It’s hard to stay motivated if a workout isn’t live
WHILE many of us have been bingeing on Netflix and nachos, Aisling Quinn has made the best of social distancing to create a fitness website for home workouts made easy. The 26-year-old is the daughter of Niall and Gillian Quinn and she has been passing the time at home in Kildare with her parents and brother Mikey using exercises to promote physical and mental wellbeing.
The law graduate is familiar with the adverse effects of isolation, as three years ago she contracted dengue fever and spent time recovering in total isolation.
The qualified Pilates instructor hit on the idea when she was digitally talking to her friends – a number of whom work in the fitness industry, and who like, thousands of others, find themselves without work.
So, in an effort to box clever and encourage others to exercise in isolation, Aisling founded virtual fitness website Sweat25.com in just under a week.
‘Sweat25 all started with a conversation between me and certified athletic therapist Conor Murphy. Conor has been our Mikey’s best friend since they were kids, so he’s like my second little brother,’ she told the Irish Mail on Sunday.
‘He expressed concern over the precariousness of his livelihood under the current circumstances because all sporting events had been cancelled.
‘I suggested setting him up with a website and video conferencing so that he could teach clients remotely. I’d use VideoRankMe then to market him. It was as simple as that.’
While working away on her friend’s website Ash realised she could expand her concept.
‘It dawned on me that there may be other health and wellbeing professionals seeking the same sort of online opportunity,’ she said. ‘I contacted my physiotherapist friend and football teammate, Leah Purcell, and she informed me that she’s had to temporarily close the doors at Able Bodies, her physiotherapy clinic in Newbridge, and would love a route to the online world.’
As the daughter of a former Ireland player, fitness is in the Quinn genes.
‘I’m a Stott-trained Pilates instructor and taught Pilates throughout my college years, so safety in a workout is of paramount importance to me,’ Aisling said.
‘There are many online options for working out and whilst I’m a firm believer in using what you can to get your body moving, there is always a danger to following an online video or a series of influencer workout plans without someone qualified to help guide you through alignment and positioning in real time.’
‘Use what you can to keep your body moving’
She also believes that social distancing and self-isolation will have a detrimental impact on many people and hopes reaching out remotely and encouraging people to stay active will provide both physical and mental health benefits.
‘Aside from cautions around body awareness, it can be both lonely and difficult to stay motivated when a workout isn’t in a live, interactive environment with other people,’ she said. Sweat25 is an online platform for qualified, experienced instructors to teach live online classes of multiple disciplines via video-conferencing.
‘Classes are live, so instructors can give real-time feedback, correct alignment or tell people to suck in their tummies or widen their stance, and to motivate clients in a fun, creative way,’ she said.
And with over 400,000 people losing jobs, Aisling is very aware cash is tight so has kept fees to €5 a class and numbers limited to nine. ‘When people sign up for a class via the website, clients will be emailed with their confirmation and a URL with which they can use to login to the class,’ she explained.
‘They’ll be able to see and hear their teacher and the teacher can see and hear them.
‘All a client needs are a device with a camera, a mat, or a couple of towels for padding, a bottle of water and a decent internet connection.
‘Most classes last for 25 minutes so people tight on time, struggling to get away from the kids or taking a break from work, they can dedicate 25 minutes to themselves.’