Nigerian Fitness Instructor infuses African Music into fitness routine
Ada-Ari Agbim is the creator of AdaAri Fitness African workout videos. She is originally from Nigeria in West Africa and has been based in the US Capitol of Washington DC since 1996. The Nigerian health enthusiast uses her videos to encourage people to stay fit and also introduce them to African culture by way of music.
The fitness instructor says “my videos feature a wide range of workout genres including weightlifting, aerobics, and HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training)”. Ada has been teaching group exercise classes ever since she was trained and internationally certified in 2010 by LesMills – the world leader in group exercise programs.
Her attempts to create workouts that Africans can connect to emanate from her witnessing at firsthand the power that music has to motivate and push people during a workout session. “Because I cannot hide my pride in my African heritage, I am passionately working on revamping the face that fitness has back home on the continent in an effort to make it more enjoyable and enticing.”
According to Ada, “I am passionate about revamping the common opinion of our traditional foods and offering healthier ways to prepare them (less palm oil in soups for example). Some Africans tend to think that to eat healthily, you have to eat salad recipes that come from the west and completely abandon what we were raised on.”
“Our traditional foods are however very rich in all the nutrients our bodies need and simply need to be prepared with the right ingredients. For instance — remove palm oil from okra soup, and you’re eating a delicious blend of vegetables.“
It has become a common thing for health complications like heart attacks, increased level of stress and high-cholesterol related conditions that negatively impact well-being to be a common part of the African’s health problems.
“It is OK to copy but we must copy those things of the West that help us as a people and continent grow progressively, which is why my videos are made the way they are to awaken some positive forms of health awareness,” Ada says.
When TheAfricanDream.net asked how the fitness instructor encourages people to exercise she said: “Find a friend or two to do it with, take your time because fitness is a journey so there’s no need to rush yourself.
Focus on fitness goals – things you want to be able to do (walk up and down the stairs with greater ease, do more pushups, have more energy and stamina to play with your kids ). Focus on those goals, and take active steps towards achieving them every day. The change will come as long as you stay steadfast.”
Check out some of the exercise-themed videos by Ada on her YouTube Channel and pay attention to the accompanying music and moves too because folks here at TheAfricanDream.net have a fondness for the session called ‘Agility’ which has the music of Nigerian musician D’Prince as seen at the end of this story. Find out more about Ada on her Instagram page or on Facebook and remember to always stay healthy for yourself.
Watch our favorite video of Ada below
Authored by Oral Ofori
Oral Ofori is Founder and Publisher at www.TheAfricanDream.net, a digital storyteller and producer, and also an information and research consultant.
