Fitness is my passion but it wasn’t always that way ! Having spent many years travelling and working abroad my health and fitness had taken a back step until a few years ago when I decided to change my life and help others to get back on track and qualified as a personal trainer.

I had spent 8 years travelling and working abroad so I was never really into fitness or gave fitness a second thought before. My life consisted of working A LOT when I was abroad and then it was just my normal routine to go out for dinner and drinks in the evening most days. I did 4 seasons as a rep so my life consisted of work, eat, party, repeat. Which ended up taking its toll. The weight had crept on and then it seemed to be an insurmountable hurdle.

I was so self conscious when it came to the uniform and worrying if they would have a size to fit me. Living abroad for months end at a time you would get bored of your clothes and unfortunately wasn’t able to borrow my friends as they were all the same (small) size.

As much as I LOVED working abroad and the lifestyle my weight did effect my experience to some degree. You would have one day off a week when repping and we used to socialise with whoever had that same day off regardless of what department it would be. We were all such a close family that there were no ‘groups’ or ‘cliques’ it would literally be the case of who had the day of… right lets go. Obviously on my summer seasons the majority of the activities were water based, beach based, swimming pool based which meant one thing… taking your clothes off in public and walking around in swimwear. This was a big no no for me. I was surrounded by slim colleagues in their bikinis or summer dresses and not thinking twice of what they had to wear. If I did ever go I would be the one watching from the side or covered in sarongs to hide as much of me as possible. But 9 times out of 10 I would not go. I felt so self conscious that I thought it would be better for me to not go than put myself in that situation. If I ever went to the beach I would go alone and sit on the sun lounger furthest away from everyone. I hated the way that I let it control my life.

My time working abroad was incredible. The places I saw, the experiences I had, the people I met were unbelievable. Posting all my fabulous photos online showed how amazing my day had been but working abroad also has a lot of downs as well as like so many this side of it wasn’t shared on social media. Some jobs were really hard. For example – having to start my day at 11pm to get ready to be at the airport for 1am to meet and greet the guests when you had no facility to buy any food. Then finishing at 4am to then go back home to bed to get some sleep before you had to be back at the hotel for 10am the next morning. Your body was so out of sync but you just got on with it. Eat when you could, sleep when you could. I had no routine.

Eating healthy, balanced meals, set times, routine, exercising was just not possible. Our meals were provided by the companies we worked for. Some jobs literally gave you the leftovers of whatever the guests would leave. One job we had salad everyday with sounds OK but was made of whatever was left but it would never filling or nutritious , often wilted , dying and even baby snails on the lettuce leaves! My first season I worked abroad the only place you could get food after a late working session was a bakery that would make mini pies through the night to sell for the next day. We would walk to the alley of their back door and they would sell them to us at 3am.

The alcohol that was consumed was to my eyes now unbelievable. The endless amounts of shots, the crazy amount of mixing drinks, the no limit threshold. Every day was a weekend. Not necessarily ‘let go get drunk’ every single day but it was such a social thing to do it was just second nature. Now even the occasional couple glasses of wine means I most likely will wake up with a headache the next day. It is very true the older you get the harder it gets.

Another one of my jobs abroad was working on a cruise ship. The most exciting opportunity you ever be offered. They are glamourous, you get to see so many wonderful places, the food always looks delicious and everyone looks like they have a happy lifestyle.

OH BOY! what is an experience I will never forget! I could talk about this experience for hours but I’ll give you the short version. Your contract is 4 months working on the ship and then 6 weeks back at home and then 4 months back on the ship. However you would work every single hour possible. Shifts would start at 8am and you would be finishing at midnight every single day. You don’t have one day off at all within that 4 months. You lived in the smallest of cabin on bunk beds with another person you have never met before. When I mean small I mean when you stand up out of your bed that is it one more step and you have a tiny room with a shower and toilet in. If both of you were in the cabin at the same time you have no hope. We would sit on our bed and wait until the other person was done. The staff quarters was at the very, very bottom of the ship with not one window. Some days I would go with out seeing the outside world at all as even when working (at that time as a children’s rep ) most of the activities were held below deck.

The biggest struggle and shock for such a well known company was the food. it was diabolical! There aren’t enough words to describe what it was like. Bits of fish in a white water sauce classed as your soup, no vegetables or salad. I bit into a apple and a worm was coming out of it. You would walk in starving and leave starving. You would end up going to the tuck shop they had and spending you own money on crisps and and chocolate because that’s all they would sell.

I once become so unbelievably ill like I had never experienced before. The doctor decided that I didn’t like my manager that is why I was feeling ill ! (I actually had a very good relationship with my manager) I was bed bound for days, temperature flying high stuck in my under the water cabin. It was by far on the hardest experiences of my life. Sometimes when you think you have been given your dream job unfortunately it doesn’t end up that way.

That was just one experience out of many I had over the 8 years. I have seen some unbelievable places, Caribbean islands, Canada, Italy, Tunisia, Turkey, Sydney, Melbourne, Great Barrier Reef, Darwin, Gold Coast, Las Vegas, San Diego, San Francisco, Grand Canyon, New York, LA, Paris and had some unforgettable experience that I will never forget. I got the travel bug from when I was 18 years old and couldn’t stay in the UK for any longer that a few weeks without knowing of where my next adventure would be. Every time I went on my own, every time I had no idea what to expect but I would not have changed it for the world. Take every opportunity you get. There will be ups, there will be downs, but from each experience you learn and grow. Go do the things you always wished to do because what is the point of looking back and thinking ‘I wish I done this’, embrace every opportunity.