In sporting circles, I’ve found that anorexia is endemic...
ANOREXIA is not often associated with high performance athletes, but it was while I was playing both basketball and rugby at a national level for New Zealand that it crept up on me and took over my life for about two years. There were a lot of pressures to perform well on the teams obviously, but I think my issues with food were really down to the pressure I was putting on myself.
I went into a sporting academy on a scholarship after high school, and because of the programmes and training, I got really muscly at that young age.
Somewhere along the l i ne I started to fixate on my food.
It was noticed by my trainers, and I was sent to different therapists and sports nutritionists.
Everyone is different, but for me, talking to professionals didn’t help. Things only improved when I made the decision to leave the academy and move back home to my family and friends.
It was an extreme environment that I was living in when I became anorexic, but in lots of ways the inner conversation that you have in your head about what you’re eating and how you look, and the depression that comes with it, are common to everyone in that situation.
Gradually I managed to change the way I thought and I realised that my body was invaluable and it was my job to look after it and treat it well.
Now healthy nutrition and fitness are everything to me — but everything is in moderation.
Most mornings I’m up at about 5am, and I have something to eat before I set off for a day of training and seeing clients, either at my office on Dock Road or online — a lot of my nutrition and wellness clients are international and I communicate with them over Skype.
TO START the day, I’ll have something relatively small like a pear and some nuts and a cup of coffee. That might not sound like much, but I graze throughout the day. By 9.30am I’ll be refuelling again, filling up with a smoothie made of oats, almond milk and maple syrup with fruits.
My client base is really diverse and thankfully word about my own licensed programme is getting out there gradually.
My Senshaper Series is designed to give you three classes in one 48minute burst.
You get your strength training with Pilates or something similar, then we move to aerobic, and then we finish with a short and sharp cardio session. That might be a run if the weather is nice or a bout of spinning in winter.
I take small groups together, because I find people motivate each other, and it’s up to every person how many times a week they show up for a session.
As well as training the body and working every muscle group, I provide metabolic training.
This is essential, because every individual has a different genetic make-up and needs a different balance of nutrients.
My own metabolic type requires more vegetables than protein, so I’m not one for a lot of meat.
At lunchtime I fill up on salad — I love a warm seafood or tuna nicoise salad, but half my plate at every meal needs to be filled with carbs to keep my energy levels up.
I also believe in snacking regularly, especially i f I’m with a few clients during the day and also teaching a spinning class at night.
There’ll always be a tub of hummus in my fridge and I’ll have it with salami, or I might have some fruit and nuts. For a real sugar hit, I’ll buy a kids’ lollipop.
Myself and George share the cooking in the evenings and we try not to eat too late.
Every meal we prepare is something that can be thrown together in 15 minutes, it’ll usually be a stir fry or a simple salad or sushi.
Coming from New Zealand, we do have a hankering for some raw fish every so often — it’s so good for you, and it’s one of those foods you always feel healthier after eating.
Most nights I’m in bed by 10pm and I’m quite good at switching off. Even now, when I have a new business on the go and lots of work to do, I find I can leave it to the back of my mind when it’s time to turn in. Because of George’s rugby career, and the fact we have settled in places like Japan and now Galway so that he can play, we have become used to moving around and starting afresh, so we just go with the flow.
Galway was a place we fell in love with straight away, because of its similarity in lots of ways to New Zealand and because of its size and how compact it is.
On a Sunday, we love to get in the car and just drive and see what part of the country we end up in. A few hours in Connemara is always time well spent.
IRISH attitudes to working out are pretty good, but when I arrived here first I was amazed at the way most people go to classes or hit the gym late in the evening.
also noticed that people here tend to sleep much later than we would back home, so one leads to the other obviously.
The optimum time for exercise is undoubtedly in the morning.
It is difficult at first for people to get into that routine and to try and shake out a body that’s still half asleep, but the results are much better — not just in terms of weight loss or fitness, but also in terms of the structure of the day.
If you work out in the evening, you are energising your body at the time it should be winding down, so you can’t get to sleep when you should. Gradually I have started to convince my clients to start getting up a little earlier and have their workout at the top rather than the tail-end of a busy day.
Even for those who are fit and active already, if they turn their routine upside down they will feel a surge in their energy levels.
It’s my job to start getting the Irish up earlier in the day and turning in earlier at night.
That’s a real challenge, but I’m up for it.