Women’s Health UK – September 2019

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Photography | TOM WATKINS SEPTEMBER 2019 | 61

’m incredibly close to

my three sisters. Growing

up, we were all pretty

sporty. I loved football

and basketball, but despite

my passion for sport, I’d

always thought of myself as chubby. I lost

quite a lot of weight quickly in my late teens

• looking back, I was in a very different
  place to where I am now with my attitude to
  exercise and nutrition. Although I managed
  to maintain my new lower weight, I
  remained bogged down with the numbers
  on the scales well into my early twenties.
  I went on to study law at university. It was
  tough – but basketball was my release, and
  my sisters were my rocks. Staying active has
  always kept my mind healthy, and with team
  sports you always have a community. As
  part of my course, the opportunity came up
  to move to New York for six months and I
  went for it. It was incredible, but being alone
  in such a big city, combined with working
  full-time in a law firm, was difficult. It was
  a steep learning curve and I was out of my
  comfort zone, without my family or the
  boost that playing team sports gave me.
  I wanted to meet people and stay busy
  when I wasn’t working, so I signed up to a
  branch of CrossFit five minutes away from
  my home. I didn’t commit to anything at
  first – I had this misconception about
  weightlifting and bulking. I only signed up
  for four weeks but loved it so much I stayed.
  It gave me a sense of community again, and
  the new challenges I faced there made me
  feel strong. I came back to England for my
  fourth year of uni with a different attitude
  to fitness. I rejoined a local basketball
  league, but started working on lifting with
  a trainer, Mikhail, too. It wasn’t about

jumping on the scales any more,

but about how my body felt: strong.

Despite never thinking of myself

as a runner, when my sisters signed

up for the London and New York

City marathons in quick succession,

I was inspired to join their training

sessions. The NYC race was in

November 2018, and, post CrossFit,

my attitude was ‘why not?’. I signed

up to do 10ks with my sisters, and

in early 2018 I joined them in a

half marathon. I barely trained,

but on the day, I knew I could do it.

I ran it in just over two hours.

Now I know that I can maintain

a healthy mind and body in

combination, and I have full

confidence in what my body can

do. My sisters are my motivation

• watching them go out on their
  runs is so inspiring. Along with
  Mikhail, I’m so lucky to have that
  support system, even if they’re
  encouraging me to do next year’s
  marathon... Watch this space!

PRE-MATCH TUNE

I Believe from the

movie Honey – I

blare it out before

a basketball game

GRAB-AND - GO

LUNCH

Tossed salads never

fail to hit the spot –

I love avocado and

grilled chicken

FITNESS PB

I can leg press 100kg

HOW I GET FIT DONE

‘A CHANGE

IN FITNESS

MINDSET HELPED

ME THRIVE’

Hana Bibi, 24, a city worker from

London, found a new support

network in fitness when

she moved overseas

August 2017: Arriving back

from NYC

February 2019: After working

with Mikhail

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Pictured at The Move
Studios Fulham