Dr. Shima Rashid – Keeping FIT is a strive but NOT impossible for a CAREER Mom

Dr. Shima is a surgeon who specializes in  Ear Nose Throat (ENT) and mother of 4 young children. Within less than a year, she participated in many many runs. Here’s a brief on what drives her to keep FIT!

“I had my 4th baby just after Raya last year (August 2013) and I felt like I wasn’t losing weight. I had never really taken care of myself after my first baby anyway. Seemed like life and work got in the way! Although this was my 4th C-section, it was still hard to get back into the normal routine. I was very lethargic all the time. So when my baby was about 3 months, and having never ever run before, I taught myself to run, using certain applications on the smart phone. My first official run was the Bangi Fun Run, end of last year. With the support of friends and family, I found that I actually liked running and yes the weight was starting to fall off and the rest, they say, is history!”

YAY for Dr. Shima!

Here’s some sharing about Dr. Shima and her active lifestyle.

1) On this month of Ramadhan, do you do any exercise ?

I try to do some aerobics at home, but it is minimal as there are other ibadah that take up my time.

2) How do you feel when your weight is reduced and that you have achieved your certain target?

I feel great, of course, and more importantly I have learnt that there are no ‘short cuts’ when it comes to health. It is a type of investment – you need to put in time and effort to achieve good results.

3) What is your fitness target?

To achieve a normal Body Mass Index (BMI). And to maintain it!!

LOOK HOW MANY RUNS DR. SHIMA PARTICIPATED IN LESS THAN A YEAR!

Events

4) How do you manage your time between work, family and fitness?

I usually workout after 8pm during weekdays and early mornings during weekends. The workout schedule may be ‘ruined’ due to a child’s illness, or being called to the hospital during On-Call. It is a challenge, but you do what you can.

5) Do your other family members have an active lifestyle? How old is your eldest and youngest child? Do you do any activities with them? 

My husband plays futsal twice a week but he doesn’t fancy running. My eldest is 10 years old and my youngest is 11 months old. My older 2 children – Nazme who’s 10 and Effa who’s 8 – have started to want to join me in running events and so we train together during weekends. My 3rd one, Ezza who’s 4, wants to join too but she’s still has some growing up to do before she can.

gambar anak-anakIsn’t Dr. Shima awesome? Not only she has a HIGH self-discipline teaching herself to run and keeping up with it, she also shares her active lifestyle together with her children.

Dr. Shima like many other mothers, gets through her daily life by ‘doing what she can’  in taking care of the children and balancing career and health. Yes, there is no short cut. Fitness like anything else in life, requires EFFORT.

A big thanks to Dr. Shima Rashid who gives us many words of encouragement to build better products for modest women like her. She wears Nashata’s  Ultra Top, Riada Tops, Amin and Iman Hijabs and Riada Active Pants. She has got them all!

Be Inspired : Why and How Amy, once an Overweight Mother of 5, is NOW an Aerobic Instructor

Kak Amy, as how she wants to be addressed, is a petite and active grandmother and a mother of five children. She is the co-founder and the main instructor at the Fun 2 Fit Aerobic &  Dance Studio, a place where women can get trained on aerobic and dances comfortably. Kak Amy started the studio together with her friend Kak Ram, and with the support of Y.Bhg. Datin Dr. Zainah binti Moktar. The studio is located on the first floor, Taman Sri Pulai Perdana, Skudai, Johor. On the ground floor, Kak Amy and her partner operate Fun 2 Eat Cafe where they serve healthy-cooked meals.

Kak Amy

How did her passion in Aerobic start?

Ten years ago, Kak Amy was overweight at 70 kg. She was determined to loose weight and with her husband’s blessing, she started aerobic. Being a muslimah, she was concerned going to the gym and dance studio opened for both male and female. It was hard to find any dance studio solely catered for women.

Through aerobics,  Kak Amy started to loose weight. Initially, the progress was slow, so she started educating herself on weight lost. This included learning different types of exercises, nutrition and deep understanding of our bodies. Her passion grew further and she was determined to take it to the next stage – to be an instructor.

So five years ago, Kak Amy planned to take the exams to be a certified fitness trainer. The certification was commission by the Ministry of Youth and Sports. With much challenges being a mother and soon-to-be grandmother, she passed the exams. That was the pivotal point of her passion in aerobic when Kak Amy started to train others.

Why did Kak Amy open up a dance studio specially for muslimah?

Kak Amy understands the need of other muslim women to have a special fitness center specially for women. Women tends to be more comfortable when they are among themselves. Furthermore, when it comes to dancing, one needs to enjoy the movement freely. So at Kak Amy’s all-women  dance studio, one can wear any attire they are comfortable in and sweat out!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAfun2fitaerobic and dance studio

How is a dance studio for muslimah differ from others?

First, it is for all women. No man is allowed. Secondly, ladies who come can choose to wear attire they are comfortable in. Kak Amy equips the studio with tools and equipment for all types of exercises. Thirdly, only indoor workout shoes are allowed. Trainees can keep their clean shoes at the studio. Lastly, the studio is clean for muslimah to pray as and when needed.

It is muslimah and Islamic friendly.

How does Kak Amy organise her classes?

Kak Amy, now 46 years old, trains not only at her studio but also external events. She is frequently being invited by hotels in Skudai area to train groups and companies on fitness and team building. At times, she does her training in the forest. Kak Amy uses Nashata Riada Top during outdoor activities. She has all five colors of Riada Top. She likes them because the design gives a very good ventilation during outdoor activities.

Her classes at the studio are scheduled either in the morning or evening. This is to suit busy schedule of women, working or not. Every trainee gets trained twice a week in a group of 20, for duration of an hour each. Every week, she focuses on one particular dance so that in a month, the students get to learn and practice four types of dances effectively.

What type of dances does Kak Amy teach at her studio?

All sorts of dances but since many of the trainees are new to aerobics, they focus on salsa latin, arabian dance, J-robik, hip hop kick boxing and etnic dance. However, occasionally, she schedules special dance classes like Zumba and Batuka at her studio. Her Batuka Dance Class scheduled on the 8th March is already SOLD OUT!

At each session, Kak Amy supplements the aerobic and dance routines with either floor exercise, rectangle step board, Stick2Stix, oval step board or fitball and dumbbell.
Fun 2 Fit Aerobic & Dance Studio

What motivates Kak Amy to train others aerobic?

Aerobic is good and fun for women. You get to move your body, enjoy the music and social with other muslimah. But to Kak Amy, fitness is beyond aerobic. She teaches about consuming healthy food, understanding one’s Body Mass Index (BMI) and the importance of performing different type of exercises. That is also the reason why she started  Fun to Eat Cafe just right below her dance studio three years ago.

Kak Amy trains other aerobic instructors too. When we visited her at her studio, we were appalled with the level of energy our sisters and her trainer. Her dance studio is not limited to muslimah only. She has non-muslim trainees. MUHIBBAH her dance studio is! At the end of the day, she wants her trainees to have a good time, exercise safely, has a good sleep with no pain before or after waking up and feeling fresh.

Her dance teams have won various competitions some of which represented Johor State to national level. Alhamdulillah, from her determination to loose weight, aerobic is now her passion and profession, keeping her healthy, beautiful and active.

Watch Kak Amy demoing simple steps on how to use the Gym Step

Kak Emy is the supporter of program Jom Kurus 1 Malaysia in Johor Bahru. Here is a her picture with the Kevin Zahri, the organiser of #jomkurus

1

 

If you are interested to join her exciting training program, visit Fun 2 Fit Aerobic & Dance Studio at No2A-01, Jalan Pulai Perdana 11/1, Taman Sri Pulai Perdana 81100 Skudai, Johor Bahru or simply give her a ring at +017-7716073.