Nisha is a Wellness coach and activist who works with the global nutritional brand HerbalLife who aim to “improve nutritional habits with a range of tasty science-backed products available as an option”. She also runs her own fitness classes locally and is generally passionate about wellbeing where her personal journey into weight loss has deeply transformed her life: “after much hard work and reflection I am now metabolically at 30 years of age” she shared. Her role as a key distributor working with HerbalLife includes “helping people manage, maintain and plan better wellbeing by supplying the appropriate meal replacements, proteins and vitamins and minerals, and face and haircare to promote endurance, beauty and ultimately a healthy lifestyle.” The company has locations in 90+ countries and, impressively, “65,000 Nutrition clubs in total which is more bases than McDonalds.” Indeed, seeking to provide a fully working solution to our dominant culture of processed and fast food such a business model appears to be a salubriously counteractive one.
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“The ethos is to live your best life now,” Nisha elaborated: “and this can be at odds with a very fast-track world where the objective is often a superficial one of ‘getting a big house and two cars’. However, sustaining your body is vitally important and this involves implementing a beneficial routine – from eating the right way to getting enough quality exercise and regular sleeping habits.” Indeed, a role model in her own right, Nisha runs her fitness club separately where people are actively introduced to a general culture of wellness through the commitment to exercise in “Bollywood-Zumba fusion style.” Physicality is then treated as the epicentre of health where nurturing this can lead to the strong foundation for a truly enriching life: “this is why macronutrients are particularly important – it is a solution amongst a few to boost yourself at the bottom of a pyramid of priority where the body is the base: the type of food we eat commercially is not cellularly efficient material. In my classes, we do keep track of this alongside the weight loss and can incorporate it if applicable. One’s system has a threshold for how much it can manage before developing heart problems, including high levels of cholesterol etc. Even before Covid we were living in an extremely unhealthy way and must collectively learn to address the issue broadly.”
Nisha’s foray into fitness began following an individual medical scare: “I had been working in a high-pressure career in banking and had been neglecting myself. Additionally, I suffered a significant loss within the family: tragically, I lost my husband and had to cope with the grief as well as carryon on as a single mother. The stress showed itself in the worrying deterioration of my physical health. In 2018, my doctor issued me an ultimatum: “simply, you must lose weight. That is when I came to know of Herbal Life before becoming a brand ambassador and going on to open my own venture and studio. The program helped me to shed over 16 pounds of body fat while improving my muscle mass through an intensive regiment that combined cutting-edge education in well-researched nutrition and 3 days of exercise a week. I felt as if my independent goals were being encouraged.”
Another integral wellness value Nisha took away was the practice of the power of community which is at the heart of her current coaching success with her fitness studio: 24fitKenton. As well as creating a friendly environment in which people can emotionally bond, she hosts events after-hours such as cook-alongs and skincare parties: “healthy solidarity is of the utmost importance in maintaining one’s physique once obtaining it, which I cultivate in classes. We are social beings by nature and benefit much from affirmative guidance and mutual interests: you can present someone with a product or idea but it will be taken up better if one is supported in the handling of it: loneliness is another damaging epidemic.” Therefore genuine motivation is sparked through a warm and invested sense of purpose. “It is very interesting,” Nisha commented. “The wellness industry is rising worldwide, bringing in trillions, but it seems it is at once being adapted into grassroots movements – either you become a part of the change or are lost and swept away.” Meeting materialism with organic strength, Nisha shows us in a very direct, empowering way that the personal is the political.
Tell us a bit about your background and how it has impacted your nutritional journey?
I was born in India and grew up in Gujarat. I had my primary education there. From early on my parents and teachers made me understand the importance of hard work and how to be a good human being. We migrated to Kenya: my dad was an accountant. I joined a bank service after my high school as I was good with maths. As a family we always ate clean home cooked healthy food although after my marriage I was pulled into the Kenyan lifestyle; a world of carbs and fattening curries. Eating out is the norm there!
What draws you to the world of fitness emotionally?
When I moved to UK, I saw first-hand the scale of suffering in our community with lifestyle diseases. I share the passion for building core strength. As you age, it is imperative to build and maintain your muscles as it create a foundational baseline of health; you can boost your fitness naturally and with it the immune system.
What has been a highlight of your journey?
The pride I see in my legacy: my daughter is studying Osteopathy and keeps the focus on good health. She keeps up her fitness regime; my son takes full ownership of his mental and physical wellbeing while studying his degree in finance.
Just as exciting is the fact that I am helping my local 24fit Kenton community achieve their health and fitness goals too .
