Fox reporter stays fit with Instagram help
Fit Fox reporter turns to Instagram for inspiration, feedback
Ivory Hecker turned to Instagram for inspiration when she wanted to get more fit, and her account focused solely on fitness and healthy eating got a boost from followers who cheered her to her goal.
Looking at Ivory Hecker’s abs, you’d never believe she once had a muffin top. The Fox 26 reporter has before-andafter photos to prove it. They were taken some years ago when Hecker was at an emotional low. She was working in a dream career in television in Kentucky in 2015, but the hours were long and the pay was little.
Hecker, who grew up running track, found herself with no desire or time to work out.
“I became so negative and miserable. I started playing the blame game. Finally, I had to stop the pity party, and I had to focus on something positive,” the 29-year-old Wisconsin native said.
Fitness was that something. Though she couldn’t afford a trainer, she turned to Instagram for inspiration. She created an account focused solely on fitness and healthy eating and posted regularly with images of her working out at home or outdoors. In return, she was cheered on with positive comments from followers.
“It can be so easy to fall off when you are just starting out,” Hecker said. “I started the Instagram account to hold myself accountable. I posted photos of my workout, meals and my progress. Instagram is a beautiful tool because you can follow people who inspire you and get positive feedback.”
It helped that Hecker had supportive parents, who also were into fitness.
Raised in Hayward, Wis., Hecker grew up one of 12 children to Nathan and Renee Hecker, who did a variety of things to stay in shape. As a teen, Hecker ran 5K races with her father and then participated in track and field in high school.
She graduated from Syracuse University in New York with a degree in broadcast journalism. But her fitness started to take a back seat with the demands of school and internships. By the time she landed her first job out of college at the Fox affiliate in Columbia, S.C., Hecker had stopped workout almost entirely.
“Once you stop, it’s so hard to get back into it,” she said.
When Hecker made the choice to re-
turn to fitness, she focused on weight-bearing exercises like push ups and lunges. She started preparing meals at home to take to work. “You never know when you’ll eat if you are covering a murder in the wilderness,” she advised.
She increased her protein (eating about 100 grams a day) while sticking to a 1,500 daily calorie diet of five to six small meals. Not only did Hecker start slimming down, she gained confidence and started “achieving all of my goals, not just related to fitness,” she said.
Hecker got a job at TV station in Minneapolis before joining Fox 26 here in October 2017. And she has a fitness feature each Friday.
Now, Hecker works out at Alphalete Gym in Stafford. She does of a mix of weight-lifting, high-intensity and plyometrics, which are jumping exercises that increase exertion and power.
“I had to find a fitness routine that would be a habit, something I could do the rest of my life,” she said. “I think it helps to find a gym, studio or place to workout where you feel positive in.”
Hecker also said having a workout wardrobe and a good playlist are plusses when starting out.
“I know it’s hard when you don’t like what you see in the mirror, but buying new workout clothes — even if it’s a shirt with a cool, positive saying — helps. And have good music, well, that’s everything,” she said.