22-year-old Jessica Intsinzi is a fitness trainer, a career she says she chose out of passion and has been at it for three years now. She spoke to Women Today’s Sharon Kantengwa about the challenges women face in this field, and, gives tips on what real fitness entails.

How did you join this field?

I used to play all kinds of sport when I was young and I always watched how people trained at the gym, and I read many books on fitness training. I was studying at that time and I thought of a career that I was passionate about. I started training with others in the gym and after two years,I thought of coming up with a business plan to help people who are overweight and make them healthy. That is when I realised that Waka Fitness does personal training and I took the opportunity to have more experience in the profession. I intend to set up fitness, nutrition and supplement business to help those struggling with weight issues and this experience is what I need to help me.

Do you give your clients diet advice to compliment the fitness?

What they say that diet contributes 70 per cent to weight loss and exercise 30 per cent is true because we spend just one hour and a half working our bodies and the rest, snacking, and routine meals. Yet whatever you put into your body is what the body will portray. Healthy eating should be a lifestyle but also, the kind of exercise matters. Making dieting a lifestyle will only make life simpler and keep one in good shape and feel confident.

How do you keep your clients motivated?

Because I’m passionate about my work, I cannot stand watching my clients fail. Some have failed even when I have completely tried but at some point,I always ask them to keep in mind why they started in the first place and I constantly give them updates on our workout schedules.

What is your take on working out? Is it basically about losing weight?

Working out is not only about losing weight. It should be everyone’s lifestyle because it is more than just losing weight. Working out is about being fit, fighting depression, feeling confident, among others, but overall, it should be about having a healthy life.

What challenges have you faced in this profession?

When it comes to fitness, women and men are different. A man can add weight and still look good yet for a woman; it’s just not a good sign. Our image as girls counts more and tends to reflect on our jobs because it’s what attracts people to come to us. To have an impact on people you need to look good and keep a constant good body because you need to look good to convince someone that they can change the way they look. I have gotten clients who choose me to train them because they want easy exercises but they end up being proven wrong. Men should understand that we can do what they can do.

What fitness philosophy do you go by?

I believe that posture is the most important part of fitness and that is what I emphasise with my clients because focusing on posture provides long lasting results. I do weight lift trainings while maintaining good posture.

Do you have fitness goals yourself?

I feel like I’ve never reached where I want to be. I feel I want to be more flexible because there are things that I am not able to do yet due to some injuries I have incurred but I’m aiming for them.

What are some of the challenges you see with women during fitness courses?

There are two kinds of women, the naturally strong and the weak. Being weak impedes their ability to cope with exercises and it takes time to get along, yet men are better at working out and progressively add weights because it’s within their minds that they can do anything. Also, when it comes to combination of exercises, it is terrible sometimes for them compared to men. They just need to have a better mindset because anyone can do anything.

What advice do you have for women who are hesitant to try fitness?

They should just go for it. Being lean and tone has a very big advantage to the woman as weak bodies tend to get fatter easily. Fitness will also give them confidence and resist illnesses of the body.

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