The Bethel Fitness/ Bethel Fit Mum platform was born out of my desire to inspire and motivate other women to a healthier lifestyle after going through my own weight loss journey. But it would be unjust of me to say that I did is ALL on my own. Yes I put in the work and made the changes, but there were people that I was able to look to for the inspiration and motivation that I needed along the way!

For the next few days I will be doing features on some of the wonderful ladies that have inspired and motivated me in my fitness and healthy lifestyle journey.

Ms. Ronke Edoho aka 9jafoodie

If you love Nigerian food and you don’t already know about 9jafoodie then your dishes are probably not achieving their Full Yumminess Potential (FYP)!
I stumbled upon this lovely lady’s blog early in my weight loss journey. Being more health conscious, I wanted to ensure that my entire family was eating better, and her recipes were just what I needed to accomplish this! Before I discovered 9jafoodie I HATED cooking Nigerian food because I felt that the process was always too long and tedious, but her recipes make cooking fun and save me lots of time!

She recently released the Lose It Nigerian (LIN) e-book which has become a permanent fixture on my kitchen counter :). With over 50 recipes to choose from, there is something (very yummy!) for everyone. I am a proud member of the LIN family and always will be!

Ronke is an inspiration to me because even though she is an internationally known food blogger and working mother she has managed to keep up with a healthy lifestyle. I love the fact that she has been able to turn her love for food into something that can help others achieve a healthy lifestyle balance – which just goes to show what a genuinely caring person she is!

For #MyMarchMaddness, I asked Ronke a few questions about her fitness journey and here’s what she had to say…

Q: What does FITNESS mean to you?
A: Fitness for me is about confidence. When you eat well and exercise, you are just more confident about yourself no matter what size that might be.

Q: When did you begin living a healthier lifestyle and what inspired you to do so?
A: My quest for a healthier life started in my early 20s. I was overweight and depressed about my size. I wanted to be a better version of myself and that meant working hard and making conscious healthy eating decisions.

Q: What is your biggest struggle/constraint (if any) to maintaining a healthy lifestyle?
A: For me, it’s being a food blogger. I cook a lot of things for the blog and it’s often difficult to not overindulge in the calorie dense dishes.

Q : What is your favourite type of exercise?
A: I love strength training.

Q: One piece of advice you’d offer to someone that’s feeling discouraged on their fitness journey?
A: DO NOT rely solely on the scale. You might be losing fat and gaining muscle at the same rate so the scale might not change. Take measurements as well as weekly pictures, these are better indicators of success.

Q: What body part (if any) would you change?
A: My waist. I will love love love to have a 26 inch waist. This is not something I think I can ever achieve but a girl can dream. Lol.