She watches every bite she puts into her mouth – closely – and if she went a day without exercising, her world would be disrupted. It’s not about disorder or obsession, but it is all about being healthy. For Catrina Wold, fitness is a way of life.
An Appalachian State University graduate student, Catrina believes that fitness will always be a major part of both her personal and professional life. Prior to beginning her life outside of grad school, Catrina has committed her time and energy serving as a graduate assistant to football, tennis, softball, soccer, and basketball teams. She works out daily, along with another fifty or so collegiate-level athletes.
While it might seem like excessive gym time to some, it’s
just all in a day’s work for Catrina and something she enjoys immensely – minus the five a.m. alarm! While the early morning alarms are less than appealing, she says she has always loved being in shape and sacrificing a little sleep is well worth it.
“Being fit to me does not mean having the skinniest and most lean body,” she states. “Being fit means having a healthy body fat percentage, proper amounts of lean muscle mass, and feeling healthy to perform your personal daily activities. I work out and lift weights because it makes me feel good, but also because I want to have a healthy body as I age.”
Catrina realized long ago that she wanted her career to be intensely focused on staying fit and helping others do the same as well.
“I think it started when I was in high school,” she says. “I knew that I enjoyed the feeling I get when I lifted weights, so I wanted to help others achieve that same positive feeling and confidence. As I went through my undergraduate program, I realized I enjoyed learning how to help people reach their peak condition for their athletic performance. I believe it truly stems from the feeling I get when someone I work with achieves something new in the gym, such as lifting a heavier weight, feeling better doing their activity, or getting through the day a little easier.”
While exercise might not be the easiest part of the day for some people, it still is extremely important to fit it in frequently. “Particularly for women, because of the issues with osteoporosis and muscle mass,” she emphasizes.
“Exercise can help prevent disease, improve mobility, increase energy and alertness, and improve a person’s daily mood,” she states. “By weight training, women can improve their bone mineral density and muscle mass, which will help keep their bones and bodies in optimal shape as they age. It is extremely important for all females to weight train, but also for young females while their bones are still growing and laying down bone mass. Even if a female already has the signs of osteoporosis, weight training can still help improve her condition.”
Catrina knows that every woman might not have the time commitment for a strict weight-training regime, but notes simple ways to fit exercise into our day-to-day lives.
“First, people need to look at all of the benefits of exercise and start looking at it as a stress relief instead of a chore,” she states.  “If you want to start exercising, you have to plan for it. If you plan exercise into your schedule, you are more likely to stick to the plan. I think it is also important to start looking at daily activities and realize where we can fit additional bits of movement into our day. This could be as simple as walking to the grocery store, taking the stairs, or playing with the dog or children.”
There also are other options for free and easy exercise online, she notes. Shape magazine’s online edition has a quick and easy way for men or women to check their ideal body weight by entering height, weight, sex and frame size. Shape.com also has a tool that helps measure body mass index (BMI), calculated by weight in relation to height. Both of these tools on Shape.com are free, confidential and take less than a minute to complete. Fitness magazine and Women’s Healthy online sections also have free daily meal plans, customized workouts and exercise demos.
Catrina says that even if someone does not have the time or money to work out every day they can still watch what they eat.
“Portion size is key when watching your diet, “ Catrina states,“and if you need something to munch on, then try steamed soybeans because they taste great and are super healthy!”