Q&A with Zena Vorster:

We sat down with Zena who placed first in the Women’s Weight Loss category of our Winter’s 8-Week Challenge 2023. 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 have been in the Fitness Industry for over 10 years and in the last 7 years I’ve had 4 healthy babies and after each pregnancy I’ve come back stronger despite having C-section births.

What prompted you to join the Sleekgeek Transformation Challenge?

I have taken up the SG Challenge countless times and with a degree of success each time. I really enjoy the community and the mindset it puts me in.

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

My goal was to rehabilitate after my last c-section and lose the pregnancy weight gained while exclusively breastfeeding without compromising my babies healthy and nutrition. I walked at least 7 km everyday with my son in the baby carrier, my goal was to get at least 12 k steps in a day. I did the roadblocks for 20 min a day too. Weekends I would do a long walk – 10km/90min + towards the end of the challenge I started running again. Every day I drank a coffee upon waking up with collagen in. After my walk I would drink a protein shake for breakfast. Lunch time I would have a bowl of soup with thick butter on toast or 3 eggs on 2 x toast with thick butter. In the evenings I would eat what I made for the whole family, but only 1 serving, no second helpings. I tried to drink 3 litres water a day but was happy if I got past 2 litres. I struggle to drink water in the winter, but I was getting my liquids in and was producing enough milk to enable my baby to grow big and strong.

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

Before the challenge I was just eating to eat and moving as much as I could but not really exercise wise.

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

Plan a head and be prepared for life’s events. Avoid unimportant parties, braais and events and don’t skip the important ones, just set boundaries and keep within them.
Daily achievable goals, it must be challenging but easy to make time for. Don’t set yourself up for failure.
Manage your time and prioritise the steps that’s going to get you closer to achieving your goals. Learn to know the difference between an excuse and a reason.

Why should people enter the challenge?

You get a lot more than you spend your time and money on. It is a fun and supportive platform that provide you with the accountability you need to stay on track.