Upnor closing in 2019. So while people are privately taking up these hobbies, it's establishments like
11:20these that make outdoor and water sports accessible for people to try out. Brilliant. Thank you so much.
11:31You've been watching Made in Kent live here on KMTV, but there's more news made just for Kent throughout the
11:36evening.
11:37But from me and the team here, that's all. Thank you so much for watching.
11:41Thank you so much for watching.
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