{"id":102212,"date":"2021-01-05T09:30:25","date_gmt":"2021-01-05T09:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/?p=102212"},"modified":"2021-01-05T09:33:40","modified_gmt":"2021-01-05T09:33:40","slug":"my-passion-for-fitness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stories.qvcuk.com\/presenters\/jackie-kabler\/my-passion-for-fitness\/","title":{"rendered":"My passion for fitness"},"content":{"rendered":"

My interest in fitness came to me rather late. At school, it was all about academia for me; I was the girl who was never picked for a sports team, who couldn\u2019t score goals in hockey or hit the ball in tennis. PE lessons were something to be dreaded, and that dislike of exercise continued until my late thirties. By then I was travelling the world as a TV news reporter, working long hours six or seven days a week, and there was simply no time or place in my life for \u201ckeeping fit\u201d.<\/p>\n

Then I realised I was starting to put on weight and, more significantly, beginning to struggle with stress and lack of energy. I\u2019d heard so much about the benefits of exercise for both mental and physical wellbeing – was it time to give it a go?<\/p>\n

I decided that maybe it was, and so I bought a few exercise DVDs and began, very gradually, to make some changes. And then I discovered running, and a passion for fitness that I would never have thought possible back in my teens. Fast forward fifteen years or so and I can honestly say that in my fifties I\u2019m the fittest I\u2019ve ever been.<\/p>\n\"\"\n

Nowadays, exercise and running in particular is an absolute priority (some might say an obsession!) for me; in 2019 I ran 1,000 miles for charity, the equivalent of 38 marathons or 76 half marathons, doing crazy things like running a marathon and two half marathons in the space of one week to fit it all in. 2020 was a bit of a write-off in terms of running events for obvious reasons, so I\u2019m hoping to take on more challenges in 2021.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s not just about challenging myself; I know that if I feel anxious or stressed, I will always, ALWAYS feel better if I can go out for a run. I try to fit in a couple of strength sessions a week too, to keep my upper body and core strong.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to fit it all in around everything else I do, but it\u2019s so important to me that I make the time, even if that means getting up at 5am (much easier in the summer, and luckily, I\u2019m an early bird by nature!)<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t like running on roads, and I\u2019m lucky that I live in the Cotswolds so I have some wonderful hills, fields and canal routes on my doorstep – if you follow me on social media you\u2019ll see that I often stop to take photos too! Being fit seems to make everything in life easier to cope with, calms my busy mind and helps me keep on top of anxiety, something I\u2019ve begun to struggle with in recent years.<\/p>\n\"\"\n

Of course not everyone wants to run marathons, and even when you love your sport as much as I do there are days when it\u2019s too cold, or I\u2019m too tired, or I just really can\u2019t get motivated. So if you\u2019re trying to make a few changes and get a bit fitter in 2021, here are a few of my top tips!<\/p>\n