Work out early in the morning
It can be tempting to work out after a day at work but I would recommend doing it earliest in the morning. Before the kids wake up and before you have to begin your daily tasks. I personally set my alarm clock for 5.30 in the morning, grab my skipping rope, my weights and work out. It is nice to have this time all to myself too. After work, you are always tired and you will certainly have chores to accomplish.
Push through even if you do not have equipment
Not having gym equipment is not an issue at all. You can workout using your bodyweight: high knees, jumps, burpees, mountain climbers, squats, plank. There are plenty of exercises you can do without equipment! If you have water bottles, fill them up with sand or even water and use them as dumbells. I did that before I bought myself equipment.
Don't let restricted spaces stop you!
All you need to workout is the space of a big towel. Working in London, I mostly trained people who lived in very small flats and usually had just the surface area of a big towel to workout within. Place the towel in the kitchen, living room, bedroom or anywhere for a full body workout. Burpees and mountain climbers sideways on your towel, kicks, high knees… there are so much to do in a small space.
Use the online resources available to you
In this internet era, you can use Instagram, Facebook, Youtube and they have plenty of programs to help you with training and workout. There are free programs available but there are programs by professionals that are very affordable. However, be careful who you choose and most importantly, listen to your body. If something does not feel right, you need to change the trainer. There is no one size fits all, everyone has got their preferences. I personally follow Julian Michaels, she's a brilliant trainer from America and I have other accounts I follow for yoga. There are really good pages on Instagram!
Who is Inka Goodwin?
I am from Poland and I have lived in London for 11 years after which my husband and I wanted to move somewhere warm and tropical and we found Mauritius. We came here for a holiday and to check it out. We wanted to check out the economy, politics, job situation and general quality of life. We liked it and we moved with our 17 months old daughter. I have been in fitness since 2002 as an instructor. I qualified in a polish university and my career took off in London. I qualified as a spinning, pilates, pregnancy and post-pregnancy instructor.
How long have you lived in Mauritius?
We've been here almost three years. We liked it straight away! I had my second child here and have found that it was such a good climate for pregnancy. I would recommend it to anyone. Private hospitals are amazing for pregnancies. We live in Flic en Flac and I work in Tamarin and Black River.
Any additional tips?
FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS! Fitness initially was just a passion. And then I arrived in London not even speaking english with the dream of getting to work in one of the best gyms in the city. Two months later, it was done. You can do anything!
