‘The gym helped me finally find confidence’
Beth Scott, 25, a personal trainer from Dundee, went from inactive teen to cardio junkie to weights lover on her journey to fitness – and happiness
THEN
I never loved being active as a child, despite going to dance lessons from age three to 17. Home-cooked meals formed the basis of my diet, but I also had lots of unhealthy snacks – chocolate and crisps were my reward for going to each class. I didn’t realise I needed to burn more calories than I consumed. I was bullied at school and had poor self-esteem; I was always the bigger one in my group of friends, and felt self-conscious on nights out. When I left school in 2011, I wanted to join the police, but knew I needed to get much fitter to pass the entry tests.
HOW
Walking into my local gym, slightly overwhelmed, I headed for the treadmill and ran for as long as I could. It was tough, but I felt great afterwards. Soon I was on it four times a week. I cut out snacks, ate more veg, and the weight dropped off. Three months in, I was getting compliments on my new trim physique. After nine months, I went for the police exam, but failed the maths test. With that door now closed, I needed a new focus. I’d dropped to 7st 9lb (which suited my 5ft 1in frame) – now I wanted to develop tone. I took up weight training, and saw a big difference in my muscle tone after three months. I wanted to share my newfound love of fitness, so in 2014, I started training as a PT while studying for a degree in activity and health.
NOW
That same year, I discovered bikini competitions. I decided to compete and lived on porridge, sweet potato, chicken and broccoli to get ultra-lean. It did the trick but left me ill and unhappy, until I learnt to incorporate more healthy fats and varieties of protein and veg into my diet. In May 2017, I became Scottish champion, but did my last competition this September – being this lean isn’t sustainable long term. Now I love sharing the joys of being healthy with my clients – so, for me, failing that maths test was really a blessing.