A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME

"Empowering Women Through Strength Training and Nutrition"

I was 17 when I had my first child and during the pregnancy, I had gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs when a pregnant woman has high levels of glucose in her blood. High blood glucose is caused because the mother cannot produce enough insulin (a pregnant person’s insulin needs are two to three times that of normal).

Being a teenage mom, I had no idea what gestational diabetes was, how it is caused, or what I should be doing.  I had a lot of questions but very little information that I understood on this topic. This was the first time, I started understanding how important it is to exercise and look after my nutrition at the same time.

I had recently finished school and I had no idea what nutrition is which increased my curiosity to learn more about exercise and nutrition.

It took me a while to understand what I need to do to be able to deal with gestational diabetes and I was able to do this well during my second pregnancy.

I did gain a lot of weight with my first pregnancy and in turn, had a big baby with a very difficult birth, but with my second pregnancy, I was way better as I did my research on gestational diabetes and how you work with pregnant women’s bodies before and after birth.

Since my curiosity increased, I planned to study Sports Science in 2011 and since then I have been learning every day about training, exercise, the human body, and nutrition.

I have worked in athlete development and as a trainer in the sports and fitness industry for over 10 years. I have a Degree in Sports and Exercise Science, a Post Graduate Diploma specializing in Advanced Sports Nutrition and Strength and Conditioning, along with experience in female athlete performance. In addition, I am pursuing a Ph.D. my thesis topic is Em-Power Lifting – Weightlifting as a vehicle for strengthening Mana Wahine values akin to wellbeing: A case study in Aotearoa.

I am very passionate about women’s health and particularly Māori women as we have high rates of diabetes and are prone to diseases, so this led me to start my online fitness and nutrition coaching business.

I love strength training and I compete in Olympic weightlifting. I create exercise and strength programs, and nutrition plans, to help empower wāhine to live healthy lives