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You are here: Home / ADVENTURE / Facing our fears at Go Ape

Facing our fears at Go Ape

September 13, 2018 by Molly Leave a Comment

GoApe Junior Course Haldon Forest

Traditionally, my eldest has always been a bit of a cautious child. She would be the one at the playground who’d need me to hold her hand when she tackled the climbing frame, while the other kids threw themselves around without fear. So that’s why my heart swelled with pride when she faced her fears and completed not one, but all three of the courses on the new Tree Top Junior high ropes at Go Ape in Haldon Forest.

It’s years since I last did a Go Ape session (the last one was back in 2008 as part of a fun radio feature on the show I was working on at the time) so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I thought maybe the Junior course would be lower and assumed (rightly) that it would be easier than the adult course. But the ropes are just as high as the adult course (kids over the age of ten can do that one too), strung amid the tree tops of a beautiful forest near Exeter.

Children of any age can do the Junior course, as long as they’re at least a metre tall. Effie (age three) was just tall enough to join in the fun, although we were all unsure if she’d bottle it at the last minute once she got up to the top and realised how high we were. She didn’t. Another heart swell moment. 

Junior Course at Go Ape Haldon Forest

Apparently Effie is one of the youngest kids to do the course (she did route 1 – the easiest one, twice, while Freya moved onto the second and third level routes) which ends in a huge zip wire. It’s not an exaggeration to say I nearly cried with pride when I saw her little body zipping fearlessly away from me. My pride was even stronger because she was the first one of all of us to take on the zip wire!

Go Ape Haldon Forest

We got so much out of our session (you get an hour on the course which is long enough to do all three routes). It was a fantastic way to build confidence and feel a huge sense of achievement – for the kids AND adults! – as well as a great family bonding activity.

Go Ape Haldon Forest Junior Course

As you can see from the pictures, everyone on the course is harnessed in and there’s a full safety briefing before you’re allowed anywhere near the high ropes. There’s also a mini course lower down, to give you a taste of what’s to come in the tree tops and to get used to moving around in a harness. But even with the harness on and the knowledge that you’re completely safe and can’t fall, when you look down it can still be an intimidating feeling. Simon is scared of heights so, arguably, he did the best of all of us to take on the route without backing out!

The thing I loved about it the most was seeing all of us get a bit scared at some point and just plough on, encouraging each other in a beautifully boosting way. We all walked away from that course a little prouder – with ourselves and each other.

 

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Thanks to Go Ape for inviting us along to try out the new course at Haldon Forest. All photos, words and opinions remain my own. The Tree Top Junior Course costs £18 per person and is open to all ages, providing you’re at least a metre tall. Find out more on the Go Ape website. For more information about how I work with brands check out my Work With Me page.

 

Filed Under: ADVENTURE Tagged With: Devon days out, family activities, Family days out, family fun, Go Ape

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Hello and welcome! I'm Molly Forbes - podcaster, presenter and blogger with a passion for positivity, confidence and body image chat. Regularly writing and vlogging about empowering female issues from a motherhood angle, I also cover lifestyle and fashion topics for like-minded mums who want to rediscover themselves after having children. Thanks for stopping by! Read More…

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If you feel bad about your body you’re less like If you feel bad about your body you’re less likely to do nice things for it, including moving in a way that feels good and eating in a way that feels good. (FYI health is about more than just exercise and nutrition, but let’s get deeper into the exercise thing for a second...)
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Research shows kids who have low body image are less likely to get involved with sports and more likely to skip PE. 
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Want kids to move more? Stop teaching them that one type of body is better than another - because if their body doesn’t look like your version of a healthy / beautiful / successful body not only will they be more likely to feel shame over their body, they’ll be less likely to engage with the very behaviours you want them to do more of (or be more likely to engage with them in an UNhealthy way - compulsive exercise is dangerous).
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Instead:
💕Try talking about the intrinsic benefits of exercise over the extrinsic ones (ie. how it makes you FEEL instead of how it makes you LOOK).
✨Create opportunities for movement where ALL children feel welcome. 
💕Show children diverse representation so they can see sporting heroes with a range of body types and know that movement is for EVERYbody. 
✨Take a zero tolerance approach to appearance based bullying, body shaming and comments that perpetuate weight stigma (including even the hint that fat = bad). 
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(If you’re a teacher or youth leader interested in knowing more about this topic, a #BodyHappyKids workshop will help - follow the link in my bio 🥰❤️)
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[Image description: A multicoloured slide with an overlaid screenshot of tweet by Molly which reads ‘If your intention is to “get kids healthy” then you need to be aware of how weight bias, weight stigma and poor body image are active barriers to health. The end.]
Sharing this outfit pic with you because it’s a Sharing this outfit pic with you because it’s a crying shame only the piles of laundry got to see it, quite frankly. Finally, a pair of pre-loved jeans bought online that are true to size, consistent with the rest of the brand’s sizing and actually fit! 🎉 
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PS heads up - I’ll be doing a Q&A about body image and kids in my Stories on Friday. The Q sticker is up in my Stories now if you’d like to submit a Q! 💕 #BodyHappyKids
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[Image description: Molly is standing in front of the mirror looking very pleased with the fact her new jeans bought from Depop fit her. She is wearing pink patterned jeans with cherubs on them, a pink check jumper and pink trainers. There are piles of laundry on the bed behind her.]
Another photo of us on a walk, because it’s been Another photo of us on a walk, because it’s been our main form of entertainment this year. Anyone else? 
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I honestly now get excited about putting my boots on and being outdoors, even in the rain. I’m going to start hugging trees next and going on wild camping weekends that involve doing a poo behind a tree and making my own fire. Joke.... maybe. 
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Just another reminder that all movement is valid, exercise doesn’t need to have to be about burning calories or even tracking steps in order for it to be “worth it”. Hope everyone’s had a great weekend ❤️
#BodyHappyMum #JoyfulMovement
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Image description: Molly and her two daughters stand on a bridge in the countryside. They are all wearing hiking boots and outdoor clothes and smiling.
My body is good and excellent and my body only bel My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me ✨ (Words by Effie May, age 6 💕) #BodyHappyMum
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Image description: A close up of Molly’s bare skin as she hugs herself. It’s dark and part of her body is illuminated by light. She has her eyes closed and is smiling.
“Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. “Mummy I wrote a letter to myself,” she said. And my heart swelled. Maybe I’m doing an OK job after all 🤞❤️💕 #BodyHappyKids 
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I could leave this caption here but I need to make something clear: if you think it’s great that my daughter - a thin, white, nondisabled, cisgender kid - feels good in her body but you’re not here for the self-love of any kid who doesn’t look like her.... then you’ve missed the point.
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ALL bodies are good bodies, and without this important piece of the puzzle ALL children will be at risk of doubting their body. And what happens when they doubt their body? Well... hating our body doesn’t make us treat it with love, and the same is true of kids. 
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Great, now we’ve cleared that up, can we take a moment to appreciate the incredible phonetic spelling on show here?! 
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Image description: Effie, age 6, stands against a white wardrobe holding up a letter she has written to herself. It is spelled phonetically and reads “My body is good and excellent and my body only belongs to me.”
I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I ha I used to struggle to buy stuff for myself if I had any spare cash - not just treats, but basics like pants and tights that fit properly. I’d tell myself I didn’t need it, didn’t deserve it, couldn’t justify the expense. There’s still that little voice (the habit of putting everyone else’s needs first and my own last dies hard it seems) but I’m leaning into exploring why it still sometimes rears its head, instead of always listening to it. 
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I’m trying to buy as much as I can from pre-loved places or small businesses these days, which is why I’m very happy to share with you some of my latest finds: a star dress from Depop (£5), earrings from @kelzojewellery by @ourtransitionallife (£12) and the comfiest tights I’ve ever owned in Raspberry Pie by @snagtights (£6.99) 💕💕💕
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Have you found any great small brands lately? Shout them out in the comments so we can all support in the run up to Christmas. ⬇️⚡️
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Image description: Molly is smiling and sticking out her tongue to the camera. Her hair is freshly dyed a light shade of pink. She’s wearing a pink t’shirt underneath a black and white star patterned slip dress, with bright pink tights and black and pink earrings decorated with a boob design.
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