Q&A: Casandra Viljoen – 1st Women’s Transformation

We sat down with Casandra Viljoen who placed first in the ladies Transformation category of our Summer 2022 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.

I am a wife, mother, businesswoman, daughter, sister, friend… Life is busy, and I struggled to find time to look after myself. In my younger years I was fit and healthy. At 28 I had a stroke and ended up with epilepsy. It made it difficult for me to get exercise in, because I was confined to my house for years while I learnt to deal with the anxiety of having seizures in public. I gained a lot of weight and learnt to live with it because I believed there was nothing, I could do to get the weight off without causing further health issues.

What prompted you to join the Sleekgeek Transformation Challenge?

I reached a point where I realised I was actually being selfish for not looking after my health. I tried to lose weight on my own and kept failing, because I did have an all or nothing approach. I am a competitive person so I decided the best way for me to get back on track would be to compete with other people.

Give us a quick overview of the nutrition and eating plan that you followed during the challenge.

I ate a balanced diet and tried to incorporate more protein for muscle development. I only ate to feed my body and didn’t allow myself to over-indulge. If I wasn’t hungry, then I didn’t eat. If I craved something, I had it (in small quantities) and then I got back on track to achieve my goals.

Give us a quick overview of the training and exercise plan that you followed during the challenge.

I mostly did HIIT training and focused on finding ways to get more active within my busy lifestyle.

If you could give 3 pieces of advice to future challengers, what would they be?

1. Join a Team.
2. Drink LOTS of water.
3. Focus on what you can do and do it.

Why should people enter the challenge?

The challenge helps you find your focus and gets you into better habits to live a healthier life. It’s about more than losing weight. It helps you get healthier in general.