My From-Hate-to-Love relationship with fitness
In honor of the upcoming World Health Day on 07/04/2023, I wanted to share a little bit about my love story with fitness, and how the gym became a non-negotiable for me. Because looking after my body in form of movement, is now (!) crucial to my health and mental well-being alike.
Up until I moved to the UK in 2018, I had absolutely a terrible relationship with physical well-being. As a kid, I tried many different things like kickboxing, ice-skating, ballet dancing, and swimming (I enjoyed that, but I was too self-conscious of my body so I stopped). So nothing ever stuck with me. Later on, in school, I did moderately ok in sports but never had any passion for it. I did the sporadic workouts in between to feel like I did something, but never truly enjoyed it. Running was my absolute nightmare, I couldn’t follow any yoga instructions and the gym was a totally unknown area for me. It didn’t help that I also had a completely wrong picture of how my body should look, the slimmer the better, I needed a “tuna gap” and that line across my tummy to feel good about myself, always comparing myself to others.
It was toxic.
Fast forward to 2018 and moving to a new country I decided I wanted to give the gym ago, as we had on on-site where I worked. At first, I still felt very uncomfortable and spent most of the time on the treadmill or in classes, I knew just doing my own thing, wasn’t going to cut it, so I decided to get Personal Training (PT) and give weightlifting a try. Little did I know, that my wonderful PT would not only change my life but also turn into a friend for life!
It took only one session to get me hooked immediately. I loved how it felt being able to lift heavy weights, I loved being sore after and slowly but steadily seeing my muscles grow (and my self-esteem!). I kept on having more and more sessions with my PT and also started being more confident to try working out on my own. I learned how I could train different parts of my body and made quick progress.
I basically couldn’t get enough of pushing beyond limits and getting stronger every time, I learned how my body truly felt when I moved it and I started connecting to it way better than ever before. For the first time in my life, I found a physical outlet that not only brought me joy but also changed my thinking and who I am as a person.
5 years later, I can’t imagine a life without weightlifting. It has become a non-negotiable for me and I make it a priority to move and look after my body every single day. Together with my boyfriend, I have completed many challenging programs and am right now the strongest I have ever been. And I am proud of and grateful for my body to be capable of all of this, That I get to workout every day, walk around, lift weights, climb, run, or even just sit and write this text, all thanks to this physical vehicle.
This love for movement and my passion for weightlifting also sparked my wish in me to share it with others. I want to help others find their love for movement and their body, in whatever shape or form that may be. Hence I decided to go on the journey of also qualifying as a PT!
At his point, I already have my level 2 qualification and am close to level 3. This allows me to not only help you to find your way and love for fitness but in combination with my coaching expertise also help you build lasting healthy habits and take a holistic approach to fitness. Because going to the gym starts with the mind and your thoughts of wanting change and basically being fed up with how it was, ready to take action.
Start training your mind and body with me by sending me an email and we get you MOVING!
NamaStay STRONG
JD
