You’ve gotta love a straight shooter like Unathi Msengana.
“I want my tush to stay tight like a tiger to keep it cute,” she quips. So you best believe squats are a staple in every workout. “And I’m always working on my stomach ’cause I can’t protrude front and back. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s just how I’ve always negotiated with my body!”
HEIGHT: 1.74m
BODY CHANGE: Size 40 to size 33
TIME FRAME: 4 years
SECRET WEAPON: Knowing that I deserved my dream body and committing to myself.
In 2013, the mother of two and versatile career woman shared with WH how she lost 28kg while training for the Unlimited Dusi Canoe Marathon.
“It’s been very easy to sustain because it’s become a lifestyle. It really feels good to be in charge of my health and wellbeing,” she says. When it comes to exercise, Unathi trains hard and fast. “I once heard J. Lo say that she trains like an athlete for specific events because she could never maintain that discipline the entire year. I chose to adopt that approach as well, to allow myself to have rest periods throughout the year,” she says.
Unathi loves…
Super circuits at gym. Her new obsession: the Grid at Virgin Active. She has no time for run-of-the-mill workouts. “My body easily regulates itself to a new workout routine so I change every 10-day period to maximise my results. Other days I run. Running leans me out, but isn’t too great for sculpting the body. The other disciplines take care of that swiftly.”
And when it comes to diet…
She’s in the no-more-deprivation camp. “I hate being hungry so I eat many small meals during the day, as opposed to the ‘traditional’ three. I avoid carbs, dairy and sugar and drink green smoothies regularly,” she says.
Her lifestyle has changed the way she operates…
She oozes confidence. “I was publicly shamed for years and suffered that public beating and humiliation. Today I host seminars called A Better You, where I invite specialists to help women who want to transform their bodies. I do it for women so they know that they are not alone and that they deserve the bodies they desire. We just have to commit to ourselves because our bodies are the only bodies we’ll ever know.”
Unathi’s Fit Day
Looking for more on Unathi? Check out the best hair looks she borrowed from the 90s. If you’re looking for more celebrity transformations, take a look at Hlubi Mboya get fit tips, Nomzamo Mabatha’s bangin bod secrets, Boity Thulo’s secret weapon for losing weight and Lee-Ann Leibenberg’s fit day secrets.
