Name:

Nicky Kruger

Age:

35

Location:

Rustenburg, North West, South Africa

How much weight have you lost on your journey so far? Please provide start and current weight thanks 

Starting weight 78kg Current weight +-54kg

What do you do? [Job]

Teacher at a high school

What else do you do? [Hobbies, non-work stuff, etc]

Baking and love cooking

YOU AND SLEEKGEEK

How long have you been a member of Sleekgeek?

About a year.

How did you find Sleekgeek?

I love it that it is a community encouraging each other to live healthier. 

What is your favourite part of the Sleekgeek Community?

Everyone is incredibly positive, and I like to read everyone’s journey of lifestyle changes.

YOUR TRANSFORMATION 

Describe the “old you” before you made your transformation. How did you get there and what were you like?

I used to have an extremely low self esteem and lived very passively. I would binge watch series after series and not do anything productive. I had bad eating habits; would skip breakfast and eat mostly starch and protein only and had other bad habits like smoking and drinking. I did not care about my health and suffered from severe depression.

What ignited your initial motivation to change?

Because of my low self-esteem I made terrible choices and in 2013 I was already in my second marriage which was a nightmare. My husband was very abusive towards my children and in May 2013 I finally worked up the courage to leave him. It took arresting him and getting a protection order for us to get away from him.

I decided that I need to change to give my children a better future. I made serious life changes including joining the gym, quit smoking, started eating healthy and drinking water. At the gym I also started training with a trainer and went from 78kg to 60kg in about 8 – 10 weeks. In 2014 I got bored with just the gym and started running and in 2016 started cycling as well. 

What are some of the things that the new you do differently now?

I am very health conscious now almost to a fault and think twice about what I eat and drink. During wintertime, I relax a bit and would eat some carbs where in the summer I try to cut out all sugar, carbs, and dairy. I also do not stop setting goals for myself and try not to become complacent.

What are some of the things that the new you still struggle with?

Getting up while it is still dark to go run and I love cake and baked treats.

If you could give yourself 1 piece of advice to help with that struggle, what would it be?

You never regret going for a run so just go and it helps if someone is going with you. Try to treat yourself once a week with something you enjoy.

Did you plateau, get stuck, or get disillusioned, or even slide backwards a bit on your journey?

From 2013 – 2018 my weight remained around 60kg which I was content with. I did not care much about the number on the scale and felt that my body was fine. In 2019 I started with the Keto low-carb method and focused more on running better times and by Nov 2019 my weight was 52kg.

What is better since you got healthy? 

Everything! I love setting goals and it feels fantastic when I get to achieve them. Even in the other facets of my life I made a lot of improvements. Got a honours degree, met and married a wonderful godly man who takes exceptionally good care of me and my boys.

• 

• 

TRAINING 

What is your favourite form of exercise? [Running, yoga, weightlifting, etc]

Running

How long have you been training and how did you get started?

Since 2013 and have been training around 7 years.

What does your typical workout look like?

When I run, it is usually everyday around 10km according to an online coach’s program. I would then at night before I shower do a few squats and core exercises.

Favourite exercise? [Distance / pose / movement / etc]

I enjoy short distance speed intervals.

Least favourite exercise? [Distance / pose / movement / etc]

Strength exercises.

How does exercise make you feel? 

Empowered.

Do you prefer to train alone or with others? Why?

During my running program, I prefer training alone but when it is a long run, I enjoy company. Strength exercises are also better when it is with someone but I will train alone if I need to. I will not cycle alone… too scared of a flat tyre. ?

Most embarrassing training moment?

I fell a few times while running and cycling.

Top 3 things you must have at the gym or in your gym bag?

Water bottle towel phone

Your next training goals?

It was Comrades before the lockdown. Now my goal times:

5km in 20 min 10km in 45 min 21km in 1:45 42km in 3:45

Top 5 songs on your training playlist?

(songs I enjoy in spin class) Jacaranda FM

• Dead man walking – Jeremy Camp
• Believer – Imagine Dragons

How has exercise/training/Sport Changed your life? [Made it better, etc – please be specific]

It helps me to set goals in different aspects of life not just sport for example doing another degree.

• 

NUTRITION

What’s your favourite meal?

Braai! (meat, braaibroodjie, potato bake, salads, etc)

OK, now what’s your favourite healthy meal?

Meat and salad 

Favourite protein?

Steak / biltong / droëwors

Favourite fat?

Nuts

Favourite carbohydrate?

Bran Rusks (I bake myself)

What’s your nutrition philosophy / approach? [If you have one]

Balance is key and the ¼ of the plate carbs (can also be veg like carrots), ¼ of the plate protein and ½ of the plate salad with avocado and olive oil as the fat.

How many meals a day do you eat?

3 main meals with an occasional snack like nuts, fruit or droëwors.

Do you have a cheat meal / treat strategy?

During the week I eat clean and don’t drink alcohol. Saturday evening I will have something like ½ a braaibroodjie/ paptert/ potato bake or something I really like with braai. Also would have a gin & tonic and a glass of red wine. Sunday I will have a desert after lunch.

• 

MINDSET

Most memorable personal best achievement to date. Something you maybe never imagined you could do.

I was truly fortunate to have two recent events:

I finished a (42km) marathon in 3:55, I didn’t even know what sub4 meant and didn’t actually train for it… mostly because I never thought I would be able to run well.

I did the Ottosdal draf en trap Gold duathlon which is 60km MTB and 42km marathon – the cycling is in the morning and the running in the evening. I did a bronze one in 2017 (10km run and 40mtb) and in 2018 and 2019 I did silver (21km run and 40km cycle) and it was a huge dream to one day be able to do the gold one. So this year 2020 I did.

Favourite quote?

“A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.” – Colin Powell

Favourite book? 

Not much of a reader…

What inspires and motivates you?

I believe in self improvement and always want to improve my times.

For what are you most grateful? 

That I fortunately have some genes and talent on my side. (Like Bryce Fordyce says: “How do you win the Comrades 9 times? You choose your parents very carefully.”)

What do you want to say to other community members who might be nervous or hesitant to make a start?

The only regret you will ever have after making the start is that you did not start sooner.

What are your top 5 tips for anyone starting on a healthy journey?

• Self-discipline: Being a teacher, I have heard many quotes and definitions of discipline and the best definition that I have heard is “Choosing what I want the most instead of what I want at this moment.” At the moment I want to sleep late or eat a huge burger and chips or rather lay on the couch and watch tv… but what I want the most is to run faster than a week ago, be fitter than I was last year or be in better shape. The only difference between where you are now and where you want to be is the choices you make. Have the self-discipline to choose what you want the most instead of giving in to temporary satisfaction with only regrets that follow.
  
• Eating clean starts with shopping clean: The best way to ensure that you do not eat unhealthy things is not to buy them in the first place. It took me about 6 months to get into the habit and it takes a lot of self-control as well. But look through your shopping cart before you get to the till and remove the stuff you know will only tempt you in ditching your health goals. Stock up on fresh fruit, vegetables, nuts and biltong / droëwors rather than chips, chocolates, and unhealthy snacks.
  
• Start moving: Even if you are not into sports and have no interest in any sport, still try to find something you enjoy that requires some physical activity. I think running is the most effective way of losing weight and strength training with weights also makes you burn fat and tone your body. Cycling and walking can also be fun for a whole family to enjoy. Try to find something you like and set goals for every week.
  
• Focus on yourself: Do not compare yourself to other people. Everyone is different, their body type, metabolism, and lifestyle. Do not fall into a comparison trap where you get demotivated when others improve quicker than you. Focus on you and just try to be better than yesterday.
  
• No excuses: Do not sell yourself on excuses. If you didn’t exercise on a Monday, don’t wait until next Monday to start over and rather on the Tuesday work a bit harder. If you ate something you are not supposed to just get over it and the next meal eat healthy again. Don’t fall into a mindset of “I already ate wrong or didn’t exercise and now my day or week is already ruined” that mindset will only lead to failure. We all have some busy days where we have to quickly get a take away or work late and not live healthy but make the choice to keep it as an exception and try to plan ahead for days that might be crazy.