There’s a movement that is slowly spreading through Windhoek, gaining momentum with each person who makes a decision to get active and fit for a healthier life.
In the past, fitness used to be seen as something only athletes, the rich or perhaps those with way too much time on their hands endeavour to do. Slowly, Namibians are joining a growing number of people worldwide who are realising that actively keeping in shape not only guards against chronic illnesses but ultimately leads to a healthier, more fulfilling life.
Pop culture has especially made fitness bigger and seemingly cooler with most of the world’s most famous stars exercising religiously. In Namibia, we have gone from having very few fitness facilities to having a world of clubs and gyms that cater to individual fitness needs. Being the country’s business centre, Windhoek is leading with more than 10 gym facilities available to residents. Unfortunately, most of them are still clustered in the city centre. Small towns are lagging behind but that just means a huge market awaits those who dare to take on the challenge.
Fitness facilities such as Exclusive Gym have grown in leaps and bounds in just five years, going from one branch to three different centres in different locations.
“We have definitely expanded very fast due to a growing interest in fitness. We offer a large variety of services which range from aerobics, African dance, ab classes and personal training,” Travis Howard, a fitness supervisor at the gym said.
Today, Windhoek is bursting at the seams with fitness activities. From bootcamp to yoga, hiking to swimming, athletics, cycling, many more sports activities are available to choose from, with most service providers tailoring hours and fees to be flexible for clients.
Meke Uushona, a fitness instructor, who uses unconventional settings to deliver powerful workouts for her clients, has tapped into this growing market of fitness-seeking Namibians.
“Before I started doing bootcamp and personal training, I would go to the gym and often saw people doing things wrong. I would always find myself helping these people out, giving them tips so I decided to start my own thing,” says the woman who makes working out seem effortless. As I watch her do a one-on-one session at the Parliament gardens, I am astounded at her level of fitness. Getting in various sets of cardio even as Windhoek pours with welcome showers, Uushona and her client are both absorbed in their workout and only seek shelter from the rain for much needed stretching after an hour of working up a sweat.
Howard cautions that fitness should not be sought without accompanying changes in diet. “A healthy diet plays a big part in keeping to a gym programme and having it work for you,” he says. Uushona agrees, telling me that she offers advice on healthy eating plans for her clients. “Simple things like not eating carbohydrates at night are what I try to emphasise,” says the passionate trainer who has developed her own 30 day eating and workout plan which clients can use even when on holiday and away from her face-to-face sessions.
A working mother of two, Meke had always been an athlete but her weight picked up after giving birth and she admits that she was overweight for some time after that. “I eventually lost the weight completely by 2013.” After changing her own life, she is now changing those of others with her bootcamp and personal training sessions.
Limba Mupetami, who unlike Uushona and Howard is not a trainer, takes her exercise just as seriously. She works out three times a week at a gym and plays football on Sundays. “Working out for me is all about fitness. I like to listen to my body and whenever I don’t exercise, I tend to feel grumpy. When I do, I feel very fresh when I wake up in the mornings and my clothes fit better after a while,” she enthuses. Her tips for staying motivated is getting a gym partner who will encourage you to work out on your off days. “It’s also nice to work out with your partner as it strengthens your bond,” she says.
Want to join the movement and get fit? All you need is determination and the will to succeed. Most excuses for not working out are just that – excuses! Trying simple things like fitting in a 30-minute workout during lunch time or going for a walk with the family in the evening are easy ways to get moving without it affecting your schedule.
