The most popular beverage (part 2)
Did you know that legendary boxer Mike Tyson never had a cup of coffee in his life? Don’t worry, I’m not suggesting to totally stop
Stay up to date one everything nutrition and fitness related here on Ayda’s blog
Did you know that legendary boxer Mike Tyson never had a cup of coffee in his life? Don’t worry, I’m not suggesting to totally stop
Probably you already guessed, yes it’s coffee! The earth’s population is around 8 billion people, and about 1 billion of them are daily coffee drinkers.
Do you exercise but are not getting the results that you would like? If so, keep reading. In my previous column I talked about intuitive
Are you exercising in the correct way? Around 64 million Americans have a gym membership, but statistics show that as many as 65 percent of
What we can do about it? All metabolic diseases have one thing in common — insulin resistance. It is very much the missing that your
Why Insulin Resistance Matters According to a National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, only 12% of adults are metabolically healthy. Another recent survey shows that
Over consumption of added sugar can lead to chronic diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity which are becoming more common worldwide. We know
According to a survey by the American Psychological Association, 71% of us believe that willpower is a skill that can be developed. This is encouraging,
While both weight training and cardio offer distinct advantages, the key to a long and healthy life lies in balancing the two. It is important
Holidays make us happier and bring us together, so it’s likely that most of us would like to be able to sustain the holiday spirit.
Even though our brain is the most important and complex part of the body, we don’t often think of brain health. Our brain weighs about
Do you think that we know how to walk and move properly? You may be thinking that’s a silly question, of course I know how
Vegan and carnivore are both diets, or ways of eating, that are gaining a lot of popularity. Vegan involves consuming no animal products (and eating
I don’t know many people who don’t like to eat some type of fruit. Most fruits are delicious, many of them very sweet too. But
Exercise can be a powerful tool for disease prevention, but it is also very effective if you already have a disease. It can have positive
Ayda competes regularly in fitness competitions and is currently preparing for the 2023 North American championships.
You’ve probably heard so many people say “I love what I do”, BUT in my case I can truly say it from my heart. I’ve competed in sports all my life, but it wasn’t so long ago that I really understood that actually I can only ever compete with myself.
“You are perfect, until compare yourself with someone else”
I started contest prep in 2011, and since then I didn’t stop competing. In some competitions I got first place, in some it went not so well, but every competition that I prepared for taught me something more about myself and helped me take the correct direction, which I believe has shaped my work and my life in such a positive way.
When I competed in my first bikini competition I had just moved from my home country Turkey to Canada, and was getting used to the Canadian lifestyle — and, of course, the language too, which was the hardest part for me. I always wanted to do a fitness or bikini competition, but when I was still in Turkey the work and cultural differences made it so hard to do.
So I was in Vancouver BC, working at Steve Nash Fitness Club, and one of my co-workers, who was a competitor herself, asked me “why you are not competing?” I started asking myself and questioning if I could do it? I’d never done anything like it before… Maybe you’re asking yourself the same questions right now! Of course I told myself “absolutely, I can’’. And my competition journey began!
Each show that I competed in gave me more knowledge about my body, and how I can improve. Of course, it’s not easy to correctly identify what’s missing with training and nutrition, and this learning process and all of the experiences pushed me to learn more… I’ve been a personal trainer since 1993, but I wanted more and began my nutrition studies. I finished my Comprehensive Nutrition and Sports Nutrition degrees.
And yes, I am still competing! You can see a list of all of the competitions that I’ve competed in further down this page. And right now, AGAIN, I am getting ready for my next show…!
I’ll warn you right now, it wasn’t easy at all. The easiest part was the training, which was already part of my daily life. But posing, dieting, supplementation, getting a bikini, finding a trainer… This was much tougher, not the mention the cost for the registration, jewelry, tanning, hair and make-up, they cost a lot too.
But I wouldn’t let anything stop me, and right after my first show — WBFF in May, 2011 — I immediately started looking for the next show to compete in. I was hooked!
I am so happy to be able to help other competitors who are willing to work and improve their mind and health at the same time. My goal is to create healthy and happy bikini competitors, who want to challenge themselves and put in the work that needs to be done to reach their goals. There is really no easy way to get there… But there is a smart way.
I look forward to working together and sharing my knowledge with YOU to get you in the best shape of your LIFE!!!!!