No Kardashians in sight, this post is all about the most important ‘K’ word; kids and the two words that can send you on a highway of conflicting emotions – school holidays. Yay, no more school run rat race; boo, non-stop feeding; yay, no ‘where’s my (homework, school shoes, gym bag, lunch) boo, how in the hell am I going to keep them off their devices? Or perhaps the hardest of all, what am I going to do to keep them entertained for 6-8 weeks? For my family, we’ve decided travelling abroad is just too tricky in these trying times so daily activities are the preference. With two children who have varied interest levels, this is tantamount to strategic planning of moving a small army around the nation. Where to go, what to do, where to stay? The questions and web searches are never ending. However, here’s what will certainly cause disruption to the whole precariously planned agenda – an injury. This is where I enter the story. I am a walking mess of soft tissue damage, ligament strains and cartilage crunches. I like to call them my ‘white tissue issues’. I used to approach our very active holidays with a lingering sense of dread. Could I climb, could I snow plough for hours with a small child wedged between my knees, teaching her to turn and stop. Could I brave the arctic temperatures of the Atlantic ocean for hours, plunging and fishing children from the surf? Could I cycle for miles pulling a trailer of ‘go faster Mummy’ demanding dictators? The answers to all of those questions is that I did but boy did I feel it. No amount of holiday chardonnay could cure my aches; until I met collagen. Supplementing with superior Bioactive Collagen Peptides®, like those found in our flex+ formula completely changed my life. I could run, climb, lift, spin, pedal, and lunge like my old self. My knees no longer creak and crunch like an instrument in an experimental jazz trio. I’m free - well sort of - to move as I want. So what is happening on the inside? I’m not masking the pain with ibuprofen. I’m literally healing my connective, tendon, ligament and cartilage tissue. The fibroblasts (the cells that produce structural framework) in my body are activating to replace my body’s own natural supplies — to counteract the diminishing amount we produce as we age. It’s vitally important that the collagen is supplied in the right form. Bioavailability is key! During our production process, the amino acid chains are finely tweaked to obtain collagen peptides that can be targeted directly at cartilage growth, firmer skin or stronger bones. Studies have proven that our collagen peptides stimulate the body’s own cells to increase their natural production of collagen and other fundamental structural components needed to maintain important bodily functions. One scoop in my coffee and one in my smoothie is all it takes to keep me moving and feeling my best! This all equals a happy yet mentally exhausted Mummy and (hopefully) physically active and exhausted kiddos – a win win! Now if I could only cure my hayfever….