We stand up for equal rights for all people, regardless of their gender identity. And not just today, but every 365 days of the year. Nevertheless, we would like to use today's International Women's Day to give two particularly strong women a stage: Nutritionist and yoga instructor Petra Orzech and bodybuilder Dunja Bitar. In the second FIBO interview, you can find out how Petra stays herself healthy, what her biggest milestone was and what message she wants to share with you.
How do you stay healthy?
With nutrition, exercise (including yoga, mountain and snowshoe hiking, SUP, dancing) and curiosity about life. These things have been with me more or less my whole life.
I love to read (and read a lot), constantly educate myself and also like to think outside the box. It is important for me, besides the intellectual understanding, to make it practically usable and experienceable for me.
What was your greatest personal milestone?
For me, there is no one milestone so far. There are always new situations and decisions that follow each other like a path. Like when we moved from Hamburg to Switzerland. That has enriched my life in every respect.
What characterises your SLIM YOGA programme?
Slim Yoga is about shaping your figure on the mat. Three building blocks work hand in hand to achieve this:
1. muscle training: muscles are the most effective fat burners and ensure beautiful body shaping.
2. breathing exercises: Deep inhalation fuels fat burning. Intense exhalation detoxifies the body.
3. relaxation techniques: Constant stress makes you fat. If you learn to relax, you practically no longer have ravenous appetite.
In addition, there is a crucial tool: "somatic intelligence" - our body has an intelligence that knows exactly what is good for us and what is not. In order for somatic intelligence to come into play, we have to learn to consciously perceive our body. And this is exactly where the SLIM YOGA programme supports us with its body, breathing and relaxation exercises. If we use our somatic intelligence, we automatically change our eating behaviour - chips, cola and cake lose the appeal they once had.
You especially support women in the menopause, how did that develop?
Out of my own need: All my life I have been good with my body, my figure. We were a well-coordinated team. But then in the menopause - that's when it hit me: belly and thigh gain. It felt like the extra pounds just appeared overnight. Not only did my clothes pinch - my body somehow became "strange" to me. I no longer understood it.
This was absolutely weird for me, as I have been involved in healthy eating since I was 15. I studied nutritional sciences at university - I am a so-called oecotrophologist. For 13 years, I developed and produced diets and recipes for Germany's biggest women's magazines and gave weight loss courses and lectures for health insurance companies and fitness studios. And at 50 plus, I was suddenly affected myself.
Many people around me said, "it's quite normal for women to gain weight at 50 plus". Okay, I thought, it's my body and I don't feel good in it any more. What can I do to "be me" again and get my personal feel-good body back? I dived deeper and deeper into the topic of menopausal nutrition to find a solution for myself.
With trial and error, I have succeeded: I have developed a concept that I now implement and thus go through the menopause light, slim and full of energy. This ultimately led to the MENO DETOX cure, which I use to support other women in the second half of life.
What is your message to all women out there?
Accept yourself consciously, deal with it - in theory and practice. As soon as we understand things and also put them into practice, it opens up completely new experiences for us. That makes us free and ultimately happy. We have so much in our own hands.
FIBO for female Empowerment
FIBO is actively committed to the advancement of women and demonstrates this commitment also during the FIBO Show. An excellent example is our first Ladies Lunch on 14 April, which brings together female experts from the fitness and health industry in an exclusive and inspiring setting at FIBO. In addition, we offer various lectures and panel discussions on the topic of women's health and gender equality from 13 to 16 April. A highlight is the Empower Event of the Future Talks on 15 April, which is specifically aimed at leaders and allies from the fitness and wellness industry who are committed to an inclusive industry that supports everyone.