From her front yard, fitness enthusiast, Grizelda Pietersen, from Schauderville, has been offering workout classes to children and adults in her community in a bid to encourage them to stay fit and healthy.
Pietersen (50), who is a competitive runner and has taken part in five Comrade Marathons, five Two Oceans Marathons and various other marathons, previously offered fitness training at Fit Bodies Gym, Shapes for Women and Dave’s Gym from 2017 to 2019.
Apart from competing in marathons, Pietersen has also taken part in multiple league races and non-league races.
In 2013, Pietersen’s passion for exercising encouraged her to bring fitness awareness to her community and, with help from her friend, Isaac Barendse, she was inspired to change the mindsets of many and in turn help them to feel encouraged to exercise.
Inspired by Billy Blank’s Tae Bo videos, Pietersen, who is a regular roadrunner, initially started encouraging people to join her fitness journey by demonstrating Tae Bo exercise moves on the side of the road, after each run, which many found entertaining.
“After I complete each run, I usually do a demonstration to sell the idea of running and exercising to encourage people to get active and stay fit,” Pietersen said.
“Exercising is my passion and because I am purpose-driven it gives meaning to my life; it makes my life so much easier; it keeps me disciplined and I am motivated because I have enough energy to exercise.”
In June, she started providing workout classes in her front yard to children and adults.
“We as the community have been exercising together for years but with the implementation of the nationwide lockdown, I started giving fitness lessons to children in my yard and later adults joined too,” she said. She added that depending on the weather, she is always willing and available to give workout classes in her yard to people in her community.
Apart from exercising the body, Pietersen believes it is very important for people to think positively, which will ultimately give them the courage to exercise and stay fit.
“It is also important to think positively because you cannot have a healthy body but have a negative mindset. Once you can train your mind to think positively, the body will submit.”
She added that it was important for people to take care of their bodies because each person was responsible for their bodies and in turn, their health.
“Your health is your wealth. You must take care of your body and love it because you are the one who has to live in it.”
