Trainer Thoughts – Fitness, Health and Wellbeing with Elle Kealy
Here at the HK HUB we are really excited to launch our brand new bi-weekly column focusing on fitness and wellbeing, with the supremely knowledgeable and talented Elle Kealy of Lithe Fitness. She will be sharing her tips, advice, exercise ideas and more to help you be the best version of you possible.
Last week I took a trip to the UK without my family in tow and while I was there raided WHSmith for the latest health and fitness publications with a view to sitting down by myself to actually read one. Possibly with a cup of tea. (Anyone with kids will know this a rare treat.)
‘Dream Abs at 40, One Woman Does It’, screamed the cover of Women’s Health. ‘Still fit at 40’, they announced with surprise on the inside cover. I know it’s a well-intentioned piece with a headline designed to sell magazines but is it really so unexpected that women want to take care of their health and wellbeing at any age? I feel these headline statements imply it’s pretty difficult or a rare achievement.
While the headline got my back up I can see where Women’s Health were going with this. The fact remains that women face unique challenges in their lives that do impact the amount of success they have with health and fitness. In our twenties we’re establishing our careers, working long hours and socialising with friends which can make a healthy lifestyle challenging. Yet this is the time when we’re most likely to focus on ourselves and our personal fitness goals.
Within a decade or so many of us are faced with a body that’s changed due to pregnancy or hormonal shifts and a schedule that’s unrecognisable from our (with hindsight) carefree twenties. Juggling family commitments and a career means that it’s easy for fitness to be put on a back burner. As we reach our forties and beyond we need to be more intelligent about how we workout or take care of ourselves in order to get results but also to create fitness routines that we enjoy, that work with our lifestyles and that are sustainable.
As a dancer, my twenties were spent stuffing my face with pizza then dancing for a few hours a day. It’s only thanks to good genetics that this strategy didn’t blow up in my face since it’s neither healthy nor sustainable. Come to think of it, I didn’t really have a strategy at all because dancing wasn’t even about being healthy, it was merely something I loved to do. When I later started working an office job without the daily activity levels to counter my poor diet the decline in my fitness was startling.
I’m now closer to that milestone 40th birthday and pleased to say that due to some simple yet sustainable changes, some nutritional education and a shift in attitude towards what I believe I can achieve I’m in better health now than I was as a young dancer. It wasn’t always obvious that I’d get to this point and post-kids was decidedly tough. But I am here.
I’m delighted to have started my personal training business Lithe Fitness, an exclusive service for women of all ages and abilities, because I’m passionate about helping women to recognise that they can achieve their health and fitness goals. I’m also a big believer in the one-size-does-not fit-all mentality when it comes to working out. What one woman desires may not be the ultimate aim of another. We all have unique bodies, unique lives and unique challenges to face, so the methods that I use as a trainer to help women achieve their goals differ greatly depending on the client I’m working with.
I’m excited to be sharing some of my ideas, fitness tips and news with the HK Hub in this column with the aim to uncover the hidden fitness gems around Hong Kong, to encourage thought about simple ways to embrace your body and improve your fitness and to motivate others to take small sustainable steps towards a healthier, body positive and fun, fit lifestyle.
And in case anyone is interested the ‘one woman’ referenced in Women’s Health turned out never to have claimed to have a washboard stomach. What she did have was a great transformation story and a strong commitment to her lifestyle changes. Her secret? A kick-starter bootcamp similar to Hong Kong’s own BikiniFit and a clean eating diet combined with a consistent long term approach to fitness over fad dieting. You go girl.
Elle Kealy is an international business coach for fitness health and wellness professionals looking to launch their businesses with a bang and women’s fitness expert, personal trainer and nutrition coach helping women around the world eat better and feel fantastic in just 90 days or less. For more information on working with Elle visit
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