IT ALL WORKS OUT
It’s exciting to have Kayla Itsines as Friday’s cover star this week. The social media fitness star is considered the top influencer in her field in the world. Those are awesome reasons, but another is that Kayla is a refreshing breed of social media influencer who guides millions of people in achieving their fitness dreams, without clogging up their feeds with promotional posts. (Mostly, she posts pictures of Greek island escapes – she’s an Aussie of Greek heritage – workout moves, and bowls of fruit.) I was intrigued to read her interview with Friday’s fashion editor Lindsay Judge on page 46, in which she talks about the rules she set herself when she first started her Bikini Body Guide programme, which include not promoting something she’s not personally a fan of. Nearly 7 million Instagram followers later, she’s still as invested in remaining genuine.
Our chat with Kayla comes as the Dubai Fitness Challenge reaches the finish line – hopefully, after 30 minutes of exercise every day for 30 days, you’ll have enough puff left to make it to the closing ceremony at Dubai Festival City, where there are events today and tomorrow. All sweated out? There’s a fireworks display, for a more leisurely approach.
Outdoors is the place to be. The weather is gorgeous – a daily invitation to sit (or workout) outdoors. That means barbecue time. Friday’s food writer Laura Kaapro has toured the world tasting street food treats; now she’s helping you to recreate them on your own grill, whether it’s at a backyard barbecue or in the park, with her latest recipe series on page 60. The peanut-y, spiced Nigerian beef suya is top of my must-cook list this weekend.
Page 33 brings us another of Esha Nag’s chats with the people of the Emirates – her monthly series meeting the faces behind the institutions we know so well – even when we don’t know the people who created them very well. She sat down for a cup of tea with Kamal Makhija, as he recounted how he arrived in the UAE in 1969 alone, on a boat, and started a business that you’ve probably heard of – Dream Girl tailors. Take a look, if for nothing more than the utterly charming grins sported by him and his tailors.
Nearly 7 million Instagram followers later, influencer Kayla Itsines is still as invested in remaining genuine