By Jay SmithA
fter a bad breakup in 201 4 , Abdiaman went
back to Kenya, where she had grown up, and
was working at a not-for-profit. She felt unmoored.
She sublimated her emotional duress in poor
eating habits and was gaining weight. Her family
wondered what she was doing with her life. Finally
her sister came to visit her in Kenya, in the spring
of 201 4 , and talked tough. “I remember crying so
much and telling her that I don’t know what to
do. She told me to just go back to Canada and start
journalling.” Abdiaman took her advice, but first
went to the doctor. The results from her check-up
scared her.
“I was borderline diabetic and had high choles-
terol. I couldn’t believe that I had got myself to that
point over a breakup.” Upon returning to Canada
in the summer of 201 4 , she decided to sign up at
GoodLife Fitness and started off working with a
personal trainer three times a week. When she
w a sn’t at t he g y m , A bd ia m a n wou ld go w a l k c i rcles
at the track behind her house in Toronto, some-
times jogging.
“ That very quickly became easy for me. I started
jogging for 15 minutes and not feeling tired. Then I
wanted to do a race.” She ran her first 5k in the fall.
“I remember finishing that race and feeling such
a sense of accomplishment: I have done this, I have
managed to turn my life around, I’ve found some-
thing I love.”
That 5k was followed by a half-marathon and a
marathon. During that process, she also became
a personal trainer herself, and began working to
help others change their lives. She now sees that
running not only strengthened her physically, but
mentally as well. “It’s the one thing that has taught
me to ref lect on my failures and the stresses of
everyday life and see them as small obstacles,” she
says. “It’s helped me lift myself from the lowest,
darkest places.”
ABDIAMAN'S
ADVICE FOR
STARTING
OUT
Set reasonable goals
Abdiaman encourages her clients to see
the transition from being sedentary to
a more active lifestyle as being a long,
gradual process, full of small victories.
“Some clients come to me and say they
want to lose 50 lb. in a month or two.
That’s an unrealistic goal. I tell them,
“let’s focus on changing up your lifestyle
and exercising two or three times a
week.” Just stay active. Get up and go
outside instead of looking at a screen.Focus on taking it
day by day
Abdiaman encourages her clients to
keep their focus on the short term. “Just
do something positive every day, and
celebrate the small milestone,” she says.
Not eating chocolate or ice cream for a
few days, when you used to eat it every
day, counts.Hire a personal trainer
Sure, Abdiaman is a personal trainer, but
she’s not just plugging the profession.
Having someone to hold you account-
able to your goals – and help you find out
what sort of exercise works best for you –
can be decisive support.Keep a journal
Abdiaman found keeping a journal
helped her recognize the negative conse-
quences of her unhealthy behaviour, so
she recommends journalling to many
of her clients. “For me, I had a negative
relationship with food. Journalling helped
remind me how I would feel after binge
eating a bag of chips or chocolate bars.”Develop a positive attitude
In her work, Abdiaman tries to help
clients evolve a positive attitude towards
exercise. “Some see it as torture and
they dread exercise.” Finding the right
activities means that exercise is a posi-
tive experience. “Then they start to look
forward to it.”Jay Smith is a regular contributor. She’s an
avid trail runner in Edmonton.How She
Did It
Filsan Abdiaman wasn’t
always the fi t, happy runner
and personal trainer that
she is today.
12 Canadian Running November & December 2016, Volume 9, Issue 7
great strides