Life goes beyond the numbers on the scale and your body is capable of so much more! Yahoo’s #Fitspo of the Week series is dedicated to inspiring Singaporean men and women leading healthy and active lifestyles. Do you have someone to recommend? To hit on Or !
Name: Valerie Ng ()
Age: 27
Height: 1.69m
Lester: 59kg
Occupation: Independent personal trainer 1 on 1
Status: Only
Food: Outside of times when I’m either preparing for a competition that adheres to a strict weight class or requires me to maintain a more favorable body composition for moving fast and lifting heavy weights, I don’t have a strict diet in terms of limitation of foods of all kinds. I eat everything and anything in moderation! On a day-to-day basis, I aim for a balanced diet with at least 80% of my meals consisting of whole foods that are minimally processed and rich in micronutrients. I also enjoy the occasional drink or two each week.
Exercise: I lift weights at least three times a week, make sure I take 10,000 steps a day, and try to run at least 1-2 times a week.
Q: When you were younger, did you play sports?
A: I was generally relatively active, participating in competitive team sports in high school and high school. The only time I was completely sedentary was during my final years in college, where academia was a priority and took up a lot of my time.
It was worth it, I ended up being first in my class. I quickly got back in shape once back in Singapore.
What did you get into as you got older?
I was introduced to CrossFit and really got into the sport when I moved back to Singapore and started my first role with the company.
The camaraderie and competitive atmosphere led me to participate in my first CrossFit Open in 2021.
How did you become a personal trainer (PT)?
I held two corporate positions before becoming a personal trainer. I chose this career because of my passion for connecting and helping women, as well as the general population, gain as much knowledge as possible about safe, enjoyable, and sustainable ways to incorporate fitness and nutrition into their always very busy lives.
What do you like about being a coach?
As corny as it is, it is the customers and the journey with them that give the greatest satisfaction to my day-to-day role. To see confidence grow, to see them mature in their own training journey, to take charge of their lives, and to see the effects of what we do together ripple through the rest of their lives.
When they come back and let you know how their lives and mindset have been improved because of what you’ve done together – those are the intangible, but most rewarding aspects of the job that will always keep me going.
Conversely, what are some of the challenges?
I would say the start-up phase. It’s kind of like a relationship – you have the chemistry, but the chemistry isn’t enough to make it work. Both parties must commit to doing the necessary work and finding the best ways to compromise, in order to achieve the shared ultimate goal in the most balanced way.
Each individual is very different in their training and also has very different responsibilities, commitments and lifestyle requirements. Finding something that works for both their training goals and their life, and managing expectations would be the hardest part of the role.
When did you feel least sure of yourself?
When I fully entered the PT industry. Comparison is a joy thief, but it’s not something most people can easily avoid doing – in all aspects, not just physical comparison. I just came to terms with the fact that each individual has their own niche and their own goals.
Each person chooses to make their own decisions and sacrifices to be where they are, so focus on yourself and live your life and make aligned, honest decisions about what you say you want to be and achieve. The only person you should honestly answer to at the end of each day is yourself.
Are you satisfied with your body now?
Yes, but I’m working on leaning a little to potentially return to competition in 2024.
Have you ever received comments about your body?
Being pretty open about my workouts on social media yes, mostly from a minority of men who comment like they don’t like the look of muscle girls. Well to that I say to each his own.
Each season of my life brought me different fitness goals that allowed me to achieve a sustainable and healthy state of mind. I have a corporate job and a PT, family, personal relationships and friendships to nurture; I have different phases in life where my goals and my idea of happiness, as well as my ability to handle stress and my desire to push for growth change.
It’s taken me a long time to reach the state I’m in where I fully own every form of my body, knowing full well that it’s the result of the choices I make and the goals I have at that time. time (whether to be really strict, completely relaxed, or to allow myself to enjoy the in-between state).
As corny as it sounds, the biggest lesson so far has to be learning to appreciate all that my body has done and will continue to do for me if I take care of my mental and physical state to the best of my ability. capacities.
