Top Tips to Get Fit and Feel Epic

Thinking about my exercise journey, I would consider myself quite active. I usually prefer walking than taking on the bus for short distance and I enjoy taking little man to the park on weekends for a nice walk.

Before having a child, I used to go to the gym most weekdays. I would spend a couple of hours each time and do lots of classes including kickboxing, aerobics, Body Pump, Body Combat. I would either run or walk in the treadmill before the class and do some weights too.

However since I gave birth to little man nearly 4 years ago, I don’t have as much time to go the gym. There is the childcare issue, little man goes to bed quite early, so I can’t just leave him at home and go to the gym.

I have been keeping fit by exercising at home and also attending Zumba classes once or twice a week.

Exercising at home is good as you don’t need to leave the house, but you can also get distracted easily – if the phone rings, if there is something interesting on TV, if your child wakes up.

There are a thousand reasons to get you distracted while exercising at home. The best way to exercise at home is by getting an exercise partner, whether it is your husband or housemate, it is great when there is someone else involved. Make them part of your exercising routine, so you can keep each other motivated. Hubby and I exercise together at home, we put some music on, while I’m on the stepper, he is doing weights.

I have an office job, so I sit at my desk all day and it is quite easy to over indulge in cakes and biscuits. I do try and eat healthy, I enjoy fruit and veg and I have my 5-a-day most days. As I spend most of the day sitting down, I try and keep active by going to Zumba.

I have been attending Zumba for over a year now and I still enjoy it very much. I know the instructor and most of the girls quite well by now, so we keep each other motivated.

Exercise makes me feel more confident, more active and full of energy. It sounds a bit contradictory, but after an intensive workout, I have more energy than before going to the class.

My body also releases endorphin and feel-good hormones, so I leave the class in good spirits and looking forward to the next one. My self-steam has also improved considerably since I started going to Zumba. I remember my very first day, I was the one at the back, hiding behind all the girls. As time went on, I learnt the routines and I started moving forward and now I am in the first roll in the class.

I always wanted to run a marathon, so I plan on start training soon using the coach potato to 5k training. I will take part in the Race for Life this summer, can’t wait!

My Top Tips to Get Fit and Feel Epic:

• Find an activity that you enjoy and commit to it. Some days you might not want to attend it, but you just have to go. Get ready and go, you will not regret!
• Invite a friend to exercise with you or make friends at the gym/class. Once there are others involved, you will feel more motivated to exercise.
• Make exercise part of your daily routine: get off one bus/train stop earlier or take a longer route to work. I particularly enjoy having a long walk to the station after a busy day at work, I usually walk to the following station and unwind.
• If you don’t have time to attend classes and go to the gym, just try and be more active by walking more, 30 minutes a day will make a big difference in your mood and health.
• Have fun! Yes, you need to enjoy it, otherwise you won’t stick to it. Zumba works well for me and football works well for hubby. You need to find what you enjoy and have fun while doing it! I am sure you will get fit and feel epic in no time!

Hubby and I have been using MyFitnessPal app to track our food intake and exercise, and I found out that it links up with FitBit, great way to track our exercise! We don’t have a decent scale, so a smart scale would help us to manage our weight. We would definitely Get Fit and Feel Epic in no time!