Fit with Sylvia

 Fit with Sylvia is the result of my own journey, of who I am and what I do.
Interview at Sunday World Magazine

I created Fit with Sylvia with the aim of helping busy professionals get fitter, not just physically but mentally, to be at the highest performance in any aspect of their lives.

Nutrition, Fitness, Dance and Wellness are the areas you will find here. You can focus on the ones that suit you the best as they all make up a healthy lifestyle.

It has taken me many years of ups and downs to become a fit person and this is how the idea of helping others was born.

MY STORY… MY REAL ME:

• Double life - Student at university and model

During my years in university, I worked as a professional model in Europe. I participated in Madrid and London Fashion Weeks, in well-known magazines like Vogue or Ragazza, and in various editorials, catalogues and catwalks. My portofolio: modeling site

I was an 18-year old lady living 2 totally different lives, a lazy life as a student and a professional job as a model. My perfectionist personality made me push myself to the limit and handling these totally different worlds was the start of exploring myself.

Modeling site

• Eating Disorder & Therapy

Leading this demanding life was not easy, and I was always aspiring to be the best in all areas. The pressure and constant seeking of external approval did not bring me happiness. Instead, it brought me an eating disorder. Anorexia sent me spiralling down and into a psychological centre during my first year of University.

I was in a very serious situation but thanks to my family, close friends, the boyfriend I had back then, and my own stubborn personality, I started a recovery process that would define my years in university.

At the end of a 3-years-long fight against this horrible illness, I learned that the need to obsessively control food was a way of escaping real problems and the result of anxiety looking for non-existent perfection.

And this can happen to anyone, in general one is predisposed based on their genes and the cultural environment. In my case, it was the ruthless fashion world, where the image other people hold of your body was the measurement for success.

After fully recovering, I was a different person, stronger and more mature than I would have ever imagined.

This experience changed me and made me realize how important it is to develop a healthy relationship with food. What we eat and how much we eat is often a mirror of our inner lives, a reflection of the happiness (or lack of) that is hidden deep inside, navigating the way we view ourselves and the world around us. It was these conclusions that made me decide to start studying Nutrition.

• Found my real passion working in Google

Anxiety has always been a part of my life. And, over the course of it, it has manifested itself in different ways.

It is difficult to combine a demanding full-time office job with the dance classes I was teaching in the evenings and over the weekends. Add to that, the additional certifications I was always taken, not just in the areas of Health; Fitness & Nutrition, but also diplomas and courses in Digital Marketing, International Marketing. It was easy to let anxiety take over at times.

Some periods of craving sugar were the symptoms. Having a busy schedule, not getting enough sleep and constantly running from one place to another prevented me from enjoying any of the billion activities I was doing per day.

 

• Passion for Sports

I grew up in a sporty environment, from swimming in my pool and playing paddle in my neighbourhood to participating in athletic competitions. I never sticked to one sport and I discovered a real passion for dancing when I moved to Ireland, right after graduating from University in 2013. I was brimming with energy and it just needed to get out!

I got certified in Health Science, Personal trainer and fitness instructor/dancer and also as a Nutrition advisor. I now work as a freelancer Fitness instructor in different gyms and events in Dublin. My passion for dance and fitness made me specialize in Bodyweight training and my favourite classes to teach are Fitness Dance & Step Aerobics.