STEP INTO YOUR HEALTH
Tiffany Matthews is one of the passionate health professionals at Resolution Retreats; the only women’s exclusive live-in weight loss, health and wellness retreat in New Zealand. Much of the success of this award winning retreat is the pragmatic and realistic focus that underpins all of the retreat programs, designed by leading industry experts, whether guests are there for three days or three weeks. Alongside facilitating the retreats, Tiffany leads group fitness classes, and presents on a range of educational health workshops including gut health.
Essence: What is your role at Resolution Retreats?
Tiffany: I’m a qualified health educator, fitness and dance instructor and retreat facilitator. As a mother of three, I’m passionate about helping other busy women trying to ‘do it all’ to put themselves first and take care of their wellbeing. A huge part of this is offering practical solutions to their lifestyles so that their health and happiness can remain a priority long after leaving the retreat.
Essence: What does fitness look like for a day in the life of a retreat guest?
Tiffany: At RR our guests are offered a movement class every morning of their stay. During the first session our personal trainers spend some time going over the primal movements and making sure that all guests can do these movements safely, making any modifications if necessary for the remainder of their stay.
The activities vary day to day and include: Nature walks, circuit training, dance fitness, aqua aerobics/pool fitness, HIIT training as well as Yoga every afternoon.
Essence: It’s winter, and for many of us, motivation for movement can plateau. What is your advice for someone who wants to incorporate movement back into their life but feels “stuck” with where to start, or how to make it stick?
Tiffany: If you’re wondering about where to start or how to make exercise stick just remember that the best exercise plan is the one you can follow.
Some very common mistakes that people make when they’re just getting back into movement are starting at a higher intensity than necessary, forcing themselves to do activities they hate and expecting to see results straight away.
Start by being really honest with yourself about your current fitness level. This will stop you from jumping into something too hard, risking injury. Assess where you’re at and then start very simply. Take an inventory of all the healthy activities you enjoy doing and start there.
Don’t feel like you need to go for a huge 5K run if you hate running. Maybe playing a team sport works better for you, or going for a swim,
or putting on some music and sweating it out dancing. Whatever it is, it’s important you look forward to this movement, not dread it. Mixing it up is also very helpful.
Lastly, keep your expectations realistic. As much as I wish it were true, one trip to the gym isn’t going to improve your fitness or reshape your body. The more consistent you are the better you will feel, and the more visible your results will be.
1002 Tirau Rd, Lake Karapiro www.resolutionretreats.co.nz