We sat down with Cheryl Andrews who placed second in the Women’s Transformation category of our Sleekgeek 8-Week Challenge. We wanted to find out the secret to her success and she was happy to share it with us.
Please give us a short history of your journey to health and fitness before the challenge.
At 65 years old, I have generally led a healthy and busy lifestyle, bringing up four wonderful children and balancing my career at the same time.
Things started to slow down after the children left the nest and I resigned from my job in 2015 to take early retirement on our farm. I became less active and was less conscious of my eating habits. This combination guaranteed an increase in weight and a feeling of fatigue.
Late last year I was diagnosed with breast cancer and underwent a mastectomy. Physical recuperation was speedy, but the emotional challenges take a little longer! I needed to refocus and reposition myself.
What prompted you to join the Sleekgeek Transformation Challenge?
My daughters took part in the Summer 2022 Challenge. The physical and self-esteem benefits derived from the challenge were clearly evident.
When my older daughter decided to follow on with the Winter 2022 Challenge and asked me to join her I hesitantly agreed.
Glad I did!
Give us a quick overview of the nutrition and eating plan that you followed during the challenge.
My personalised Sleekgeek Nutritional Guide was my “go-to” point.
My daughter also assisted with a few recipes and recommended a calorie counting app which I used throughout the challenge.
I enjoyed all the nutritional meals and, although I allowed myself a Sunday treat, never felt the need to waiver from the plan.
Give us a quick overview of the training and exercise plan that you followed during the challenge.
“Stepping out” was my main activity.
Outdoor walks, stepping to music, stepping whilst cooking (this gave me up to 6000 steps!), stepping during load-shedding… If I was standing, I was stepping!
I also took part in the weekly roadblock challenges, even the dreaded burpees in the sixth week. My focus was on abs, so I found a couple of nice workouts on YouTube and stuck to those.
If you could give 3 pieces of advice to future challengers, what would they be?
- Commit for the 8 weeks, it goes by quicker than you think.
- If you stumble, pick yourself up. You’re not restarting, you’re carrying on from where you left off.
- If possible, find a buddy or partner to complete the challenge with you. The support is invaluable.
Why should people enter the challenge?
Besides the physical benefits derived from an active lifestyle and healthy eating habits, there are the benefits of increased self-esteem, development of better sleeping habits and a feeling of general well-being.
Successful completion of the Sleekgeek Challenge is potentially life-changing.
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