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Esta Morenikeji, fitness training expert and blogger, was acknowledged for her work in the Fitness and Wellness industry in Nigeria as she was named Nigeria’s Top Social Media Brand in Health and Fitness during the 2014 Social Media Week Lagos. Esta Morenikeji began fitness training as a personal goal but later embraced it as a career. She eagerly shares what she knows with people through her passion. Connect Nigeria spoke to her about how important the issue of fitness and wellness is and prospects for the industry in Nigeria. CN: How did you feel receiving the “Alder Top Social Media Brand 2014” award during the 2014 Social Media Week? EM: I was really not expecting or hoping for the award. I mean, there are other professionals in allied industries, especially in medicine who are also prominent users of social media. I felt so happy and honored when I saw my name. Being named Nigeria’s Top Social Media Brand in Health and Fitness is the highest tangible reward I have received so far in my professional life. The award means a lot to me. CN: What does fitness and wellness mean to you? EM: For me, fitness means having the physical ability (or capacity) to carry out my daily activities without undue fatigue and still have enough energy left to enjoy play. As a fitness trainer, I need to possess a relatively high level of physical fitness if I must help my clients reach their fitness goals. I cannot train a client to run a 10K distance if I cannot run the same distance myself. For me to be able to care for my clients I should be able to take care of myself first. Therefore, fitness is more than how fast I can run or how heavy I can lift; fitness is all about being physically able to do my work. I think of wellness as an integration of many different components (spiritual, emotional, and physical) that increases my potential to enjoy a high quality life.

CN: What inspired you to make fitness and wellness your focus and the focus of every Nigerian?

EM: There was a time I used to weigh 92kg. I tried several times to lose weight without any success until December 2007 when I read a book that changed my life. I began to eat healthy and exercise regularly and by December 2008, I was weighing 69kg. I weigh 67kg now. I decided people should experience what I have experienced and so I went on to become a fitness trainer. My major goal is to help as many people I can to achieve the result I got for myself. CN: Are Nigerians readily open to the ideas you share on fitness and wellness? EM: It is funny that the average Nigerian still associate exercise and good nutrition with weight loss. In the mind of an average Nigerian, exercise and healthy eating should only belong in the dictionary of the overweight and obese. But I think things are changing now because people are becoming more aware of the dangers associated with being physically inactive, living under too much stress and bad eating habits. As people become more informed, we are going to see more people adopting a healthy lifestyle. People need to know that the primary purpose of exercise is not weight loss. Exercise has many health documented benefits associated with it. It is a good medicine and it can be used as a preventive measure against lifestyle related diseases, and can also be used as part of intervention in the treatment of diseases. Fitness and wellness therefore should not be viewed from the point of view of losing weight. We need to see it from the perspective of healthy living and improving one’s quality of life.

CN: What do we need to attain the highest level of fitness for our bodies and minds? EM: Information is power, but knowing how to apply what we know is even more powerful. Sometimes we read about the benefits of living a healthy lifestyle and jump into it without thinking it through, thinking that one week of exercise and eating vegetables is enough to reverse all the damages of 20 years of unhealthy choices. We must understand that fitness is a journey and not a destination. You are not going to wake up slim because you exercise for a day. We live in a world that is constantly filling our bodies and mind with stressful situations that weaken our immune system and exhaust us. By being conscious of the fact that we are responsible for our own well-being, we will be able to make choices that will improve our lives. Your body is your only contact with earth therefore it is your sole responsibility to treat it with care and respect because you are responsible for your body before God. CN: Who are your target audience? EM: Because I am a woman who has been overweight before, I find it easy and more rewarding working with women trying to lose weight. I believe that until you have been in someone’s shoe and walked a mile or two in those shoes, you may never know where the shoe hurts. Helping overweight women get into shape is what I enjoy doing.

CN: What is the most challenging personal fitness work you’ve ever handled? EM: The most challenging work I have ever done was working as a PT (personal trainer) to the wife of a prominent man in Nigeria. Gosh, it was hard because I was not seeing results, which was not good for my professional reputation. When you say you are a PT to someone, people should be able to see your work reflecting on them. Unfortunately for me, that was not the case. CN: What are your favorite motivational quotes? EM: “Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live.” ~Jim Rohn. “A man’s health can be judged by which he takes two at a time – pills or stairs” ~Joan Welsh. “Exercise is king. Nutrition is queen. Put them together you’ve got a kingdom”. ~Jack Lalanne CN: How do you hope to turn the face of fitness around in Nigeria in the next five years? EM: The fitness industry is still very young in Nigeria, and because of that there is a blurred line between sport performance and general population fitness. As it is now, we have very few fitness professionals and even fewer female fitness professionals. A larger percentage of the instructors in our gyms are sports men who crossed from sport to general population fitness, and they still train clients with sport performance mentality. My greatest desire for the industry in the next five years is to see more fitness professionals who will be able to design safe, effective, efficient and marketable fitness programs. I also want to see more women fitness trainers because there are just a few of us now. Contact Esta Morenikeji via zonefitness.com.